Today we’d like to introduce you to Joseph Parisi.
Joseph, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Our founders were inspired to create Guard Llama after events that took place while attending college, most notably, the tragic murder of an art student, as she walked near the campus in October 2010. We have worked beside hundreds of law enforcement officers to determine the best ways to reduce crimes of this nature.
With this information in hand, a team of skilled engineers to develop a new technology that would be effective in the critical moments of a life-threatening situation. This technology was the driving force behind Guard Llama. The result is a hardware device and mobile application that is changing the way people look at personal safety.
Since inception, we have been in two nationally renown accelerators, on ABCs Shark Tank, raised millions of dollars and have thousands of customers who rely on us every single day to get home safely.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
All of life is struggle if you are doing it right. Nothing worth building will be easy or without a struggle. That being said, this company is no different. There have been challenges along the way but the reminder of why we do what we do allows the team to look at any failures or setbacks as simply stepping stones leading us to success that needs to be had rather than the deviation of success.
We cannot fail in our pursuit to improve personal security because if we do there is someone who may not make it home to their family tonight. Knowing that makes many of the struggles along the way very easy to swallow and push through.
Please tell us about Guard Llama.
Our company has several panic button style systems that allow you to send your exact location to the police at any moment with the click of a button. In the middle of an emergency, you no longer need to locate your phone, unlock it, dial for help, and then proceed to have a conversation where you are required to articulate your exact address or no one is coming. With our product, you press a button to send your exact location and physical description directly to the police and they are on the way.
Our team is most proud of the fact that we have saved peoples lives, they usually call to thank us. There are a million things to build when it comes to tech but very few engineers will ever get a call from a user thanking them for saving their lives.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Hindsight is always 20/20 and I do not dwell on the past. If anyone would not approach the past differently, they would be foolish. Once you complete a puzzle it is easy to complete again and a product is no different. Once you have a finished product in your hand, you can reconstruct it in a quarter of the time it took you originally.
Most of my regrets are around things in my personal life that no longer exists, that I have missed, or have been very strained due to the maniacal focus I put on my goals. Smelling the roses from time to time is okay but that can be easier said than done.
Pricing:
- If paid annually 15/mo
- If paid monthly 19/mo
- 500/yr if installing a commercial panic button for your office.
Contact Info:
- Address: 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza #1212, Chicago, IL 60654
- Website: https://guardllama.com/
- Email: support@guardllama.zendesk.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/guardllamasafety/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theguardllama/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheGuardLlama
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
