Pinterest acquires shopping platform The Yes

Pinterest has acquired The |Yes, an AI-powered shopping service focused on fashion, although terms of the deal were not disclosed. Pinterest has ambitious commercial shopping ambitions

Swati Bhat

Pic Courtesy: Pinterest x The Yes

The Yes was founded by former Stitch Fix COO Julie Bornstein and co-founder, Amit Aggarwal, and is honed on providing users a personalised shopping feed whereby technology 'learns' a user’s style as they shop across hundreds of online fashion platforms and websites. Its AI will fast-track Pinterest’s shopping ambitions and establish a new strategic organisation.

While Pinterest is an image-sharing service and source of discovery, The Yes’s brand relationships and shopping expertise can potentially be applied to other categories on Pinterest such as home, beauty and food.

The acquisition will see Ms Bornstein report to Pinterest’s co-founder and CEO, Ben Silbermann, who will lead shopping vision and strategy across Pinterest. The new management team will create a new and strategic organisation dedicated to Pinterest’s taste-driven shopping efforts to help steer the evolution of features for Pinners and merchants on Pinterest, a press release stated.

“I’ve spent my career at the intersection of shopping, fashion and technology and have seen firsthand the valuable impact of building technology that enables brands to join a platform with ease while enabling customers to share their preferences,” Bornstein said. “Joining forces with Pinterest to broaden our reach utilizing such an inspirational platform is an exciting and ideal next step for our team and technology.”

As a result of the acquisition, The Yes will shut down its app and site and will focus solely on Pinterest.

Ben Silbermann commented: “The Yes team are experts in building an end-to-end shopping experience. They share our vision of making it simple to find the right products that are personalized for you based on your taste and style. We’re very excited about The Yes’s talented team and technology as we build dedicated shopping experiences on Pinterest.

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Pinterest launches first UK Creator Fund for under-represented creators

United Kingdom, June 07: Social media network Pinterest has launched its Creator Fund in the UK to elevate under-represented creators, following the successful launch in the US last year.

Pritish Bagdi

Pic Courtesy: Pinterest

The Creator Fund aims to reduce barriers of entry for creators from historically marginalised communities, including Black, LGBTQIA+, Asian, Indigenous people, as well as people with disabilities.

The programme is part of Pinterest’s ongoing work to make the platform an inclusive and inspiring place, and the first round of UK applications will focus on LGBTQIA+ fashion and beauty-related content creators.

Successful candidates will be invited to join an intimate five-week programme of events and educational sessions to set them up for long-term success. They will learn about content creation and monetisation opportunities, as well as access the creator community. In addition, they will also receive 20,000 pounds in the form of a cash grant, equipment and more, to help them reach new audiences.

Hannah Ngakane, strategic partner manager at Pinterest, said in a statement: “At Pinterest, we’re committed to elevating creators from under-represented communities, and building a positive and inspiring place for their content to be discovered and celebrated.

“Through our Creator Fund, we’re able to assist talent financially and educationally and provide a clear path for creators to access the tools and resources they need to succeed.”

Pinterest’s Creator UK Fund is accepting applications until June 19.

#thecommunique #tc #tcn #pinterest #lgbtqi+ #black #asian #UK #fashion #fund #lifestyle