Appster was an Australian app development company, founded in 2011. It developed mobile, web and wearable apps for startups, public figures and enterprises. The company was once touted as the "next Apple" by analysts due to its fast growth. The company stated their ambition was to be the world's first ideas company. Appster stopped functioning as a company on 7 December 2018 due to collapse.
History
Appster was launched in June 2011 by 19-year-olds Mark McDonald and Josiah Humphrey, with $3,000, originally as a digital agency consulting to online e-commerce companies on conversion rate optimization. It soon evolved into a software-development and digital product strategy firm. During 2011 they hired over 15 staff in Melbourne, Australia and completed over 20 apps. In 2013, Appster hired CTO Martin Halford to expand outside Australia, forming a company in Gurgaon, India, establishing its first international office. In 2014, Appster had over 100 staff globally. The company opened an office in San Francisco with 5 full-time staff and estimated revenues in the Australian market of $10 million. By 2015 the partners appeared on the AFR Young Rich List with a combined net worth of $58 million. The also made it to the Forbes' 30 Under 30 list. In February 2015, Appster partnered with Hobart's New Town High school in Tasmania to give students a hands-on experience coding and designing gaming apps. Right before the company failed it had over $19 million in revenue yearly with 400 employees located in four international offices. On 7 December 2018, Appster announced that it collapsed because of failed projects and entered liquidation proceedings. Several business owners were owed thousands of dollars at the time of the collapse. More than 200 people were unemployed and the company failed to honor its employment contract with its employees. No employee was paid any salaries or dues and the founders were unable to face its employees while conveying that the company had closed The administrator of the liquidation, Paul Vartelas of BK Taylor & Co. liquidators said that the main reason for the collapse of Appster was a "sharp drop" in available work during the prior 6 months before the collapse, which led to lost revenue and missed targets.
