{"data":{"type":"company_profile","id":23239,"entity_id":"wefunder:company:23239","attributes":{"canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear","generated_at":"2026-06-14T02:57:00Z","updated_at":"2026-06-13T05:00:09Z","entity_ids":{"company":"wefunder:company:23239","slug":"wefunder:company_slug:souvenear"},"profile_visibility":{"owner_published":true,"public_search_results":true,"site_search_listed":true,"privacy_mode":"promote","invite_only":false},"provenance":{"source":"wefunder_public_company_profile","as_of":"2026-06-14T02:57:00Z","claims":{"total_amount_raised":{"source":"FrontCompanySummary#amount_raised","last_verified_at":"2026-06-13T05:00:09Z","as_of":"2026-06-14T02:57:00Z","confidence":"high"},"total_investors":{"source":"FrontCompanySummary#number_of_investors","last_verified_at":"2026-06-13T05:00:09Z","as_of":"2026-06-14T02:57:00Z","confidence":"high"},"active_raise_states":{"source":"Fundraise.visible(nil, nil)","last_verified_at":"2025-02-06T01:17:55Z","as_of":"2026-06-14T02:57:00Z","confidence":"high"},"latest_fundraise_state":{"source":"Fundraise.visible(nil, nil).order(funding_started_at)","last_verified_at":"2025-02-06T01:17:55Z","as_of":"2026-06-14T02:57:00Z","confidence":"medium"}}},"company":{"id":23239,"entity_id":"wefunder:company:23239","slug":"souvenear","name":"SouveNEAR","tagline":"Locally-made, artistic souvenirs ... from vending machines!","elevator_pitch":"SouveNEAR sells locally-made art and goods from vending machines in airports and other tourist venues, offering alternatives to generic souvenirs made far away and stamped with the city name. With SouveNEAR, travelers easily find souvenirs they love, and local artists gain a larger audience. We have 17 machines between the Oakland, Kansas City, Newark and Cincinnati airports and one non-airport site. We've seen steady growth, with 400% rev increase 2015-2018 \u0026amp; projected increases again in 2019.","location":"Kansas City, MO","website":"https://www.souvenear.com","total_amount_raised":60510,"total_investors":74,"is_funded":true,"is_active":true,"quality_score":2,"related_urls":["https://wefunder.com/souvenear","https://www.souvenear.com"]},"media":{"share_image_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company/header_media_photo/23239/xxl_cropped_suz_tiff1.jpg","logo_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company/logo/23239/large_cropped_Souvenear_Tag_Square.png","header_media_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company/header_media_photo/23239/standard_cropped_suz_tiff1.jpg","cover_photo_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company/header_media_photo/23239/standard_cropped_suz_tiff1.jpg"},"links":{"company_url":"https://www.souvenear.com","twitter_url":"http://twitter.com/Souve_NEAR","facebook_url":"https://www.facebook.com/SouveNEAR/","instagram_url":"https://www.instagram.com/souvenear/"},"highlights":[],"quick_facts":[{"index":1,"claim_id":"claim-fact-1","value":"400% growth in revenue from FY 2015 to FY 2018."},{"index":2,"claim_id":"claim-fact-2","value":"Featured in USA Today, Time, NBC News, Travel+Leisure and more."},{"index":3,"claim_id":"claim-fact-3","value":"Creative concept in HIGHLY visible locations - currently in 4 major airports."},{"index":4,"claim_id":"claim-fact-4","value":"18,900 customer purchases in 2018, supporting 80+ local makers"},{"index":5,"claim_id":"claim-fact-5","value":"Accepted into Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program for Fall 2019."}],"team":[{"id":264852,"entity_id":"wefunder:company_role:264852","role":"employee","name":"Betsy Wolf","title":"SF Bay Area Partner","bio":"Background as software engineer, consultant. Manages Bay Area: growth, operations, finance, curation","avatar_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company_role/custom_photo/264852/square_cropped_betsy.jpg?1542211521","linkedin_url":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/betsy-wolf-6ba48959/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_top%3BVX0iaE3WSJqod3MKixf51Q%3D%3D\u0026licu=urn%3Ali%3Acontrol%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_top-search_srp_result\u0026lici=uU%2BT1NjVTui27iHxFY0itA%3D%3D","related_urls":[]},{"id":264851,"entity_id":"wefunder:company_role:264851","role":"founder","name":"Tiffany King","title":"Co-founder","bio":"Experience in real estate, with an emphasis in contract negotiations, relationships, and marketing.","avatar_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company_role/custom_photo/264851/square_cropped_Tiff.jpg?1544823145","linkedin_url":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffany-king-61b65b83/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_top%3BVX0iaE3WSJqod3MKixf51Q%3D%3D\u0026licu=urn%3Ali%3Acontrol%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_top-search_srp_result\u0026lici=8qXf0JG7SwmApG0Ho%2BTFdA%3D%3D","related_urls":[]},{"id":350816,"entity_id":"wefunder:company_role:350816","role":"employee","name":"Tim Hill","title":"Art Director / Designer","bio":"Graphic designer, web developer. Owner, Draft Horse Studio. SouveNEAR branding \u0026amp; design. (Contract)","avatar_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company_role/custom_photo/350816/square_cropped_tim.jpg?1590678430","linkedin_url":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/timjhill/","related_urls":[]},{"id":350821,"entity_id":"wefunder:company_role:350821","role":"employee","name":"Tara