The Feedie app

Team TMN caught up with Victor Knaap, CEO of Media Monks – innovators behind the revolutionary Feedie app – to discuss the company’s exciting new partnership with Media One Hotel, Dubai…

Where did the concept for the Feedie app originate?
The Feedie concept is the brainchild of The Lunchbox Fund founder Topaz Page-Green, and creative agency Tribal Worldwide in New York. The Lunchbox Fund (www.thelunchboxfund.org) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing a daily meal for orphaned and vulnerable school children in South Africa. The app concept uses existing foodie behaviour and current technology, inspiring food lovers to leverage their passion for sharing photos of food to share actual food with those in need.

How does the Feedie app work?
Everyone eating out in Dubai can now download the free Feedie app on their iPhone (an Android version will be launched in April). Feedie users or “Feedies” can locate participating restaurants using the app’s map feature and are easily able to make an instant donation to the fund by simply snapping a photo of their meal and posting via the Feedie app. The app has additional features, including the ability for Feedies to share their favourite restaurants and photos with other Feedie users, and can choose to also share on Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter and Foursquare.

Tell us a bit about Media One’s partnership with Feedie.
We are excited for Media One Hotel to be part of this great initiative, and looking forward to seeing many Media One food photos transformed into daily donations for hungry school kids. We hope that many of the customers will get behind The Lunchbox Fund and take food photographs whenever they visit the hotel.

Media One is the first venue in the UAE to partner with Feedie – how did this relationship develop?
Media Monks was a guest speaker at Dubai Lynx, the International Festival of Creativity 2014. Our session titled “Interaction with Emotion: Telling Tales with Technology” showcased perspectives on the future of digital storytelling; the line between the two camps of technological innovation and emotional engagement. One of the highlights of our seminar was the concept of Feedies created with advertising agency Tribal Worldwide in New York. Because Dubai Lynx is a place where creative minds meet each year, we were thrilled to launch this idea at the Festival. Media One Hotel, being a hub for festival representatives, was a prime location to partner with. The hotel management and staff have done a great job supporting Feedie’s Dubai launch and turned it into a great success.

How will the Feedie app be promoted within the hotel?
It will be promoted through social media, a tent card in each outlet, bill folders, the Media One Hotel website, posters, TV screens, and of course staff will inform and encourage guests to download the Feedie app.

What makes the Feedie app such a novel approach to encouraging charitable work?
Before Feedie, there were no foodie apps using their influence for the good of others. The Lunchbox Fund is the first to utilise this powerful sub-culture and harness its energy productively, allowing foodies a one-of-a-kind opportunity to share their food – literally. Feedie allows users to extend food beyond taste, texture and Instagrammability, and it is amazing that such a simple app has already generated over 12million meals in South Africa. While the Feedie app gives food lovers a chance to use their passion for good, we see it as a perfect example of the growing trend in digital where the latest technology influences people’s lives.

Why will the app appeal to existing ‘foodies’ in Dubai?
Foodies around the world share the same love for taking snapshots of their food, and it’s a digital behaviour trend that has taken over social media channels, such as Instagram. The Feedie app taps into this trend, and it’s a universal idea that translates well in any geographical location. Looking at the popularity of dining out in Dubai we are expecting all foodies here to turn into food philanthropists very soon.

Do you have any plans to expand in the Middle East in the future?
The Feedie concept first launched in October 2013 at The Lunchbox Fund’s annual gala in New York, featuring co-chairs Mario Batali, Liv Tyler, Casey Affleck and Maggie Gyllenhaal. We have since launched it in Los Angeles, and Dubai. It’s barely the beginning of a longer journey supporting the Lunchbox Fund, as we plan to bring this concept to as many cities as possible. Stay tuned for the upcoming Feedie launch near you.

For further enquiries relating to the Feedie app and Media One partnership, contact Sally Meech at sally@mediaonehotel.com / +971 (0)4 427 1000