Last week, we got the email every app founder waits for.
Jellyfish_ is approved on the App Store.
It didn't come easy. Apple turned us down five times before they said yes. Five rounds of notes, fixes, late nights and resubmissions. And every single time, we came back with something better.
Five no's and one yes
App Review doesn't hand out approvals. Our rejections covered everything from how we worded our subscription screen to how the app ran on an iPad to exactly how we explain the data we use. Each one pushed us to tighten something, clean something up, make something clearer.
By the fifth round, the app was faster, sharper and more honest about your privacy than it had ever been. So honestly? Thank you, Apple. We're better for it.
I couldn't be prouder of our team for refusing to quit and refusing to settle.
Behind closed doors
For months, we've been heads down doing one thing: building something people actually want to open.
The question was simple: Where is everyone right now? Every night out starts with a guess, and we wanted to end the guessing. Here's what came out of those long days:
- A live map of 1,000+ San Diego bars, every one lit up by how busy it is right now
- Happy hours and events, tracked down and kept current, so you know what's on before you leave the house
- Your friends, your check-ins and your passport, a stamp for every neighborhood you go out in
Sunday patio, game-day sports bar, Friday cocktails at ten: open the app and you'll know where to go.
Half of these will be packed tonight and half will be empty. Jellyfish tells you how packed each one is before you leave.
Tying the bows
Right now we're wrapping everything up and tying the last bows. Here's what's coming:
- This month: our waitlist gets Jellyfish_ first.
- October 29: we launch across all of San Diego, right at the start of Halloween weekend.
Keep your eyes open for our stickers around Pacific Beach, North Park, the Gaslamp and Little Italy. You'll know them when you see them.
Why we can't wait
Here's the truth: this app is really, really cool. I'd use it every weekend, and I do. That's the bar we set for ourselves from day one, to build something we'd actually reach for before a night out.
We hope you love it. We hope it makes your nights better. And we hope it changes the way San Diego goes out.
Honestly, we hope it changes everything.
See you out there.
James Williamson, Founder & CEO