Meet Bobby Sullivan, an adventurous entrepreneur and co-founder of the new app, Rocketing, launching this month in the App Store! When he’s not hard at work maintaining his impressive GPA or working to launch his app, the Utah native loves to do anything outdoors related. His unique travel experiences, coupled by his father owning his own food company, have motivated him to become his own boss. Additionally, him and his co-execs at Rocketing are working to inspire others to get out and pursue life experiences of their own. We’re ecstatic to learn more about Bobby and the motivations behind this app, so let’s find out about this week’s Campus Celeb!
Who is Bobby Sullivan? Tell us a little bit about yourself. “I’m a senior, Accounting major from Utah, and an older brother to my 20 year-old sister. I’m extremely involved in entrepreneurship happenings at USD including the current V2 pitch competition that has a concept similar to Shark Tank.”
Being from Utah, what brought you all the way to USD? “Growing up we would visit my Grandma in the Los Angeles area. Some of my favorite childhood memories are making sand castles and enjoying those trips. I always knew that I wanted to get to the beach.”
Clue us in about Rocketing and your role with its’ creation! “The other two execs and I call ourselves, Team Rocket. We came up with the idea last year at Coachella when we thought about how many cool pictures were being taken and how we wished we could view them all. We tried to hashtag #coachella on Instagram, but we were viewing pictures from previous years and it wasn’t very efficient. So, we came up with an idea to solve that problem.”
How does Rocketing work? “Instead of having to add people, you can view all posted photos within a 10 mile radius. You get about 1 day’s worth of Rocket Fuel and people who view your photo can boost it to keep it on the app, keeping the photos relevant and serving as a way to see cool things that are going on in the area.”
What are your future plans with the app? “We are currently partnering up with sororities and fraternities at USD and SDSU to promote their philanthropy events. We are also meeting with AS members at UCSD to talk about working with them for their Sun God music festival. The goal is to spread the app through the San Diego/ SoCal area.”
What is the main mission of your company? “We want it to be a tool for people to get out and do things rather than be used as a way to binge on social media in their free time.”
What experiences helped encourage you to create this start-up? “Last Summer for my 21st birthday, I backpacked by myself for 75 days and visited 10 countries. I started in Berlin and went to Prague, Budapest, Austria, Croatia, Belgium, Amsterdam, France, Ireland and finished off the trip in Scotland. I had originally seen myself graduating and working for a big four accounting firm but realized that I could never work behind a desk.”
Besides your work, what else are you passionate about? “I’m very passionate about music. Last year I went to both weekends of Coachella. In my free time I like kite surfing and sailing. I also love the outdoors and going hiking, camping, skateboarding and skiing, too!”