Rush
About the Company
Rush is a versatile Shopify app designed to help online stores manage post-purchase operations. It focuses on providing shipment tracking, customer notifications, and increasing customer lifetime value by incorporating upselling and cross-selling features. The app is particularly popular among dropshippers and eCommerce businesses that rely on efficient order tracking and customer communication to improve their return on investment (ROI).
The software offers several core features, such as email, SMS, and push notifications about order status. It also provides customizable tracking pages for merchants to maintain consistent branding. Additionally, Rush integrates seamlessly with popular Shopify apps like Klaviyo, Omnisend, and Loox, helping stores optimize customer engagement after a purchase is made.
Rush’s unique value proposition lies in its ability to combine multiple tools that solve common eCommerce challenges. It allows businesses to manage post-purchase customer communication while driving repeat purchases and reducing customer inquiries.
Idea Behind Company
The concept for Rush emerged from Kirilov’s decade-long experience in eCommerce, where he identified gaps in the post-purchase experience for both merchants and customers. His journey began with platforms like eBay, Amazon FBA, and dropshipping, where he faced common issues such as lost shipments, chargebacks, and low customer retention. Kirilov’s frustration with these problems drove him to develop a solution that could streamline the post-purchase process for Shopify merchants.
He noticed that while there were plenty of apps offering tracking or upselling, there wasn’t one app that combined these features effectively. Kirilov and his business partner, Stanislav Stankov, saw an opportunity to create an all-in-one tool that could simplify the post-purchase experience, transforming tracking and notifications into a revenue-generating feature for merchants.
Rush was conceived as a "Swiss army knife" for Shopify store owners, providing them with tools to close the gap between order placement and unboxing, keeping customers informed and engaged throughout the shipping process. This focus on solving real eCommerce problems made Rush an essential app for many Shopify merchants.
Creating the Company
Kirilov and Stankov took a methodical approach to building Rush. They started by identifying key pain points in the eCommerce industry, asking critical questions about what customers need after placing an order and how merchants could turn that into a business advantage. Their goal was to create software that would track, notify, and upsell customers, making them more likely to return for future purchases.
In the early stages, Rush was just a two-person operation, with the founders handling everything from development to customer support. However, they soon expanded their team, bringing in specialists to help refine and enhance the app. By June 2021, the team had grown to 25 members, each contributing their expertise to the product's success.
Their first major milestone came when they secured their first paying customer, validating the app’s usefulness in the Shopify ecosystem. With continued improvements and customer feedback, Rush quickly gained traction, attracting more users and driving impressive results for merchants, such as a 10x ROI and a 33% increase in returning customers.
Launching the Business
The official launch of Rush came in early 2020, following months of development and refining the product to meet Shopify's requirements. Kirilov emphasized the importance of a strong team and selecting the right specialists to execute the vision behind Rush. Once the app was ready, the challenge shifted to attracting its first customers and proving that the product solved a real problem in the market.
Rush's success in the initial months was marked by its ability to not only attract customers but also retain them. Customer feedback and metrics showed significant improvements in order tracking inquiries and customer engagement. By the end of 2020, Rush had grown its user base and started generating revenue.
Rush’s marketing efforts involved a mix of organic traffic through blog posts and collaborations, as well as guest posts on partner websites. They also utilized a free trial model to allow merchants to test the app, which helped drive early adoption and positive reviews. Despite the hurdles of building brand awareness and optimizing their marketing channels, Rush continues to grow, attracting more Shopify store owners.
Earnings
Rush generates around $20K in monthly recurring revenue (MRR) with over 1,500 active installations on Shopify stores. The app helps businesses increase their customer retention and sales by improving post-purchase communication and upselling opportunities. Shopify merchants using Rush have seen a 33% rise in returning customers and a significant reduction in tracking inquiries.
Rush recently closed a seed funding round of €2.5 million, backed by prominent venture capital firms and angel investors, including the founder of WooCommerce and executives from BigCommerce and ShipBob. The funding will allow Rush to expand its team and continue enhancing the app's features, with future plans to become the go-to post-purchase solution for eCommerce businesses.
Looking ahead, Kirilov and his team aim to grow Rush’s customer base to tens of thousands, building on their existing success and delivering even more value to Shopify store owners worldwide.
