Wedding retailer David’s Bridal has acquired Blueprint Registry, a Seattle startup that aims to simplify the gift registry process.
In a press release, David’s Bridal called the deal an asset acquisition, though all 13 of Blueprint Registry’s employees will remain on board. Blueprint Registry co-founder Nevin Shetty told GeekWire that the company will remain independent, but it will have the backing of David’s Bridal to improve its technology offerings.
Co-founders Shetty and Lizzy Ellingson will take on the respective titles of senior vice president of registry and chief design and product officer. They will report to Scott Key, CEO of David’s Bridal.
Shetty comes from a finance background, where he worked on hedge funds, real estate securities and other investment types. Ellingson is a former Microsoft UX designer, and she has founded a couple other startups in her career.
Blueprint allows people to create registries and wish lists using shoppable room-by-room blueprints of their homes that others can use to find and buy gifts from retailers like Amazon.com, Williams Sonoma and Crate & Barrel. Couples can also register for things like cash and travel expenses.
Shetty said Blueprint Registry, which participated in the first Target + Techstars accelerator program in 2016 and then raised $1 million, was attempting to raise a Series A round. During the process, the company got acquisition offers from David’s Bridal, a blockchain company and a “Fortune 5” publicly traded company.
David’s Bridal is known primarily for wedding attire. But the company is expanding to cover the entirety of the wedding planning process, and Blueprint Registry is an important part of that.
“For over 60 years, our mission at David’s Bridal has been to match brides with the perfect dress,” David’s Bridal’s Key said in a statement. “As we move forward, our goal is to make all wedding planning simpler for our customer by offering the additional services we know she needs. We’re thrilled to integrate Blueprint Registry’s unique registry concept into our business in order to make the busy lives of our bride easier.”
