The people
What they build
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Working at HONK
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On the TechTO stage
Michael Back of HonkMobile presents Payment Isn't The Problem
Watch on YouTube ↗
Michael Back of Honk presents In the Beginning
Watch on YouTube ↗Every talk is searchable — ask the archive about HONK ↗
About
HONK started in 2013 with its founder late for a baseball game and unable to park. It launched as a mobile payment app for parking and found the real business somewhere else: as Michael Back told TechTO's FintechTO stage in 2016, consumers loved paying by phone but real estate owners did not care — the pitch only worked once it changed from convenience to capacity utilisation, and HONK became 'the last mile for a mapping app'. Back put roughly $800,000 of his own money in before raising a $3 million seed round in October 2015. The company now sells a suite of manager products — daily parking, permits, validation, RSVP — to private operators, colleges and municipalities, and Back still runs it as CEO.
Backers
Self-funded by Michael Back (~$800,000) before a $3M seed round closed in October 2015. Later investors are not confirmed.
Quick answers
What does HONK do?
It lets drivers search, find, reserve and pay for parking from their phone, and gives parking providers — municipalities, universities and private operators — the software to run their lots. It has been ranked on Deloitte's Technology Fast 500 for North America.
Who founded HONK?
Michael Back, in Toronto in 2013, after being unable to park on the way to a baseball game. He is still CEO. Before HONK he spent 12 years in credit card processing.
Why did HONK stop calling itself a payment app?
Because payment wasn't the problem. Back told TechTO in 2016 that consumers liked paying by phone but real estate owners were indifferent — the business only took off when HONK reframed the pitch from convenience to capacity utilisation, positioning itself as the last mile for a mapping app.