[2] CEO Cyriac Roeding, founder and EVP of CBS’s mobile unit, created the concept of rewards for walking into stores while an entrepreneur-in-residence at Kleiner Perkins.

The Shopkick app was released in August 2010, initially with five national retail partners on board: Macy’s, Best Buy, Sports Authority and American Eagle Outfitters, and the Simon Property Group.

[10] Kicks can be redeemed for various rewards such as gift cards to places like Target, Walmart, and Starbucks as well as donations to charities such as Feeding America and the American Red cross.

Shopkick’s business model is pay-for-performance, with partners working with the company to determine their specific ROI – like in-app content views, products scanned or sold.

[12] Once a Shopkick signal is detected, the app delivers reward points called "kicks" to the user for walking into a retail store, trying on clothes, scanning a barcode and other actions.