Ruben and Jeremy inside Friends of Ours coffee shop. Pic:DripApp

Tower Hamlets-based start-up DripApp helps coffee-lovers to avoid queues and pay for their hot beverages without a wallet in hand.

Co-founders Jeremy Cortial and Ruben Grigri wanted to support independent coffee shops in London as well as make drinks more easily accessible. The app lets users to have an unlimited number of drinks per month, provided of course they keep their accounts topped up.

Ruben and Jeremy outside Friends of Ours coffee shop. Pic:DripApp

Since its launch last May, DripApp has managed to build a network of 150 independent coffee shops throughout London. They would not disclose the exact number of users, but told Eastlondonlines they are proud to have a weekly 20 per cent growth rate.

Although Tower Hamlets and Hackney are included in the network there is still a lack of coffee shops in south and east London.

Map of he DripApp coffee shops network. Pic:DripApp

Jeremy Cortial said: “HEJ Coffee, French & Grace and Escape the Daily Grind are all south. And east… there are loads. Furthest out, we’ve got The Peanut Vendor, G&T at The Hive, Footnote and some new partners further east, like Walthamstow and Leyton, who haven’t gone live yet.

“South and east London are areas of growth for us. Identifying, tasting and contacting coffee shops take time, and we are a young start-up with a small team at the moment.”

Users can also suggest their favourite shops through the app. “We love getting recommendations as well, “ added Cortial.

Tara Chandra, Head of Marketing at DripApp, said they always try to offer different ‘cost-effective deals’ for their users. A DripApp cappuccino is cheaper than the average price for cappuccinos at larger coffee chains. Users who drink more than a cup of coffee a day can benefit the most from the initiative.

One of the shops in the network is Paper Dress Boutique in Hackney. Director Hannah Turner said: “We joined DripApp just before Christmas. I like the app because we are a vintage clothing shop and bar, and the app enables people to find us and enjoy good quality, old fashioned coffee in a modern and convenient way.”

DrippApp Co-founder Ruben Grigri said they also helped shops in the network with promotional activities. ”We put our money where our mouth is when it comes to supporting shops. We promote them on social media, we do street marketing campaigns for them, we do promotions with them and offer other free things like professional photoshoots.”

Follow Areej Zayat on Twitter @ZayatAreej