The average online shopper keeps 20 tabs open just to track a single outfit. They refresh pages, check emails for restock alerts, and manually compare prices across a dozen different domains. It is a broken, tedious loop.

That is the friction point The Mall, a new startup founded by Ellie Konsker and Sreya Halder, is trying to erase. By building a universal feed for online shopping, the app aims to do for retail what Letterboxd did for film or Spotify did for music: create a centralized database for a fragmented experience.

How the Feed Works

The Mall does not rely on traditional brand partnerships or official APIs. Instead, it uses aggressive web scraping to pull entire catalogs into its own system. The app tracks product updates, price drops, and restocks in real time, pushing alerts directly to the user.

When a user signs up, they build a "virtual mall" by selecting their favorite brands. The database already holds over 10,000 retailers, but the system is designed to grow on demand. If a user wants to track a niche brand, they simply share the brand’s Instagram or TikTok handle. The app then locates the e-commerce site, scrapes the catalog, and adds it to the user's feed.

The Tech Under the Hood

Scraping is only half the battle. To make the data useful, the company uses large language models (LLMs) and custom labeling systems to categorize every item it pulls. This allows for granular search functionality that goes beyond basic keywords.

"We were both super aligned on creating this world where everyone has access to all of the brands that exist on the internet," said CEO Sreya Halder. The result is a discovery engine. Users can search for specific aesthetics or find lower-priced alternatives to high-end pieces across the entire global catalog.

What This Means for Brands

The Mall is free for consumers, but the company has a clear path to monetization. By late summer, the startup plans to launch a B2B data tool for brands. This platform will provide aggregated, anonymous insights into consumer behavior, helping retailers analyze click patterns and competitor assortments.

Eventually, the founders envision a sponsored billboard model. Brands could pay to appear in user feeds or recommendations, turning the discovery tool into an advertising powerhouse. It is a classic platform play: build the audience first, then sell the access.

Key Takeaways

  • Universal Aggregation: The app scrapes retail sites to track 10,000+ brands, removing the need for users to monitor individual newsletters or tabs.
  • AI-Powered Discovery: Custom models label and categorize products, allowing users to find similar items or price-matched alternatives across the entire internet.
  • Data-Driven Revenue: While the consumer app is free, the company plans to monetize by selling aggregated consumer insights and sponsored placements to brands.

The Road Ahead

The app is currently in an invite-only phase following a 4,500-user beta test. Scaling will be the real test. Scraping the web is technically difficult and legally fraught; maintaining a high-quality, real-time feed for thousands of brands requires constant engineering vigilance.

Broad availability is expected by the end of the summer. By then, the question will not be whether the app can aggregate the internet's inventory. It will be whether shoppers are willing to trade their browser tabs for a single, curated feed.