Why competitors are cool, and you shouldn't be afraid to make a fool of yourself? In what cases should you not rush to attract investments and what should you consider before becoming a founder? What are the specifics of B2B and what does the formula for a successful startup look like? We talked about this with our graduate Female Leadership Program and the founder Lookerz – Svetlana Sutyrina.
With this material, we continue the series of interviews with female founders of successful startups in support of a new educational project Amarelo Azul from Ukrainian Hub.
* Lookerz.me - a service that instantly generates an unlimited number of ready-made images in real time only from photos of products, creates catalog navigation in fashionable online stores through images, tags and similar products.
Before starting a startup, I worked as a CEO and creative director of a large fashion company, where I was responsible for revenue and collections. I managed a whole department of designers, and I generally developed collections of accessories independently, despite the fact that I am a mathematician by education. But combining this with a huge experience in the field of fashion and a deep understanding of all processes, I successfully created accessories and shoes, and I really liked it. In 2015, I got married and we moved to America, where I realized that I could not continue to work effectively in the company because of the big time difference. While I was preparing my exit from the company, I started thinking about my first startup.
First, I made a startup called DressBox. It was a wardrobe organizer in a phone. That is, you could take a picture of all the things, upload the photo to the application and get a kind of live wardrobe that you can manage: separate things for family members, plan a wardrobe for different purposes, go on trips, etc. We made a working "apk" for iPhone and Android, but I had no experience promoting such a product. At that time, there was no demand for paid applications. And I thought about the fact that the future is not only for B2C. I wanted to get away from mass, to focus more on the product itself, and not on its promotion. And then I realized that I want to work with a small team in the enterprise market.
"We have developed such a system of work, when we need almost nothing from the client"
The main problem with the first startup was that people didn't want to take pictures of things themselves and upload them to the app. Based on this experience, I closed DressBox and started work on Lookerz. My idea was to create a B2B service for companies in the eCommerce industry, which would scan photos by itself, so that the client did nothing at all. That is, the company completely transfers its photo bank to us, our service scans it, and, using these photos, automatically selects bows and similar products in real time and without the involvement of stylists.
We understood that large companies will not allocate their time or part of their team for some complex integrations. So, we have developed such a system of work, when we need almost nothing from the client. At the exit, the company receives a few lines of code from us, inserts them on the site and it starts working.
"If there is a competitor who has done something similar and received large investments, that's cool!"
It is for such a comfortable work strategy that our current client praises us "Intertop". We provide them with several services: these are bows, similar products, we develop product tagging so that they also have active tags in the product card. Lookerz is a Ukrainian startup, so we were looking for our first customers here. Compared to others, Intertop is a very innovative company. That is why we quickly found a contact. We simply wrote to them on Linkedin, they answered almost immediately, gave the manager's contacts, we met with them, presented everything and went to the integration. Intertop is currently expanding into the Kazakhstan market, and we will also integrate our product there and into other markets where the company plans to move. This is a great chance for us to reach the international level.
Now we are also working on finding customers in the USA. We found advisors in America who are ready to build a sales strategy for us through their private contacts. And for us as B2B, this is the most important thing. Warm insider contacts in fashion are exactly what we need right now.
Someone believes that investments should be attracted to a startup from the very beginning, I am inclined to the opposite opinion. At least in our case. We have a very complex product. We spent almost 2 years developing and refining it to finally demonstrate how it works. There are a lot of companies in the world who say they are starting to do something like this, but they don't succeed. And if we had tried to attract investments from the very beginning, we would hardly have received them, because investors simply could not believe that we would realize what we planned. It was necessary for the product to work properly, because it is very innovative.
Now we have revenue, we have traction, we have indicators in our work with Intertop, and finally we are ready to receive investments and bear responsibility for them.
"There are a lot of companies in the world that say they are starting to do something like this, but they don't succeed."
It is especially important for us that the funds are profiled, that they already invest in start-ups related to e-commerce, especially in the field of fashion. So that they understand that this market is very large. The fashion market occupies 25% of the total volume of online trade, that is, 25% of buyers spend money online on clothes, even on food and on electronics they spend less. That is, when you come to funds that focus on, say, cryptocurrency, they do not understand how we will make money. The same applies to acceleration programs.
It seems to me that the formula for a successful startup: "right place, right time with the right proposition" really works. Sometimes you do something completely new, and the market is not ready for this startup. Sometimes, on the contrary, we are afraid of a large number of competitors. But you should understand that competitors are good, they pave the way for you. If there is a competitor who has done something similar and received large investments, that's cool! You can design something similar, but with different chips, and follow the well-trodden path. Without success in the world of startups, it is difficult. And you don't have to be afraid to make mistakes, because sometimes you make one product, but it turns out that another product is hidden in it, and it is this that starts to bring money. And of course, you need to be lucky. Success is an important point in the work on a startup.
Personally, I have never encountered the fact that it is more difficult for women to achieve success, perhaps because of the field in which I work. In fashion, I was treated with respect almost everywhere I negotiated. If you are self-confident, good-looking, and fully understand your product, then attention will be drawn to you.
In my opinion, the problem of Ukrainian women is that we tend to do everything ourselves. Family, home, business: we want to be successful in all areas at once. At the same time, we do not want and do not know how to ask for help and correctly distribute the load. But if you find a balance, it's great to be a woman in business.
"Very often we live by other people's dreams and aspirations"
Those women who plan to launch a startup should understand for themselves: this is a big responsibility non-stop. You have to get up every morning and do something, you cannot transfer your duties as a founder to someone else. When you start "spinning the pedals" in a startup, you don't have time to study or try some alternative activities. Perhaps you will regret that you did not do something before starting your own business. In addition, not everyone should be an entrepreneur, perhaps it is better for someone to work for someone, to have someone guide and inspire, or to do something as an individual FOP, or to devote oneself to the family in general. It's all fine and dandy if you're into it. Very often we live by other people's dreams and aspirations. Just because it seems like everyone around is launching startups, that doesn't mean you need to either. It is important that every woman thinks carefully about what she wants at this moment in her life.
In order to regain my strength, I periodically take vacations, and the most important thing is that I have completely lost the fear that I will not succeed in something. I am convinced that the market will still be ready for my product in a year or two, and I will be able to adapt it. If I hit a dead end today, I can give myself time to figure out where to go next. I changed directions very often, but I did not leave my project. Why? First, I understand that I can earn a lot of money, and I want it. Second, I understand that this product works and that companies need it. Thirdly, I always wanted to do something very innovative and automated, able to earn a large revenue with a small team. Now there are only 5 people in my team! In general, I just believe in this startup!