Site enables shoppers to buy from multiple stores, both online and offline

The UK’s Slingshot platform has already made it easier for online shoppers to check out goods from disparate websites in one place. Now Mumbai-based startup 3 Other Things wants to enable consumers to search and buy from multiple retailers’ online and offline inventories from a single location. At first, the platform appears much like a social network that allows users to add products and brands they like to their wish list, which is shared with others. In order to build and curate their profiles, users can add items from any e-commerce site as well as products from partner brick-and-mortar stores. Users can then see what’s popular with their friends as well as the best selling products in a particular category or in their vicinity. The site uses social sharing to direct consumers towards items they may like and also allows them to buy online or reserve an item from a physical store and arrange a pickup. Retailers can then use the data generated by the site’s users to make more informed decisions about their marketing.