Göteborg-based Fishbrain, sort of a mobile Facebook for fishermen, has received an undisclosed amount of funding from Sweden’s Almi Innovationsbron. The capital will be used for the standard stuff – to accelerate the development and help Fishbrain reach new markets.
Fishbrain has been seeing good traction since we last saw them pitching and winning the lightweight category at Helsinki’s giant “Slush” conference. The app has become the most downloaded “Sport” category in Sweden, and more than 15,000 catches have been recorded.
The capital is good news for the Swedish company, but one thing that seems to be on their mind is a new partnership with Swedish outdoor supplier, Normark, a subsidiary of Rapala. They would promote Fishbrain starting with sweden in ads, online, their Facebook page, and in their pro-guides. It’s really big for us,” says
It also looks like a big opportunity for Normark. The outdoor retailer would then be able to target specific fishermen. “We collect so much data,” says Attby. “We collect where they fish, how they fish, when they fish… and also if they catch something. They see the unique opportunities of targeting Fly Fishermen for example.”
If Fishbrain can bring the type of traction they’ve been telling Normark, it’s very likely they will be alble to bring their app worldwide through Rapala’s global network. Rapala has offices in 37 countries and offers a product portfolio for all sorts of fishermen.
The app is only availible for download on iOS in Sweden, and the company working on building their Android app before they launch abroad. Their eyes seem set on the United States and catching the Spring fishing season, so they imagine their Android app will be finished within a month, or a month and a half.
