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What are the Anthill Cool Company Awards?
The Cool Company Awards were launched in 2006 as a way for Anthill to acknowledge and celebrate Australian organisations that are doing things differently to bring about positive change. Cool Companies stay one step ahead of the rest. They breed leaders who are rule-makers and rule-breakers. They are trend-setters in attitude and action. Quite simply, they are … cool! More.
StageBitz [WINNER]
Company: StageBitz
Website: www.stagebitz.com
State: ACT
Category: X-Factor
StageBitz is a company that earns ultra-cool points for innovating, and for sharing its innovation.
Making a movie? Putting on a play? Need to keep track of a styrofoam miniature of Stonehendge? Perhaps you require a mock fencing sword… and fast? Wouldn’t it be cool if you could do these things without shuffling through handwritten inventory lists? Or combing through dusty attics?
Sure it would. And now, this year’s X-Factor winner is getting plenty of recognition for, well, recognising, a need for inventory management apps that make the hard work of keeping up with, well whatever, easier.
StageBitz is a service that is putting a spotlight on the archaic business of prop management.
In the past, prop masters (for example) always made their own lists of materials in inventory inside a desktop office application like Word, then emailed it to someone else working in Excel, and then printed it out and ticked each item off in pencil. Now, with StageBitz, users can put their entire inventory up in the cloud with photos to boot.
Furthermore, productions can now share props!
Founded by Catherine Prosser and Mat Lawrence, StageBitz is the first web-based system to provide users with complete control over project and inventory management of props and scenery (and whatever else is needed to make the show go on).
The service is the first of its kind, and Prosser says that protecting the company’s IP has been easier than one might expect.
“At the moment about 90% of all props, costumes and scenery are only used once. Many are thrown out, many get left to gather dust in storerooms. By providing an opportunity for companies to have their project items automatically included online for hire and sale, (even professional hire places rarely use this facility at the moment) this waste of time, money and raw materials will be significantly decreased. Better task and material tracking systems in our tools will also let companies assess waste in their manufacture process,” she says.
Both founders have deep experience in related fields, and they have pulled together their respective talents with great effect, as evidenced by StageBitz most recent accomplishment: the company just confirmed investment of $890k!
“We are having a spit-roast and inviting everyone who helped us to this milestone, be they beta-testers, advisors, baby-sitters, cash-flow assistance or anything else to say thank you to them for the roles they’ve played. Our off-shore team can’t make it from Sri-Lanka, but I’ll be sending something special over to them as well,” continues Prosser.
The cool factor? StageBitz is helping one of the most undeniable cool industries in the world be even cooler. What other service could help someone find an entire zoo-worth of fake, life-size animals?
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