Startup dead, long live startup

    Hello!

    Spoiler: Not quite dead, but the quote is painfully appropriate.

    This post is a debriefing and plans for the future. Brief background: using modern terminology, “Luck” was conceived as a match making (then called “crowdsourcing”) project that allows you to remotely buy and bring the goods you need. The emphasis was precisely on buy and bring because the delivery of any things, although more vital, but potentially more dangerous for carriers. And in the case of a purchase (if it is not made “in the shop in the backyard of XXX street with the YYY password”), there are much fewer dangers.

    Time has shown that there is a demand for purchase and delivery, but delivery is much less (close to 0). Well, if it was clear where to do the pivot: in the window of imported goods, as the then competitors of gransjoy and the new startup grabr.io (sort of raised $ 4M) did not understand how to convince carriers to participate at that time. the country was going through "fat years", and small amounts did not attract them, and larger ones made the purchase unprofitable.
    I’ll write about the essence of the title on the cut.

    And then a lot happened:

    • The fall of the ruble. Which sharply reduced the number of trips.
    • Out of money. Which reduced the free time for the project.
    • A son is born. Which further reduced free time for the project)

    In these troubled years, I did not leave the idea to return to the project. And as a result, he was engaged in close affairs: cross-border trade with Kazakhstan and restored the programming skills that he had lost while leaving for management.

    And as usual, I decided to start a new life with a new year. Left Kazakhstan, and returned to startups.

    So, it was necessary to solve something with carriers. And if the decline in incomes made such a reward more attractive, then the issue of security and trust remained unresolved. The only solution that came to my mind: creating my own community (I wrote about trust within established groups earlier).

    In general, we decided to make a pivot, but not traditional: to unite and create a new startup for travelers Ullsee, and if successful, revive Svezet already at the Ullsee community.

    Why is that? To account for the Swiezte error:

    1. The project coder must be on the team. A million tweaks, hypothesis tests + a hired coder will quickly end your nerves and wallet.
    2. A 1-person project team is rarely viable. It is impossible to code and promote the idea and sell the project to investors. Failures quickly exhaust.
    3. It was decided to start in a scientific way: lean startup is the gold standard of startups at the moment (here we had a certain doubt, about which below).

    About doubts about lean startup:

    1. It is used by IIDF. Having studied their statistics , the following happened: of the first 2 sets, 17 out of 62 survived, and of the last 2 sets 26 out of 53 survived. The question arose: "How to interpret this?" Maybe lean startup doesn't work? However, they decided that this did not contradict his idea: "to quickly understand the idea is in demand or you need to stop spending time and money on it." Which begets the next question.
    2. Both projects are not 100% about money, but still ideological:

      • We love travel and discovery!
      • I want to share the experience gained.

      And if it turns out that he is not much in demand? Close it? But what about the idea?

    In general, we decided to make a hybrid, take the best from lean: MVP, customer development & unit economics, and in case of failure, leave projects alive as a hobby.

    What is the new project about?

    The 21st century is in the yard, and all the information is in the form of branches on the forum or travel bloggers' articles (and the article will still be dated 2010, and you doubt the relevance) or questions in group chats of the community of the area where you arrived (well, if the community has and you know who to ask for the addition).

    Banal situation: in 2010 I spent the winter in Pattaya with a friend. The question arose where to cut your hair. Result:

    • I learned from friends about the Filipino hairdresser, where they walked thoughtfully around me for half an hour, occasionally making a wave with scissors. I had to force things, pointing to the typewriter, which I seem to offend the master. Price tag: 200 rub
    • A friend listened to my story and decided to go his own way. To avoid the problem of translating the term “half-box” into local languages, he found a Russian-speaking stripper who worked as a hairdresser for 400 rubles a day! (a seemingly good rate, but apparently not a stable channel).

    And then I found the "street of hairdressers" (very often in cities they are grouped together by guilds). Total: 60r!

    Or how I went for a visa to Laos. 14 hours sitting on the bus! I cursed everyone and everyone! But it turned out that the train was going there.

    Or overpriced taxis from airports. And in Bali I rented a bike from a local who is ready to submit it directly to the airport and pick it up from you there. Then my friends used his business card.

    There were a lot of everyday situations over the years. And there are still questions: how to get there, why be afraid.

    In general, the Ullsee mission to make the area understandable in 20 minutes. Only specific tips and instructions.

    For myself, I describe it as "stackoverflow for travelers" (a section with questions will appear in the near future).

    Only registered users can participate in the survey. Please come in.

    How do you prepare for the trip?

    • 29.1% I enjoy reading themed sites. This is a pleasant travel preparation ritual. 7
    • 54.1% I read short reviews / life hacks about the area. thirteen
    • 25% Interested in friends who were already there. 6
    • 33.3% I am not a fan of traveling. 8
    • 16.6% Old school: lonely planet paper guide. 4

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