The old name of Pinterest was Tote.
Pinterest, the popular visual discovery engine, originated from an earlier application known as Tote. This precursor was developed by co-founders Ben Silbermann and Paul Sciarra. The primary concept behind Tote was to create a digital equivalent for traditional paper catalogs, allowing users to browse and discover products in a virtual environment.
Despite its innovative premise as a virtual catalog, Tote faced significant business hurdles, most notably struggling with the complexities surrounding mobile payments. These challenges ultimately led to the evolution of the concept into what is now recognized as Pinterest, shifting focus from direct purchasing to visual bookmarking and discovery.
