Gameplan Apps, an app-creation startup with ties to the Inland Northwest, has garnered a $500,000 equity investment from Cowles Ventures LLC and Kick-Start angel investment fund, both of Spokane.

The company, which co-founder and CEO Matthew Iversen operates from his home in Cheney, produces apps for mobile devices for educational purposes, such as fitness classes, schools, and training courses.

Gameplan Apps is different from other app creation platforms because app creators don’t need to know how to code, Iversen says.

“An app is a big status symbol,” Iversen says. “I'm trying to democratize and knock down the status of having your own app. I want anyone to have their own app.”

Iversen had previously been doing marketing work for fitness influencers on social media, many of whom sell workouts and exercise guides.

“All these fitness professionals were on the same platform,” Iversen says. “But from talking with them, they prefer to have their own app and their own place to sell programs, instead of competing with everyone in the same place.”

He contends traditional app-building services are inaccessible to many people. Industry publication Business of Apps says the average cost of a simple app ranges from $16,000 to $32,000.

Gameplan Apps, which operates as a subscription-based platform, takes an additional percentage of revenue content creators make from their apps. Iversen says Gameplan Apps is profitable, with annual revenue projected at about $250,000.

Iversen built the app with his own funds, he says. Initially, he tried to build the platform by outsourcing the development work to a company in India.

“It took a long time, and the communication was bad,” he says.

He teamed up with Cory Swainston, who was then working as a software engineer for a Salt Lake City-based company, and brought him on board as a co-founder of the company.

“He was able to take the concept I had already built by outsourcing and was able to piece it together and build it again,” Iversen says.

Swainston, who is still based in Utah, joined Gameplan Apps full-time last month as its chief technology officer. 

Gameplan Apps made its first sales in January 2020.

Iversen says the investment from Cowles Ventures and Kick-Start will help the company expand. He and Swainston are currently the only employees at Gameplan Apps.

Initially, Gameplan Apps will hire one or two full-time employees. Iversen says he’s posted a job listing for a full stack engineer, and expects to need assistance with marketing and accounting. Ultimately, he envisions a small team of about five employees. 

Iversen says he and Swainston currently don’t have plans for another funding round, and investors in the company have recommended waiting at least five months before pursuing additional funding.