Why Going Offline Will Be Good For Bricks & Mortar Retail

If you were asked to name real estate's most dynamic disruptors, Brendan Wallace, co-founder of California-based real estate tech venture capital fund Fifth Wall Ventures, and Ross Bailey, founder of Appear Here, the 'Airbnb for real estate' platform, would undoubtedly be towards the top of the list.

I was lucky enough to talk to both of them recently about Fifth Wall's first European investment in London-based Appear Here. Wallace, whose fund invests exclusively in tech start-ups in the built environment, talked about the rapid and dramatic growth of online brands and their first foray into bricks and mortar – termed 'going offline'. He sees Appear Here as a "flexible and lightweight" enabling platform that supports brands in their first offline experience.