Tonsor","title":"Manager, Kansas City Operations","bio":"Jewelry designer, art educator, business owner, artist. Manages KC purchasing and ops.","avatar_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company_role/custom_photo/350821/square_cropped_tara.jpg?1590678435","linkedin_url":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-tonsor-5a52b955/","related_urls":[]},{"id":238779,"entity_id":"wefunder:company_role:238779","user_entity_id":"wefunder:user:148775","role":"founder","name":"Suzanne Southard","title":"Manager","bio":"Retail and art background. GM for fair-trade stores: purchasing, staff, and financial management.","avatar_url":"https://uploads.wefunder.com/uploads/company_role/custom_photo/238779/square_cropped_suz.jpg?1568396847","profile_url":"https://wefunder.com/suzanne.southard","linkedin_url":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzanne-southard-77712b5/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_top%3BVX0iaE3WSJqod3MKixf51Q%3D%3D\u0026licu=urn%3Ali%3Acontrol%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_top-search_srp_result\u0026lici=dmaQ3ChAR3yo4BUf0vsR6Q%3D%3D","related_urls":["https://wefunder.com/suzanne.southard"]}],"featured_investors":[],"investor_memos":[],"tab_counts":{"posts":0,"ask_questions":7,"featured_investors":0,"faq_entries":5},"active_fundraises":[{"id":16847,"entity_id":"wefunder:fundraise:16847","state":"successful","offering_type":"4(a)(6)","funding_type":"note","structure":"safe","security_type":"equity","currency":"USD","testing_the_waters":false,"min_purchase":250,"max_purchase":9,"funding_target":50000.0,"funding_started_at":"2018-11-21T02:56:00Z","funding_closed_at":"2019-08-22T04:01:04Z","auto_close_at":"2019-08-22T03:59:59Z"}],"latest_fundraise":{"id":16847,"entity_id":"wefunder:fundraise:16847","state":"successful","offering_type":"4(a)(6)","structure":"safe","testing_the_waters":false,"can_invest_now":false,"funding_started_at":"2018-11-21T02:56:00Z","funding_closed_at":"2019-08-22T04:01:04Z","terms":{"eb":null,"nb":"$5M","txt":"valuation cap"}},"recent_posts":[],"q_and_a":[{"id":68338,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:68338","question":"Checking in to see if there are any updates?","author_name":"Kimberly Ansari","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-11-09T06:30:09Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-68338","answers":[{"id":68731,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:68731","answer":"Hi Kimberly! Yes, we have news! Watch your inbox in the next week...update coming via email to all investors. Thank you so much.","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-11-15T03:06:10Z"}]},{"id":58196,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:58196","question":"If I misunderstand the business model, I apologize in advance, but how do you plan to scale the model on a local level? Primarily, if you have 500 machines in 500 cities you need someone to manage the stock/machines/pool of artists in each location -- how do you plan to solve that challenge? Do you plan to have a single employee per city/location? Will future sales/prices/relationships with local artists be managed by a corporate HQ or will finding local artist, fresh stock, deals be tasked to the local employee..","author_name":"Rachel Pigott","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-07-29T05:52:59Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-58196","answers":[{"id":58230,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:58230","answer":"Hi Rachel! Thank you for your question! Generally, yes, our model is to have a local person in each city. Whenever possible, we have started in cities with multiple machines, and wouldn't deploy a single machine to a city unless we expected to expand quickly within that city and/or that city met a larger strategic need for the company as a whole. A single machine (like your example of 500 cities, 500 machines) doesn't work efficiently for having a dedicated local team member - it's certainly better to have multiple machine locations per person. In order to maximize our limited resources while remaining true to our company's vision, we do centralize some over-overarching needs/ tasks, and we'll do this more as we grow. Things like making materials for product information (digital and print/machine display), standardized packaging, website, accounting and bill payment, marketing, and more can be done in one place. We do prefer having a local working with us on connecting with artists and makers, curating a mix of items and managing general operations (making sure the machine is stocked and merchandised well etc).","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-07-29T17:33:37Z"}]},{"id":57945,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:57945","question":"What's the price point range on the items in the machine? Are most items around the same price or is there something for every budget?","author_name":"Misty Carpus","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-07-26T10:36:21Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-57945","answers":[{"id":57949,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:57949","answer":"We