Naperville-based startup Dinn Dinn is hoping to become the social network for foodies everywhere. The recently-launched mobile app allows users to share the foods they love or warn others about the meals they hate, create a profile of their specific taste, and even make friends (TasteBuds) within a local and global network of food fanatics.
The company was founded by Jeremy Markham and Kyler Juckins, two nineteen year-old entrepreneurs who, in addition to their passion for food and tech, happen to share the same birth date. The pair cultivated the idea for a food-centric social app during their high school years, where they were mentored and encouraged by their automotive teacher to pursue the venture. Markham and Juckins launched Dinn Dinn on iOS and Android devices earlier this week.
“Eating shouldn’t be a boring, unemotional experience,” said Markham. “With the way the tech world is evolving, we want to revolutionize people’s dining experiences.”
While the free app is only just out of the gate, Markham believes the small team has some innovative features in the works that will keep its user base growing steadily. The co-founders recognized the importance of creating an app that will have lasting appeal among its users, and is making sure to continue to bring something new to the table with future updates. “Our second and third phases are what will really set us apart and take in a completely different and unique direction,” Markham said. “We can’t say exactly what those features are because they have not yet been seen in this space.”
Both Markham and Juckins have jumped head-first into the Chicago startup community with a presentation at this month’s Built in Chicago Launch event. “So far we absolutely love it,” said Markham. “At the Built in Chicago event we saw people that all gathered for a common interest, and they all genuinely cared to hear our story — as we did theirs.”
Markham admitted that, while the company is committed to working hard on improving the social food sharing app, it’s important to continue having fun with the venture as long as they’re working at it. “We have already achieved a number of personal dreams just by getting to this point,” Markham said. “We don’t want to end up in a place where we no longer have fun — we didn’t choose this path so we could dread going to work everyday.” In their time outside of the office, Markham and Juckins enjoy trying new restaurants and seeking out hidden gems of the city.
For now the co-founders are continuing to develop updates and spread the word about Dinn Dinn, even going as far as personally handing out flyers in their hometown. “People want to see who created the app, and face-to-face contact is the best way to share our story and our product,” Markham said. “We have some big plans coming soon, and getting the word out and gaining traction is huge for us.”
Head over to the Dinn Dinn website to find out more about the new app, or simply download it from Apple’s App Store or Google Play to try it out for yourself.
