Paying a cover, especially an overpriced cover, can deter some college students from wanting to go out and can prompt a feeling of guilt the next day. Red Cup, a mobile app developed by local company Subvert Apps, has taken off among students and Tuscaloosa natives looking to find the best local deals and avoid high prices when going out.
The founders of Subvert Apps, Ben Gordon and Nick Neveu, offer more than Red Cup and are excited about promoting their app business.
Gordon and Neveu, who met in college when they lived across the hall from one another in Rose Towers, came up with the idea for Red Cup when they faced a dilemma shared by many students.
“One of the nights we wanted to go out and spend our non-existing money on covers and expensive drinks,” Neveu said. “That’s when we decided to make an app to show the specials. With my engineering background, I wanted a mathematical approach to sort the drink prices, so I came up with an algorithm to find the most alcohol for your dollar.”
Neveu graduated from the University in May 2011 with a degree in electrical engineering, and is now pursuing his master’s in electrical engineering at the University.
“A lot of people think we are ‘the Red Cup Guys’, but it’s so much more than that,” Gordon said, who is pursing his master’s in science at the University.
The Red Cup app has grown among college-aged students and is close to breaking the 10,000 downloads mark.
With the app’s success, Subvert Apps has produced four more apps: Rabbit Hole, a random image generator; Hail Yeah, which helps users hail a taxi; Tip Accordingly, helping users figure out the appropriate tip amount; and Black Belt Bamboost, an app for a bamboo park in Northport.
“My favorite app right now is Rabbit Hole,” Neveu said. “It is dangerously random, which makes it ridiculously funny.”
Gordon said Subvert Apps was created “on a whim,” and he and Neveu are constantly testing, developing and brainstorming ideas for mobile applications.
“None of us had ever made an app or a business – let alone try to change the whole world through software,” Gordon said.
As for the future, both Gordon and Neveu have their sights set high and enjoy working as a team.
“We work right next to each other on two 27-inch Macs, and wouldn’t have it any other way,” Neveu said.
Subvert Apps has generated opportunities for both Gordon and Neveu, and the duo plans to expand Red Cup across the United States.
“Keeping an open mind is the most crucial attribute,” Neveu said. “Instead of shooting down an idea or blowing it off by saying ‘It’s already been done,’ we develop these ideas into full grown, world dominating forces in our heads before we even start programming.”
According to Gordon, Subvert’s success changed their career paths exponentially, and both are happy about the business’s expansion.
“Together, Nick and I have the highest of aspirations; I’ve always dreamed of going to the moon, and now we actually have a space shuttle,” Gordon said.
Rabbit Hole, Hail Yeah, Tip Accordingly and Red Cup are all available in the Apple App Store. Red Cup is also available for Android devices. For more information, visit subvertapps.com.
