I’m here at DEMO Fall, where dozens of startups are presenting to a conference room full of attendees and press. One interesting company that presented today is Micello, a startup that’s looking to offer interactive maps at a more detailed level than what you’ll find on sites like Google Maps or MapQuest.
The idea behind Micello is simple: Google Maps is great for helping route cars places, but when it comes to navigating a large area with many points of interest by foot, it can fall short. So Micello offers a much more detailed perspective, outlining the stores that are in your vicinity. It works as you’d expect, with a look that’s similar to the maps you find inside of shopping malls. Even better: the site allows you to search for whatever product or service you’re looking for, with results appearing directly on the map.
For example, if you were looking to find a certain kind of item at a mall — say, some shoes — Micello would present a map of the various stores in the mall with the shoe stores highlighted in red. The service will allow anyone to create maps, and estimates that it takes around four hours of work to make a map for a large mall. The company isn’t limited itself to shopping centers either, with plans to offer support for college campuses, airports, convention centers, and theme parks. At launch Micello will offer 100 maps from around the Bay Area, with more coming every day.