offer items ranging\u0026nbsp;from $2 up to about $40 in our machines.","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-07-26T13:05:03Z"}]},{"id":56727,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:56727","question":"Have you considered franchising?","author_name":"Tn C","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-07-07T10:18:46Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-56727","answers":[{"id":56733,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:56733","answer":"Thank you for your question. We have considered this. We see the appeal in that this would allow us to scale more rapidly. Because of the significant time and financial costs upfront (legal, time etc.), franchising is not something we are currently pursuing but it has always been on the table as an option. Brand integrity is of highest importance to us. Because of that, if we were to franchise, it would be paramount to have solid measures (and backup measures) in place to assure that each franchisee was offering products and service consistent with and wholly true to our curation and buying guidelines.","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":1,"created_at":"2019-07-07T17:29:04Z"}]},{"id":56712,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:56712","question":"Would you consider adding convenience store type products (like Advil, tampons, Tums) or weird experiential products (a la Venderia) to improve your sales margins?","author_name":"Taylor Valdes","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-07-07T04:22:56Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-56712","answers":[{"id":56732,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:56732","answer":"Thank you for your questions, Taylor. We don't imagine adding convenience items such as Advil, tampons, etc. Our entire brand proposition is that we sell artistic, locally-designed and made goods. That said, one category that we have stocked and will continue with are locally-made consumables such as bee's wax lip balms from local farms. We are always interested in experiential products as long as they fit our larger buying guidelines. We already carry some fun and quirky items that fall in to this category, and will continue to do so. We agree that margins are of substantial importance long-term. In that regard, we have begun mixing in some licensed goods. We have licensed and/or commissioned images from local designers that we can then utilize in house produced souvenirs, and will continue to add to our catalog of SouveNEAR licensed designs.","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":1,"created_at":"2019-07-07T17:27:52Z"}]},{"id":52518,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:52518","question":"Thanks for your reply Suzanne. I took a look at your online store and your products are quite appealing, they should sell well if the machine placement is right and it stands out. Definitely needs to be bright yellow not a muted dark green. I don't know if you're able to place machine outside airports but there are always people waiting around twiddling their thumbs in the Uber/Lyft pickup areas, might be a good place to put one. By the way, have you considered going on Shark Tank? Yours seems like a great business for that show and you might have an opportunity to partner with a shark that would have the deep pockets and expertise to scale quickly around the country.","author_name":"Kelly Subbaiah","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-05-09T02:26:18Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-52518","answers":[{"id":52539,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:52539","answer":"Thanks so much for your ideas Kelly! Our designer is working on brighter-colored machine designs currently! Outdoor placement has been tricky for us; even with a climate-controlled machine we ended up with some products damaged by changes in heat and humidity. But we love the idea of thinking about where people gather for Uber/Lyft. And yes, we’ve thought about Shark Tank...quite a few people have suggested that our concept might be a fit for it! We haven’t applied to be considered, but indeed some deep pockets, shark advising and national exposure might serve us well.","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":2,"created_at":"2019-05-09T14:04:55Z"}]},{"id":52356,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:52356","question":"You said that you've had 17,700 purchases in the past year...that equals less than 3 purchases per machine per day. Don't you think that is very low considering the number of people traveling through an airport on any given day? Have you missed the mark with placement/signage/color of the machines or do you think you need to start spending some real money on marketing?","author_name":"Kelly Subbaiah","votes":0,"created_at":"2019-05-08T07:53:40Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/souvenear#question-52356","answers":[{"id":52500,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:52500","answer":"Yes, it’s a too-low number, for sure! (In truth it’s slightly better than your calculation because for almost all of 2018 we had 12 machines - we set up more in October, and had one location that was only open for a matter of weeks - and totaled 18,900 sales. 