Spokin
Spokin operates an iOS mobile app and content platform that helps individuals with food allergies and celiac disease find allergy-safe restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, hotels, colleges, and travel destinations, monetizing via B2B partnerships with food businesses.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Spokin does
Spokin, Inc. is a Chicago-based, privately-held company founded in 2014 that operates a niche consumer mobile application serving individuals and families managing food allergies, celiac disease, and related dietary restrictions. The platform is distributed exclusively through Apple's iOS App Store and targets people allergic to peanut, tree nut, milk, egg, gluten/celiac, sesame, shellfish, fish, and other allergens, including parents/caregivers managing pediatric allergies, college-bound students, frequent travelers, and newly diagnosed individuals. Founder and CEO Susie Hultquist leads the company, which operates with a headcount of 1-10 employees and has not disclosed any external venture funding rounds.
Spokin firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Spokin
- Legal name
- Spokin, Inc.
- Website
- https://spokin.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Spokin operates an iOS mobile app and content platform that helps individuals with food allergies and celiac disease find allergy-safe restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, hotels, colleges, and travel destinations, monetizing via B2B partnerships with food businesses.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Spokin industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Food Allergy Management Mobile App
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mobile Ordering, POS & Campus Dining Technology (EDALADAN)
Keywords
Where Spokin is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Spokin business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations
Revenue model
- B2B Partnerships with Food Businesses: Revenue generated from restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, hotels, colleges, and food brands seeking visibility and verification within the Spokin platform. Businesses pay for featured placement, verified partner status, and marketing to the allergy-conscious consumer segment.
- Consumer App (Freemium): Free mobile app for consumers managing food allergies. Basic features are free; premium features or services may be available for paying users.
- Content and Guides: Published guides and content that attract audience and provide value to both consumers and B2B partners seeking to reach this demographic
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free consumer app with access to reviews, guides, and venue information |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Spokin product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Spokin is a consumer mobile application that helps individuals and families manage food allergies and celiac disease by providing a trusted directory of allergy-friendly restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, and hotels, along with community-driven reviews organized by specific allergens and curated travel guides for safe destinations.
Product overview
Spokin is a consumer-focused food allergy management platform centered on its mobile application. The platform provides a curated directory of allergy-friendly restaurants, ice cream shops, bakeries, hotels, and travel guides, alongside community-driven reviews and recommendations. The Spokin app serves as the primary interface through which users access verified brand partners, restaurant listings, product guides, and travel resources organized by dietary needs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Spokin Mobile App A consumer-facing mobile application that helps individuals and families managing food allergies and celiac disease discover allergy-friendly restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, and hotels, with reviews organized by specific allergens and curated travel guides.
- Verified Partners Program
Quantifiable outcome
- Coverage of 33 US states and 8+ countries for allergy-friendly venues
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Spokin
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Spokin technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Spokin partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Spokin competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- OpenTable: OpenTable is the leading restaurant reservation platform with deep relationships to restaurants and consumer dining intent. It is comparable because it sits between consumers and restaurants with filtering, and could expand dietary-restriction filters as a value-add to diners.
- Yelp: Yelp is the dominant generalist restaurant discovery platform with massive review volume and consumer mindshare. It is a broad incumbent because it could trivially add allergen-specific filters that compete directly with Spokin's allergy categorization, representing the largest competitive threat to the niche.
- TripAdvisor: TripAdvisor is the dominant travel-review platform covering restaurants, hotels, and attractions globally. It overlaps with Spokin's travel-guide and hotel-review verticals and could add allergy-specific content or partner with allergy-focused creators at scale.
- Google Maps: Google Maps is the default restaurant discovery surface for most consumers and hosts user reviews, attributes, and business profiles. As a broad incumbent, it poses disintermediation risk if Google adds structured allergy/dietary attributes to business listings.
Direct peers
- HappyCow: HappyCow is a community-driven directory for vegan, vegetarian, and allergy-friendly restaurants worldwide with user reviews and travel guides. Comparable because it combines community reviews with verified-business partnerships in the dietary-restriction consumer segment, operating across multiple countries.
- AllergyEats: AllergyEats is the closest direct competitor — a rating platform specifically for food-allergy-friendly restaurants with community reviews and a focus on peanut, tree nut, dairy, egg, gluten, and other allergens. Operates with a similar niche-discovery model to Spokin, making it the most head-to-head comparable.
- Find Me Gluten Free: Find Me Gluten Free is a directory and mobile app focused specifically on gluten-free and celiac-friendly restaurants. Direct peer because it shares Spokin's celiac/gluten-free vertical, allergy-specific filtering, and discovery-first consumer value proposition, though narrower in allergen scope.
Emerging players
- Fooducate: Fooducate is a health-and-nutrition-focused app helping consumers evaluate food products and ingredients. It is an emerging comparable in the dietary-management consumer app space, sharing Spokin's health-conscious consumer base but focused on grocery products rather than restaurants.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Spokin social profiles
Digital presenceSpokin financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Spokin leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Spokin funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Spokin 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 Spokin
What does Spokin do?
Spokin is a consumer mobile application that helps individuals and families manage food allergies and celiac disease by providing a trusted directory of allergy-friendly restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, and hotels, along with community-driven reviews organized by specific allergens and curated travel guides for safe destinations.
Is Spokin a public or private company?
Spokin is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Spokin founded?
Spokin was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Spokin based?
Spokin is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Spokin make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. B2B Partnerships with Food Businesses are the primary driver. The others are consumer App (Freemium) and content and Guides.
Who are Spokin's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are OpenTable, Yelp, TripAdvisor and Google Maps. Direct peers are HappyCow, AllergyEats and Find Me Gluten Free. Fooducate is listed as an emerging player.
Does Spokin have an API?
No public API is recorded for Spokin.
What industry is Spokin in?
Spokin's product category is Food Allergy Management Mobile App. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDALADAN, Mobile Ordering, POS & Campus Dining Technology.