Platform utilizes data to create engaging events for organizations at a fraction of the cost and time of typical event planning.

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES, August 4, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Virginia Venture Partners, the equity investment program of Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC), today announced an investment in Happied. Washington D.C. -based Happied is a software platform that uses data to plan, book, and execute corporate team, client, and community events. The company will use this investment to continue to build their development team.

Workplace culture matters more than ever, but the workplace is different with companies navigating remote, hybrid, and in-person workforces. Happied empowers companies to engage and retain employees by putting team engagement events on auto pilot, creating curated engagement events at a fraction of the cost and time of a company doing themselves. Their software takes on all aspects of the event from ideation, to booking and contracting, day-of logistics and integrating feedback loops to assess impact on team performance.

“We are proud to take the stress off of executive assistants and team leads who are not event planners by reducing over 80% of the strain caused by in-house event planning. We give companies the opportunity to increase morale and team engagement and enable employees to focus on running their business,” said CEO and Founder, April Johnson. “After creating hyper-engaging events for hundreds of companies across the country, we’re thrilled to continue to scale our reach through our platform and we’re grateful for VIPC’s Virginia Venture Partners investment to help continue our growth.”

Lack of team engagement could be costing companies millions. It has been proven that engaged workforces see less turnover, increased sales and increased profitability. Yet, most companies don't prioritize team engagement because it's time consuming and expensive. Happied is a subscription-based service that allows the person to decide what kind of event they want and then the Happied event planner takes care of all the logistics. Happied will deal with bookings, menu selections and add group-specific special touches to foster an engaging event.

“With a software platform created by a team of professionals dedicated to connecting people and finding ways to develop engaged teams, Happied’s offering provides tools for those looking to reduce the strain associated with event planning,” says Tom Weithman, VIPC Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director of Virginia Venture Partners. “No matter if you work in the office or home, the Happied software, along with their team of event planning experts, develops online, in-person, metaverse and hybrid events. We are excited to contribute to their success and see the impact they make on companies.”

About Happied
Happied is revolutionizing corporate event planning and boosting employee happiness by making team, client, and community event planning more efficient and cost-effective, while creating exceptionally enjoyable events, backed by data. The result is events that contribute to each company’s unique culture, leading to higher employee & client engagement, happiness and retention — all while being really, really fun. For more information, visit https://www.happied.co/.

About Virginia Venture Partners
Virginia Venture Partners, formerly CIT GAP Funds, is the equity investment program of VIPC that makes seed-stage equity investments in Virginia-based technology, clean energy, and life science companies with a high potential for achieving rapid growth and generating a significant economic return for entrepreneurs, co-investors, and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Since its inception in 2005, Virginia Venture Partners has deployed $32.4 million in capital across more than 250 portfolio companies, including 17 companies in designated Opportunity Zones. Virginia Venture Partners’ investment decisions are guided by the Virginia Venture Partners Investment Advisory Board (IAB). This independent, third-party panel has drawn from the expertise of leading regional entrepreneurs, angel, and strategic investors, and venture capital firms such as New Enterprise Associates, Grotech Ventures, Harbert Venture Partners HIG Ventures, Edison Ventures, In-Q-Tel, Intersouth Partners, SJF Ventures, Carilion Health Systems, Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, and Alpha Natural Resources. For more information, please visit www.virginiaipc.org/vvp.

About Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC)
Connecting innovators with opportunities. The nonprofit operations arm of the Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority (VIPA), VIPC is the commercialization and seed stage economic development driver in the Commonwealth that leads funding, infrastructure, and policy initiatives to support Virginia's innovators, entrepreneurs, startups, and market development strategies. VIPC collaborates with local, regional, state, and federal partners to support the expansion and diversification of Virginia’s economy.

Programs include: Virginia Venture Partners (VVP) | Virginia Founders Fund (VFF) |Commonwealth Commercialization Fund (CCF) | Smart Communities | Unmanned Systems | Public Safety Innovation |Entrepreneurial Ecosystems | Regional Innovation Fund (RIF) | Federal Funding Assistance Program (FFAP) for SBIR & STTR | University Partnerships | Startup Company Mentoring & Engagement. For more information, please visit www.VirginiaIPC.org. Follow VIPC on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook

Angela Costello, Vice President of Communications
Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC)
angela.costello@VirginiaIPC.org