17,700 was our total for 2017. But even so, you’re right that the average is lower than we’d like.) First, we’ve learned that the biggest factor impacting per-machine sales is location. We have a wide range of revenue by machine, with a top machine performing more than 500% better than bottom. We definitely have machines in sites that aren’t busy. We’re getting better at predicting which locations might be winners, but sometimes we’re wrong, or sometimes we’re just not offered prime spots. It can be very difficult to arrange for relocations in airports. We’re currently looking at moving some machines (within an airport or between airports) in hopes of improving revenue and efficient use of our assets. Second, our strategic focus has been on expanding our brand recognition through increased territories. We have been aiming to be visible, building relationships with local artists and building trust with customers (to balance the perceived gamble of buying higher-dollar/non-snack items from vending machines). Our goal is that with increased visibility, we will grow our customer base dramatically. We have prioritized expansion and put our resources toward that end. In addition to visibility, more machines also means more data (categories of merchandise, price points, etc) and more possibility of A/B testing of factors that impact sales. Until recently, our business has been grown with bootstrapping and our budget has been tight. With a WeFunder raise, as stated, we want to invest in product optimization/ merchandising expertise to look at our product mix, with the goal of improving both average revenue and profitability per machine. Plus we’ll do more marketing, and possibly test new machines with more intuitive interfaces (depending upon what we raise). Also, on machines we hope to place in the next months, we’re testing a different wrap design, with clear bold messaging on the sides about our value proposition. Airports can be visually overwhelming and we’ve been discussing how a more clear, simple message might help draw people in. We think the good news in this is that there are multiple opportunities for improving our performance.","author_name":"Suzanne Southard","votes":1,"created_at":"2019-05-09T00:01:20Z"}]}],"faq":[{"question":"You said that you've had 17,700 purchases in the past year...that equals less than 3 purchases per machine per day. Don't you think that is very low considering the number of people traveling through an airport on any given day? Have you missed the mark with placement/signage/...","answer":"Yes, it’s a too-low number, for sure! (In truth it’s slightly better than your calculation because for almost all of 2018 we had 12 machines - we set up more in October, and had one location that was only open for a matter of weeks - and totaled 18,900 sales. 17,700 was our total for 2017. But even so, you’re right that the average is lower than we’d like.) First, we’ve learned that the biggest factor impacting per-machine sales is location. We have a wide range of revenue by machine, with a ..."},{"question":"Thanks for your reply Suzanne. I took a look at your online store and your products are quite appealing, they should sell well if the machine placement is right and it stands out. Definitely needs to be bright yellow not a muted dark green. I don't know if you're able to place...","answer":"Thanks so much for your ideas Kelly! Our designer is working on brighter-colored machine designs currently! Outdoor placement has been tricky for us; even with a climate-controlled machine we ended up with some products damaged by changes in heat and humidity. But we love the idea of thinking about where people gather for Uber/Lyft. And yes, we’ve thought about Shark Tank...quite a few people have suggested that our concept might be a fit for it! We haven’t applied to be considered, but indee..."},{"question":"Would you consider adding convenience store type products (like Advil, tampons, Tums) or weird experiential products (a la Venderia) to improve your sales margins?","answer":"Thank you for your questions, Taylor. We don't imagine adding convenience items such as Advil, tampons, etc. Our entire brand proposition is that we sell artistic, locally-designed and made goods. That said, one category that we have stocked and will continue with are locally-made consumables such as bee's wax lip balms from local farms. We are always interested in experiential products as long as they fit our larger buying guidelines. We already carry some fun and quirky items that fall in t..."},{"question":"Have you considered franchising?","answer":"Thank you for your question. We have considered this. We see the appeal in that this would allow us to scale more rapidly. Because of the significant time and financial costs upfront (legal, time etc.), franchising is not something we are currently pursuing but it has always been on the table as an option. Brand integrity is of highest importance to us. Because of that, if we were to franchise, it would be paramount to have solid measures (and backup measures) in place to assure that each fra..."},{"question":"What's the price point range on the items in the machine? Are most items around the same price or is there something for every budget?","answer":"We offer items ranging\u0026nbsp;from $2 up to about $40 in our machines."}]}}}