LevelUp

LevelUp is an American mobile ordering and mobile payments platform created by Boston, Massachusetts–based start-up SCVNGR.[1] On July 25, 2018, it was announced that LevelUp would be acquired for US$390 million by Grubhub, an online food delivery platform.[2]

For other uses, see Level Up.
LevelUp
Type of businessPrivate
Type of site
Mobile Payments, Online food ordering (delivery and pickup)
Available inEnglish
Headquarters
Boston, Massachusetts
,
United States
Area servedWorldwide
OwnerJust Eat Takeaway
Founder(s)Seth Priebatsch
Employees200
ParentGrubhub Inc.
URLwww.thelevelup.com
RegistrationRequired
LaunchedMarch 2011
Current statusActive

History

LevelUp was initially launched in March 2011,[3] and operated for its first 3 months as a daily deals platform.[4] In July 2011, LevelUp shifted away from daily deals to focus exclusively on facilitating mobile payments.[5] In July 2013, around 200,000 users and 3,000 companies were using LevelUp.[6] In October 2014, around 14,000 stores were using LevelUp.[7] In May 2017, they announced that they had raised $50 million in funding, with over 50,000 locations and more than 200 brands using Levelup.[8]

Overview

The LevelUp mobile application for iPhone, Android and Windows Phone allowed registered users to securely link their debit or credit card to a unique QR code displayed within the app. To pay with LevelUp, users scanned the QR code on their phone at LevelUp terminals located at local businesses who accept LevelUp as a form of payment.[1]

Some merchants that accepted LevelUp as a form of payment also offered monetary savings to users.[9] Users are given “First-Time Visit Specials” the first time they made a transaction at the merchant's location. Users could also unlock "credit" to a merchant's store after spending a certain amount at the merchant's location.[5]

As of June 2016, LevelUp was available for businesses in the Boston,[3] Chicago,[1] Washington DC, Northern Virginia, Philadelphia,[5] St. Louis, New York City,[5] Atlanta, San Francisco,[5] Dallas, San Diego, Minneapolis, Montgomery, Kansas City, Seattle, and Wilmington (North Carolina) areas.

In early 2018, the company announced the release of Broadcast, enabling restaurant brands to reach new customers by allowing them to browse live menus, order ahead and pay directly from high-traffic apps such as Facebook, Messenger, Yelp, Foursquare, Amazon Alexa and Chase Pay.[10]

As of September 30, 2021, the LevelUp app is no longer available.

References
  1. Wong, Wailin (February 16, 2012). "Loyalty program LevelUp to launch in Chicago". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  2. "Grubhub acquires payments and loyalty company LevelUp for $390M". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  3. Kirsner, Scott (March 11, 2011). "Test-driving SCVNGR's new LevelUp app for local discounts". Boston Globe. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  4. Jennifer Van Grove (10 March 2011). "SCVNGR Pilots New Hybrid Mobile App for Local Merchant Deals With Game Mechanics". Mashable.
  5. Sutter, John D. (12 October 2011). "LevelUp app aims to keep coupon users coming back". CNN.
  6. Chen, Brian X. (July 12, 2012). "LevelUp Tries Dropping the Transaction Fee for Mobile Payments". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  7. Shontell, Alyson (April 16, 2014). "Payment Startup LevelUp Thinks It Has Found A Way To Charge Merchants A 0% Credit Card Processing Fee". Business Insider. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  8. Ainger, Neil (May 16, 2017). "LevelUp mobile app gets $50 million in latest fintech fundraising round". CNBC. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
  9. Martinez, Edecio (August 29, 2011). "LevelUp challenges Groupon's model with trio of deals". CBS News. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  10. Whitten, Sarah (2018-01-09). "LevelUp rolls out new service for restaurants hoping to snag new customers". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-02-11.

Further reading
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