You've probably heard of Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple, Pavel Durov, the founder of VK and Telegram. You might have even watched the movie "The Social Network" or a film about the company Yandex. These are individuals who created something groundbreaking and immensely beneficial to the world. Back then, I didn't know much about Elon Musk, but I had heard about his company, Tesla. This person launched a rocket with a Tesla electric car, thus promoting the Tesla brand through his own company, SpaceX. I am one of the startup founders who drew inspiration from such personalities and films, dreaming of launching an innovative startup, making it a successful and profitable business that could go public. It's great to have those who inspire!
In the summer of 2012, during an entrepreneurship lecture in Switzerland, the idea for my first startup was born. In the fall, my friend came to pick up his belongings from Switzerland and came to visit. We started talking, and then it was a surprise how the same idea could come to two different people simultaneously. I began describing the startup, and he continued it. That's how we became co-founders of StudList. It was the first sleepless night working on a grand project that we believed could change the world.
For six months, we thought about the logo and the name, and in the end, we bought the domain studlist.com because we wanted to reflect both students and a list, similar to the famous "craigslist" marketplace. Two interesting facts: when buying the domain, we found out that Pavel Durov bought the domain studlist.ru and initially wanted to name VKontakte with this name, but later changed the name. Also, in English, "stud" sounds like a young horse. In general, a lot of time and money was spent on developing logos, different features, and functions that weren't needed initially. At some point, I was even politely kicked out of university due to poor performance, but then I successfully defended my position and was accepted back for the final semester. In 2013, we made ourselves known within our university.
When we launched, we thought it was our moment of stardom. We thought that once we launched, everyone would see us, hear us, and we would become the Zuckerbergs or Elon Musks with a new innovative product. I felt like we were flying into space. And there it was, that moment of realization - we were shouting as a small bug in front of Mount Everest, saying, "Hey, we're here, pay attention to us." That was the moment of realization, a real challenge. It's not enough to have an idea and a product; you also need to effectively convey who you are and what you offer and, along with that, build all the business processes efficiently. We actively worked on this. We went to universities and local businesses, selling them subscriptions so they could advertise their services and products to students in nearby universities. We sent emails to students and posted fake ads with products to create activity and at least partially fill the website with content. One of the co-founders was a Formula 3 racer, and we placed ads on his sports car.
We connected couple of businesses and received payments in cash. We encountered a language barrier, as when Russians clumsily explained who we were in their broken French, and polite Swiss people didn't particularly like any French other than their native Swiss French with an accent. It was challenging, but somehow we managed. The maximum size of our team reached 11 people, with the majority of them in St. Petersburg.
We even bought an old Volkswagen Polo in Switzerland, taking care of our sales managers so they could comfortably commute between cities, although calling them cities would be an overstatement.
We registered the company in Latvia because we positioned ourselves as an international project and obtained the corresponding patents.
We also organized a charity campaign (video) as a socially responsible project and raised money for children in Nepal at the university. During a trip to Tibet and Nepal, we gave T-shirts with our logo to children.
Even today, some tour buses still travel to the holy places of Tibet with our logo.
By 2015, our initial investments were running out, and for about six months, we had been working on a five-year business plan for the development of our startup. We also completed a distance-acceleration program with the Internet Initiatives Development Fund (FRII), and at that time, we were recommended to expand in Switzerland and abroad because this concept wouldn't work in Russia.
In 2015, we made a strategic move and went to a startup conference in Dublin, Ireland, known as the Web Summit, in search of a new investor for a new round. In Dublin, we felt how important it was to choose the right name for a startup and check it in other languages, especially if you're going to Europe. While choosing a name, we had students in mind, which is why a domain with the word "Stud" was perfect. However, we overlooked one thing... Stud translates to "Stallion," so it ended up as "List of Stallions." Perhaps that's why we received mixed reactions from investors who came to our stand.
We played this off a bit with a viral marketing campaign, creating appropriate posters to grab attention and wearing Stallion masks.
(https://twitter.com/studlist_info - our Twitter page. We might be the only ones who hired models and did a photo shoot in a ball. We also launched an inflatable balloon with our logo in the center of Dublin with a person inside.
It looked spectacular. We connected with all the funds and investors through the Web Summit app, but only one responded, and he didn't show up for the meeting. In the end, the Web Summit brought us more expenses than results. We sent a couple of emails to other investors in Switzerland and Russia, but unfortunately, no one was ready to invest in a startup due to the instability of the target audience, students, and the high competition from big players on the online marketplace market - like Avito, despite our efforts to focus on a very narrow segment aimed at students. Unfortunately, our service wasn't particularly popular among students, and our competitors also closed down in the UK and other countries. One competitor in the USA started offering storage for students to somehow monetize their service. We tried pivoting a couple of times, changing the concept and direction of the startup, calling ourselves a Student Guide, but that also didn't work. As true samurai, out of funds, we acknowledged the dire state of affairs and the fact that the market hadn't accepted us. But we didn't commit harakiri, although it was a psychologically challenging decision. We closed the project and buried it in the startup cemetery. I am grateful to Denis Nagulin, Tima Scryabin, Alexander Naumov, Andris Ziemelis, Victoria Tikhonova, Ilya Denisov, Anastasia Ivanova and everyone who participated in the StudList startup and other startups over the years. It was a truly valuable experience.
"It's good when you believe in your idea, but it's even better when ideas believe in you"
One idea can come to several people simultaneously, but only a few can bring them to life.
When you have a dream, a goal, an idea, and you want to change the world, create something truly innovative, and benefit the world – that's great! If you didn't succeed on the first try, it doesn't mean it won't work at all. You need to go all the way and never give up.
It's important to understand the factors that determine success: belief in the idea, choosing the right time to launch the project, the readiness of the team and the maturity of the leader, a clear vision of the goal and the path. Sooner or later, the moment that changes everything will come. It's unique for everyone, and everyone celebrates it in their own way.
As an entrepreneur who has gone through the "valley of death of startups," I gained very valuable experience. That's why I co-founded SAMAN Studio: Startup, Art and Marketing Studio.
In 2024, I have launched the "The World Game” with a mission: To light up entrepreneurs and startup founders and illuminate the path, guiding them towards holistic transformation and sustainable development. Through a harmonious blend of spiritual insights and practical wisdom, we empower individuals to realise their fullest potential, create impactful projects, and shape a brighter future for all. This isn't just a game, it's a transformative teaching, retreat and mentorship program
"The World Game" unfolds across three profound degrees of initiation. I welcome you to join and begin the journey from the Degree of Fire. Check the presentation
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