Brandon Reti had it all: the high-paying gig, the first-class everything and the ability to make decisions that would rake in hundreds of thousands more in revenue every month. During his time building the mobile department at Manwin Technologies, then the largest group of adult entertainment websites, he oversaw sites like Youporn, Pornhub and many more.
By the end of his time at the Montreal-based company, its mobile properties were experiencing 20 million visitors every single say.
But eventually he was ready for his next challenge after accomplishing nearly everything he wanted to. His opportunity, interestingly enough, came while lingering outside with nearly 1,000 other Manwin employees after a bomb threat was called in.
It was the first time he had ever experienced it and he had just finished testing out a brand new product, ready for launch. Not exactly the perfect timing for an interruption.
His friend Julien Smith, another Montreal-based entrepreneur, texted him. He said that he wanted Reti to take everything he had done for Manwin and do it for his startup, called Breather. “I called him up and he told me the idea for Breather. He said ‘I want to be able to unlock doors with a mobile phone and I don’t want people to have to talk to anyone.'”
Smith had travelled the world going to conferences with his previous businesses and had experienced the pains of not having a quiet, peaceful office wherever he was.
Breather is a mobile app that acts as an on-demand tool for renting out a nice office in a major metropolis. It’s a network of rooms inside cities that are opened by phone at any time for a small fee. Think of it like zipcar for rooms. “Just like you need short term car usage, lots of people use space in the short term. Right now, the best option when you’re away from your office and home is Starbucks. Breather wants to change that,” wrote the company last year.
Reti thought Smith would either hit a home run or strike out with the idea, to use a baseball analogy. Fortunately, it’s been a positive ride so far. They raised the largest seed round in Real Ventures‘ history 13 months ago, and “we’ve just spent the past year building out the most killer product we can,” said Reti.
“We give them the ability to be a true professional and rent this space, invite a client to the meeting and show them, look I’m the real deal, I can do this project rather than meeting this person at a Starbucks or in their parents basement. We want to give people an office or a place to take a nap or to unwind. A sliver of piece and quiet in a really hectic life,” Reti told BetaKit.
It’s not so far removed from his days at Manwin either- one might even argue there’s nothing different between what he does today and what he did for the adult industry. It’s creating a seamless, positive mobile experience, making decisions based on past user data and consistently trying to make that experience even better. “If the user experience isn’t the best people aren’t going to come back and that’s my goal,” said Reti.
Breather is currently available in Montreal and New York City, with plans to expand to more US cities soon.
As for Reti, he seems completely satisfied with life after pornography.
Read Part Two here.
Read Part One here.