BufferBox YC Application

Summer 2012Acquired

BufferBox went through Y Combinator in the Summer 2012 batch as a Consumer company. Below: what the company does, who founded it, and its application to YC, reconstructed question by question in the real YC form.

YC batch: Summer 2012
Industry: ConsumerHome and Personal
Team size: 2
Status: Acquired
Launched: 2012

Founders

Mike McCauleyFounder
Jay ShahFounder
Aditya BaliFounder

What BufferBox does

BufferBox® Inc. is an innovation driven technology company that specializes in the design of automated self-service technologies to lower costs and increase convenience in the parcel delivery industry. By tackling an unaddressed need with technical expertise, BufferBox® aims to set the new gold standard in parcel delivery services. The idea: A fundamental behavioral shift in today’s generation’s purchasing habits has created an unaddressed need in the parcel delivery industry. The industry has not addressed the cost inefficiencies and customer frustration stemming from an increasingly recurring problem - undeliverable packages when the end-receiver is not available. The BufferBox® solution provides a highly cost-efficient, self-sustainable, accessible and convenient technology to lower costs for shipping carriers while increasing value to receivers. This unique proposition is achieved by leveraging self-sustainable kiosk technologies and a growing receptiveness to self-service processes.

BufferBox's YC application, reconstructed

Y Combinator application

BufferBox, Summer 2012 batch. The real form questions, answered from public data.

Founders2
Company7
Progress7
Idea4
Equity3
Curious2
Batch Preference1

Company

Company name

BufferBox

Describe what your company does in 50 characters or less.

Automated self-service package delivery network

What is your company going to make? Please describe your product and what it does or will do.

We're building a network of automated kiosks that let people pick up packages when they're not home. Our system solves the problem of failed deliveries by providing a secure, self-service way to retrieve parcels at convenient locations. This lowers costs for shipping companies and removes the frustration of missed deliveries for customers.

Where do you live now, and where would the company be based after YC?

We live in Waterloo, ON, Canada, and plan to base the company here after YC as well.

Explain your decision regarding location.

We started the company here because we're based in Waterloo and have access to the local tech community. We believe the city is a good place to build our automated hardware and logistics software before scaling.

21 more answers in the full application

Founders, Progress, Idea, Equity, Curious, Batch Preference are in the full version. Create a free account to open it in YC Insights, next to every other YC batch.

See full application

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this the real BufferBox YC application?

No. Y Combinator keeps submitted applications private. This is a reconstruction: the real YC form questions, answered from BufferBox's public data (launch notes, founder backgrounds, product description). It shows how a company like BufferBox would present itself to YC, not the text they submitted.