Mindgrub was founded in 2002 by current CEO Todd Marks. He worked for a digital consultancy in Chicago prior to leaving to start Mindgrub during the mobile application boom associated with the iPhone and iPad. The company began in his basement before moving to various other locations, settling in Locust Point in Baltimore in 2014. Mindgrub expanded in 2013 by opening marketing offices in Washington D.C., New York City, and Philadelphia. In June 2014, Mindgrub moved to a 13,000 square foot office building in Locust Point, Baltimore, and added an additional 5,000 square feet in August 2015. The location was chosen by Marks who wanted to have a central point for employees who worked for the company. The same year, Mindgrub acquired web design and marketing firm 4Thought, adding web design, marketing, and logo design to its offerings. The companies had previously collaborated on projects and the employees of 4Thought were hired by Mindgrub as part of the acquisition. Mindgrub expanded its web management in 2015 by becoming a Fast Track partner with Pantheon, migrating all of its clients' websites to the platform.
Company culture
In addition to the headquarters being chosen for its convenience to employees, Mindgrub is known for being employee friendly. The office location is open space with activities for employees that include ping pong, a rock climbing wall, robotics lab, and holodeck for virtual reality apps and games. The company was named Tech Company of the Year in 2013 by the Maryland Tech Council, one of the Best Places to Work in 2015 by Baltimore magazine, and Best Workplaces for 2017 by Inc. Magazine. For six consecutive years in a row, Mindgrub has been one of the fastest growing companies according to the Inc. 5000 list. In 2014, it was featured in the Baltimore Business Journal for its practice of giving employees a Bobblehead in their likeness after working for the company for five years. SmartCEO awarded the company with a Baltimore Corporate Culture Award. In 2017, Mindgrub won two NET/WORK Awards for Best Side Project and Best Office Pet - Albus the Red from Technical.ly.
Products and services
Mindgrub develops custom apps, learning systems, interactive websites, video/multimedia content, enterprise information systems, location-based services, digital and traditional marketing programs, and augmented and virtual reality initiatives. Some of its clients have included Exelon, Under Armour, Yamaha Corporation, The Economist, Discovery Communications, and the University of Las Vegas. Mindgrub also develops applications for virtual and augmented reality, most notably for its use with healthcare applications. Other augmented reality applications include a public safety app for firefighters to receive building layouts and an application for mobile walking tours and interactive maps. Additional wearable technology Mindgrub develops for include the Occulus Rift, Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Gear and the Fitbit fitness wristband.
Awards and recognition
Mindgrub has won numerous awards, including a Marketing Excellence Award from the American Marketing Association in 2014 and Tech Company of the Year in 2013 from Maryland Tech Council. It has won three Davey Awards in 2015, including Best Website Award and Best Use of GPS/Location-Based Technology Award. It received both the Tech Business of the Year and maker of the Best Indie Game at the 2015 Baltimore Innovation Awards. It was recognized as one of the fastest growing companies on the Inc. 5000 list for six consecutive years, 2013 through 2018. Inc. Magazine also recognized Mindgrub as one of the Best Workplaces for 2017. Mindgrub received an Innovators of the Year award from The Daily Record and was honored by Technical.ly as Design/Dev Firm of the Year at the Baltimore Innovation Awards. Clutch.co has awarded Mindgrub with three recent awards: Top AR/VR Developer ; Leading Provider of SEO & UX Services in NYC ; and Leading Marketing, Advertising, Design, & Development Agency in Baltimore & Washington, DC.
