Blend is an AI-powered tool for design and product photography aimed at e-commerce sellers. It was founded in 2021 by Vaibhav Prakash, Jamsheed Kamardeen, and Vishwanath Kollapudi.
They set out to solve a common problem for direct-to-consumer (D2C) businesses: struggling with photography.
With Blend, creating eye-catching product visuals is easy. It’s great for marketplaces, social media, and advertising. Users simply upload a photo of their item. Blend handles the rest. It removes the background, selects the perfect backdrop, and adds engaging copy and calls to action.
How the company was founded
The idea for Blend came from Vaibhav. One day, he thought it would be great to create an app for e-commerce sellers. He called his friend Vishwanath to discuss the idea.
Vishwanath was excited right away. He told Vaibhav he knew someone who could help. That person was Jamsheed, who had a lot of experience with software development.
They talked about various ideas. They identified a challenge that many users faced: removing backgrounds from product photos and replacing them with a basic colour was tedious.
They noticed that platforms like Canva were popular but didn’t cater specifically to product photos. So, they started working on their own app. They aimed for it to be simple and effective, letting users easily remove and replace backgrounds.
Within a month, with no upfront investment, they had the first version of Blend. They developed the app at zero cost using Flutter.
In May 2021, they launched the beta version of the app. It was free so they could attract more users and get feedback to improve it.
How they acquired the first few customers
Instead of investing heavily in marketing campaigns, their initial approach was grounded and organic. They reached out to potential users through Facebook and WhatsApp groups, contacting a few thousand people.
They began their journey with no immediate revenue goals. Rather than rushing into monetization, they focused on creating a tool that resonated with users and met their needs.
Their primary focus was on seller communities in India and Indonesia. They identified a common struggle: removing backgrounds and finding suitable ones for online sales platforms.
They also noted that many marketplaces recommended product photos with a white background. Recognizing this challenge, Blend’s first version prioritized this feature.
They launched Blend to the public in September 2021.
After the public launch, they reached out to e-commerce, marketing, and graphic design influencers for collaboration. They paid these influencers $50 to $500 to promote the app. This made Blend quite popular in Indonesia and Malaysia.
How they acquire customers now
Blend now uses multiple strategies to grow. Organic marketing plays a significant role. Many users share the app in their communities, and Blend acquires a large part of its user base through word of mouth.
They also have a referral program. Users are rewarded with 10 watermark-free exports if a friend signs up using their referral link.
The Blend team collaborates with influencers who create and share content about the app.
Additionally, they run performance marketing campaigns on Facebook, TikTok, and Google.
Blend is now among the top three design apps in Southeast Asia.
