Locationary raises $2.5M to improve local business data and management

Locationary, an online and mobile service that lets you search “place” data, such as local businesses, announced Wednesday that it has raised $2.5 million to hire new staff and launch a powerful new local data management system.

“We want to take the data management process to a bigger level,” Locationary founder and CEO Grant Ritchie told VentureBeat. “We’re working with publishers, app developers, and more to make this happen.”

If you’ve ever used Google Maps and got incorrect info, you know some local business data around the web is outdated or just plain wrong. If Locationary has its way, that data will be right.

Locationary’s primary aims are to catalog location information on businesses, improve accuracy, and find new ways to use that data to help publishers and partners.

The Toronto-based company already offers a free platform and access to data updates from its global community, business owners, and other publishers. Publishers use the platform to either enhance their own data or sync the data completely. Currently, Locationary has a federated database with more than 25 million profiles in 190 countries, and it is maintained in more than 40 languages.

Ritchie said the new investment will go toward hiring more engineers. The new data service will incorporate three different information sources to better its accuracy: officials and businesses; algorithmically updated information from programmers; and crowd-sourced local experts.

“All three of these working together help create a really powerful system,” Ritchie said.

Locationary previously had an undisclosed round led by Toronto-based Extreme Venture Partners, along with Plazacorp Ventures and Angels and Management. New investors that contributed to the $2.5 million round include Investment Accelerator Fund and Trellis Capital.