Winrock invests $100K in Bentonville startup Wishfluence

Wishfluence, a Bentonville startup that’s developed an app used by jewelry stores, has received $100,000 from the Winrock International Validation Fund, a nonprofit fund focused on investing in validation-stage startups in Arkansas.

With Wishfluence, sales associates at jewelry stores can interact with their customers and close sales more efficiently and effectively. The technology works with legacy software like point of sale (POS) systems and/or business line texting solutions that many jewelers already use.

Andrew Martin (CEO) and his wife Carin (COO), University of Arkansas graduates, created the app in 2016 to digitize “pen and paper” wish lists seen in many jewelry stores across the country and to enhance the in-store experience.

Using Wishfluence, the app creators said pilot stores saw growth in key areas:

• Average revenue growth per year increased from 11% in 2013 to 2016 (before Wishfluence) to 13% in 2017 to 2020 (after Wishfluence)
• Average customer growth increased from 2.5% to 5.6%
• Average transaction growth increased from 3% to 8%.

“We have seen tremendous growth in our product and the services we provide to our clients with the release of version 3.3,” Andrew Martin said. “Our team has several developments and features queued up for 2023 and are excited to see Wishfluence scale.”

Blakeman’s Fine Jewelry President Ben Blakeman has used the Wishfluence technology in his Rogers store since 2017.

“It is a great way to keep everyone connected with customer needs and future wants,” Blakeman said. “The accessibility of the app helps us run smoother and gives customers peace of mind knowing their wish list will always be available. We love that it also provides an easy way for our team to work together and assist customers easily.”

The Martins will use the Winrock funding to launch Wishfluence’s national sales campaign.