SmartBars app turns bar codes into price-shopping weapon

Gary Guo thinks finding the best price for an item should be as easy as scanning a bar code. He is making that a reality with his new start-up, SmartBars. The Ann Arbor-based start-up has created a mobile app for Apple and Andriod devices. The technology allows users to scan barcodes of items while shopping. The app then tells the user what seller is offering the best deal for that item. "If you have a smart bar you can scan a barcode anywhere and find the best price," says Guo, the owner of SmartBars. The 1-year-old start-up released the free app earlier this year. The team of three people is working on offering more features to the app and increasing usage. The plan is to have it gain traction in time for this year's holiday shopping season. "We have a few thousand downloads now," Guo says. Source: Gary Guo, owner of SmartBars Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.