Kandid.ly Selected to Exclusive TechStars Accelerator Class of 2016

CINCINNATI, Feb. 10, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Kandid.ly, a Cincinnati-born startup that connects photographers with customers, has been accepted into the exclusive Techstars accelerator program.

"We chose Kandid.ly because of its dynamic team, the phenomenal impact Kandid.ly could have in the world of photographers and the way people book them," shares Amos Schwartzfarb, Managing Director of the Austin division of Techstars. "They are transforming a highly fragmented industry that currently has $10B+ in annual revenue in the United States alone."

Launched in 2014 by co-founders Sam Elekwachi-Ulu and Maria Walley, Kandid.ly has raised capital from investors in both Cincinnati and Austin, TX, the two cities it currently serves. To support the launch of the product, CEO Elekwachi-Ulu is heading up the office in Austin, which is also where the Techstars program is located. The program starts February 15, 2016, culminating in a "Demo Day," May 19, 2016.

Even with our smartphone cameras in hand, there's a huge opportunity for expanding the pool of available professional and semi-professional photographers to anyone who needs quality photography. Kandid.ly makes this possible. "It's time to move photography out of the wedding and family portrait verticals and into every event that is important to our lives," shares Brad Zapp, early investor and Founding Partner of Connetic Ventures.

"In this highly visual age, photography has never been more prolific," shares co-founder Walley. "Yet, booking a photographer for an event that deserves more than a low-quality 'selfie' is far more complex than it needs to be. We're fixing this."

Recent psychological studies at the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand show that people can't 'be in the moment' and take a picture of it, too. "Which is why we believe that Kandid.ly will play a big role in improving people's quality of life-especially for multi-tasking moms," shares Walley, also a mother-to-be.

"The mentorship at Techstars will greatly sharpen our execution as a team, while improving our business model and go-to-market strategy," Elekwachi-Ulu shares. "Techstars will help take us to the big leagues."

About Kandid.ly:

Transforming the way memories are captured, Kandid.ly is a marketplace that allows people to easily browse and book photographers based on their rates, reviews, and styles. As a user, you can hire listed photographers by the hour to document a variety of events and outings, allowing you to be in the moment-and have great photography at an accessible price, too. Kandid.ly also empowers talented semi-professional photographers to make supplemental income doing what they love. More information is available on Kandid.ly.

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SOURCE Kandid.ly

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http://Kandid.ly