Bounce
Bounce is a mobile-first social and event platform for post-secondary institutions, centralizing community management, event hosting, guestlists, and payments for student unions, clubs, Greek organizations, and students across Canadian and US universities.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersToronto, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Bounce does
Bounce (legal entity Bounced Inc.) is a mobile-first, all-in-one social and event platform purpose-built for post-secondary institutions. Founded in 2018 at Queens University in Canada, the platform centralizes community discovery, event hosting, guestlist management, payment processing, and group communication into a single iOS/Android application targeting student unions, student clubs, Greek organizations, and individual students. The product suite is organized around three core modules — Host (for event organizers), Attend (for student discovery and participation), and Guestlist (for RSVP and attendee management) — supported by a Student Union Administration dashboard.
The company monetizes through transaction fees on paid event registrations and ticket sales, with a potential subscription or licensing layer for student unions and university administrators seeking centralized campus community management. Go-to-market is community-led, relying on case studies from named partner institutions (StFX, McMaster, UBC, UT Austin, UCLA, Dalhousie, Western, Bishops, Queens) and direct B2B2C relationships with student unions and administrations that onboard their campus communities onto the platform. Total disclosed funding is approximately $3.73M across rounds from LOI Labs (2019), NEXT Canada (2020), FJ Labs (2023), and a $1.18M SEC Form D exempt offering (August 2024).
In June 2024, Calgary-based Showpass — Canada's largest domestic live event ticketing platform — agreed to acquire Bounce to launch Showpass Campus, a post-secondary-specific platform extending Showpass's footprint to more than 70 percent of Canada's top-ranked universities. Post-acquisition, Bounce operates as a brand within Showpass's portfolio, with no remaining independent ownership structure.
Bounce firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bounce
- Legal name
- Bounced Inc.
- Website
- https://bounceapp.ca
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Bounce is a mobile-first social and event platform for post-secondary institutions, centralizing community management, event hosting, guestlists, and payments for student unions, clubs, Greek organizations, and students across Canadian and US universities.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bounce industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Campus engagement software
- NAICS
- Amusement Parks and Arcades (7131), Amusement Arcades (713120), Amusement Arcades (71312), Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (71394)
- SIC
- Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Event Mobile Apps & Second-Screen Experiences (Agendas, Messaging, Push, Check-in) (THAHAOAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Attendee Mobile Apps & Engagement Platforms (THAHAFAE), Fan Engagement & Onsite Technology (RFID, Cashless, Apps) (MPAGAAAL), Brand Activations & Pop-Ups (Retail/Street/Guerrilla) (BPAFAGAF), Family, Kids & Education Fairs (MPAGAFAH)
Keywords
Where Bounce is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Toronto
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Bounce business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Paid Event Fees: Platform supports paid events, likely taking a transaction fee or percentage on paid event registrations and ticket sales
- Platform Licensing/Subscription: Provides platform to student unions and administrators, potentially on a subscription basis for access to the full platform features
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | Monthly | Free and paid events supported |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Bounce product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Bounce operates a mobile-first all-in-one social platform built for post-secondary student communities, combining event hosting, payment processing, guestlist management, group chat, and photo sharing into a single app. It serves student unions, university administrators, student clubs, Greek organizations, and individual students at partner universities in Canada and the United States, replacing fragmented tools such as Facebook groups, Eventbrite, Venmo, and email with one integrated experience.
Product overview
Bounce is a single unified platform offering community management and event hosting services specifically designed for post-secondary institutions. The core Bounce Platform serves as the central hub that integrates community discovery, event hosting, and social connection tools. The product suite includes Host (for event organizers), Attend (for participants), and Guestlist modules, along with specialized event categories for Social Events, Academic Events, and Greek Events. The platform is positioned as the all-in-one solution for Student Unions, Student Clubs, Event Hosts, and Students, consolidating what were previously separate tools for chat, photos, payments, and event management into a single integrated experience.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Showpass Campus: A post-secondary-specific platform launched by Showpass that powers Bounce's clientele following the acquisition.
