Swiss-born sisters Antonia and Lidia Bolla have created a solution to the problem many women face daily -- they don't know what to wear. They have launched a virtual shopping assistant (robot?) called Jamie & I that began as a start-up program at the University of Sydney. After winning $10,000 in funding in a business pitch contest, they turned the program into a business.
Turning a passion for style into a business
Antonia came up with the idea first and worked on it for tree months while also learning all she could about how to start a business. She then entered her idea into a start-up competition at her school, the University of Sydney, and won $10,000 in funding as well as mentoring. She knew then that the idea would work as a business, and she wanted her sister to join her.
She convinced her sister Lydia to leave Switzerland and join her in Sydney, Australia, to help launch the business. Lydia's background in programming proved to be a huge asset. Together, they were able to develop not only the web site but a very smart virtual shopping assistant named "Jamie."
Meet "Jamie," the virtual assistant
How does it work? Online shoppers answer a series of questions about style preferences that teaches Jamie what individual styles are preferred. The quiz takes about 10 minutes, and the next day, the shopper receives recommendations along with prices. The more shoppers use Jamie, the smarter Jamie becomes about what each shopper likes.
Both entrepreneurs want to expand their product beyond Australia and into the European market and then across the globe. As Lydia explains, "We want to be a global service," she said, "and handpick the cool little brands all over the world, and connect you to them."
Sounds like this new product is something every women (and man) in the world needs!
To learn more about Jamie, visit www.jamieandi.com/
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