AKRON, Ohio — Akron Mayor Shammas Malik announced that the city's Akronite app would be discontinued at the end of the month.

Akronite, an app designed during the COVID-19 pandemic to help small businesses, was designed by Colu which has been recently acquired.

The app allowed users to discover unique city stories and rewarded them with "blimps" when they shopped local. Users could then redeem the blimps for awards at participating businesses. The city said following the ending of the app it plans to work closely with small businesses to support the community.

“In determining the future of the Akronite app, we wanted to take time to research alternative platforms, hear business owner perspectives, and determine if this type of app is the best way to support our economic ecosystem here in Akron,” said Malik in a news release. “Ultimately, we’ve decided that while Akronite was a creative and innovative way to help local businesses survive and recover from the pandemic, we think there will be better alternatives to helping our small businesses in the future. With Colu’s acquisition, now is a good time to transition away from the app and look at other options closer to home.”

With the end of the app arriving June 30, 2024 — blimp rewards will no longer be issued when shopping at an Akronite locations. users have until 11:59 p.m. on June 30 to redeem any unused blimps. In order to redeem them, open the Akronite app, click on the "Redeem" button at the botton of the screen. When checking out, let the cashier know you would like to redeem Blimps for all or part of your purchase. You must confirm both to the cashier and in the app the use of Blimps.

Participating businesses have been notified of the change. Redeeming businesses will continue to redeem blimps through the deadline.

Any questions can be directed to contact.akronite@colu.com.