Products and services
- Bounce Platform Mobile-first all-in-one social platform for post-secondary student communities, combining community discovery, event hosting (free and paid), guestlist management, payment processing, group chat, and photo sharing into a single iOS and Android app for student unions, clubs, Greek organizations, and students.
- Bounce Student Unions Administration Administration dashboard for student unions and university administrators to centrally manage campus communities, clubs, events, members, and engagement activity across their institution.
Companies that use Bounce
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Bounce technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Bounce partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- ShowpasscoreCalgary-based Showpass, Canada's largest domestic live event ticketing platform, has agreed to acquire Bounce. The acquisition will expand Showpass's presence to more than 70 percent of Canada's top-ranked universities. Showpass is launching Showpass Campus, a post-secondary-specific platform that will power Bounce's existing clientele, representing a shift toward hyper-specific platforms for different submarkets within the live event industry.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Bounce competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Showpass: Acquirer of Bounce and Canada's largest domestic live event ticketing platform; directly comparable because Showpass now operates the Bounce platform as Showpass Campus, sharing the same target market (Canadian post-secondary institutions) and overlapping event-management features.
- CampusGroups: Campus engagement platform used by student governments and clubs to manage events, communications, and member engagement; competes directly with Bounce in the student-union vertical.
- Campus Labs: Higher-ed engagement and student-life platform offering event management, student organization tools, and campus communities; directly comparable in the post-secondary community-management niche.
- Involve (by Anthology): Campus engagement suite within Anthology's higher-ed product portfolio providing student organization management and event tools; directly competes with Bounce at universities.
- Presence: Campus engagement platform focused on student organization involvement, events, and attendance tracking at higher-education institutions; directly comparable in feature set and target customer.
- Whova: Event app and community platform widely used by universities, conferences, and student organizations for agendas, attendee engagement, and networking; overlaps with Bounce's event mobile app and attendee engagement features.
Broad incumbents
- Eventbrite: Global self-service event ticketing and management platform used by many universities and student organizations for paid events; overlaps with Bounce's Host and Guestlist modules and competes for the same end users.
- Bizzabo: Enterprise-grade event experience platform serving large organizations and conferences; comparable as a broader event-management suite targeting institutional event hosts that Bounce also serves.
- Cvent: Large event management platform used by universities and associations for registration, ticketing, and event technology; overlaps with Bounce at the institutional-event layer, though targeting a more enterprise audience.
Emerging players
- Yapp: Mobile event app builder used by smaller organizations and universities for event agendas, attendee lists, and messaging; partial overlap with Bounce's Guestlist and mobile app products.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Bounce social profiles
Digital presenceBounce financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bounce leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Bounce funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bounce M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Bounce
What does Bounce do?
Bounce operates a mobile-first all-in-one social platform built for post-secondary student communities, combining event hosting, payment processing, guestlist management, group chat, and photo sharing into a single app. It serves student unions, university administrators, student clubs, Greek organizations, and individual students at partner universities in Canada and the United States, replacing fragmented tools such as Facebook groups, Eventbrite, Venmo, and email with one integrated experience.
Is Bounce a public or private company?
Bounce is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Bounce founded?
Bounce was founded in 2018. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Bounce based?
Bounce is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Bounce make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Paid Event Fees are the primary driver. The others are platform Licensing/Subscription.
Who are Bounce's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Showpass, CampusGroups, Campus Labs, Involve (by Anthology), Presence and Whova. Broad incumbents are Eventbrite, Bizzabo and Cvent. Yapp is listed as an emerging player.
Does Bounce have an API?
No public API is recorded for Bounce.
What industry is Bounce in?
Bounce's product category is Campus engagement software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAHAOAG, Event Mobile Apps & Second-Screen Experiences (Agendas, Messaging, Push, Check-in), with a secondary code of THAHAFAE, Attendee Mobile Apps & Engagement Platforms. Its NAICS code is 7131 and its SIC code is 7990.