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Building a Startup is About Solving a Problem - Avni Patel Thompson of Poppy
25 segments available
Avni Patel Thompson is the CEO and Founder of Poppy - https://www.meetpoppy.com At the 2017 Female Founders Conference she shared how she struggled with her first startup but eventually discovered a problem many people had that was unsolved. If you’re curious about applying to YC, Avni recently wrote a great post called “Is Y Combinator for me?” - https://avnipatelthompson.com/2017/09/20/is-y-combinator-for-me/
Segments Timeline
The Birth of Poppy
Avni Patel Thompson shares her motivation for founding Poppy, a platform connecting vetted caregivers to families in need of childcare. Driven by her personal experiences as a mother, she highlights the anxiety many parents face regarding childcare and the need for better recognition of caregivers.
"hi everyone good afternoon how's everyone doing oh this is really great I'm so excited to be here today my name is Anne I'm the co-founder and CEO of poppy we're building the modern Village by connect..."
From Failure to Inspiration
Avni recounts her journey from shutting down her first startup to finding inspiration at the 2015 Female Founders Conference. She reflects on her desire to be on stage as a speaker and the pivotal moment that reignited her entrepreneurial spirit, leading her to set a goal for herself.
"with poppy so I decided to build it with poppy we're serving thousands of families in Seattle right now and it's incredible thing to be a part of especially because Poppy almost didn't exist one of th..."
Lessons from Failure
Avni discusses the challenges she faced with her first startup, including financial struggles and the emotional toll of failure. She emphasizes the importance of learning from mistakes and how her experience led her to seek knowledge about successful startups.
"goal and this is a little bit crazy but this is my journal from that night and I said crazily in 2017 I want to be on that stage giving the talk instead of sitting in the audience thank you so when ca..."
The Wrong Approach
Avni reflects on her initial approach to entrepreneurship, focusing on product development without understanding customer needs. She shares her realization that following passion alone isn't enough and the importance of talking to users to build a relevant product.
"happened between cat's first email and then me standing in front of you today my hope is that maybe you'll learn a little bit from my mistakes but I hope that in hearing my journey you'll be able to c..."
The Hard Decision to Shut Down
Avni describes the difficult decision to shut down her first startup after realizing the high cost of acquiring customers. She shares the emotional impact of this failure and the lessons learned about the importance of market fit and customer demand.
"full-time it felt incredible um but the at the beginning it was what are we going to focus on well I'd heard all of these things about MVPs and working on product and getting it out and so we worked o..."
Finding the Right Blueprint
After her failure, Avni immersed herself in learning about successful startups, discovering key principles such as focusing on user needs and incremental growth. She expresses how these insights provided her with a new blueprint for her next venture.
"money we decided to try every everything we possibly could we did Facebook campaigns we did Google adword campaigns we even went and partnered with some of the best Brands out there like the tea colle..."
Identifying the Real Problem
Avni shares her process of talking to parents to identify pressing issues in their lives, leading her to recognize the significant problem of childcare. She discusses the challenges faced by working parents and her determination to find a solution.
"started to realize iiz just some of the ways that I might have been thinking about this in a little bit of the wrong way instead of following your passion you know this whole concept of living in the ..."
Recreating the Village
Avni articulates the concept of 'it takes a village to raise a child' and how modern families often lack this support system. She explores the idea of using technology to recreate a sense of community and trust among parents and caregivers. This segment delves into her vision of combining human connection with data-driven solutions to address the childcare crisis.
"Village and so I thought well how do you recreate something so human and so emotional as Village was something so rational as data and code well I found my undergraduate degree in chemistry coming bac..."
Innovating with SMS
Faced with limited resources, Avni shares her innovative approach to building her childcare solution using SMS technology. She explains how she leveraged existing tools to create a simple yet effective system for connecting parents with sitters. This segment highlights her resourcefulness and determination to test her idea despite financial constraints.
"do and in the dark of putting my five month-old to sleep you know it takes a long time there's a lot of time to think it came to me SMS why couldn't I use SMS because parents and sitters are already u..."
The Growth Journey
Avni recounts her initial success in securing bookings for her childcare service and the satisfaction of surpassing her growth goals. She contrasts this experience with her previous startup struggles, emphasizing the organic growth driven by word-of-mouth among parents. This segment illustrates the importance of community support in the success of a startup.
"just text this phone number and I gave them my personal phone number that day I got my first booking and that week I got my first four every single week I just set the goal to see if I just could just..."
Applying to Y Combinator
In this segment, Avni shares her decision to apply to Y Combinator (YC) despite feeling underprepared. She reflects on her previous application experience and the doubts she had about fitting the typical YC profile. However, she recognizes the potential of her growing company and the encouragement from YC to reapply, showcasing her resilience and commitment to her vision.
"wanted so I applied and truth be told I didn't put a lot of Hope into it because I'd applied for my first startup I'd spent weeks writing the perfect application and I didn't even get an interview I'd..."
Building a Team
Avni discusses the challenges of finding a technical co-founder to help scale her startup. She emphasizes the importance of compatibility and shared passion in a partnership. This segment highlights her ongoing journey to build a strong team that aligns with her mission, underscoring the collaborative nature of entrepreneurship.
"what YC thought or said I had a growing company and I had growing I had customers to serve so I got to work I pretended as if I got into YC anyways and I set myself the goal to just grow by 10 to 20% ..."
Finding the Right Partner: A Leap of Faith
Avni recounts her journey of meeting Richard, her eventual co-founder, through a series of introductions. Despite their different backgrounds, they connected over shared curiosity and vision for Poppy. This segment highlights the serendipitous nature of startup partnerships and the importance of finding the right fit in co-founders.
"order so I talked to everyone I asked for every single intro to any engineer I talked to tens hundreds of people and still nothing by now was about August and I was exceeding my ability to just do all..."
Building the Team: Hiring the First Employee
In this segment, Avni discusses the pivotal moment of hiring their first employee, Sarah, who came from the childcare industry. She emphasizes the importance of having a dedicated team to support the core mission of Poppy. This highlights the significance of building a strong team in the early stages of a startup.
"what is Poppy if not building Community when there's a matching algorithm involved and we're definitely taking payments but in those early days it was really just a leap of faith and all of this is ju..."
Reapplying to Y Combinator: A New Opportunity
Avni shares her experience of reapplying to Y Combinator after building momentum with her team and product. She describes how the application process became easier due to their growth and progress. This segment underscores the importance of persistence and adaptability in the startup journey.
"company which is finding those really amazing caregivers where they are what they what kind of experience they have what kind of vetting needs to be done so she came on and joined the team I'd always ..."
Facing Competition: The Pressure of YC Interviews
Avni recounts the pressure of walking into Y Combinator interviews, especially upon seeing competitors. She reflects on the determination to present Poppy's vision and growth effectively. This segment illustrates the competitive nature of the startup ecosystem and the mental resilience required during critical moments.
"we had the team so we were so excited when we again got the chance to interview Richard and I practiced all the questions and we made our way down to Fountain View I knew that the hardest part of our ..."
The Relief of Funding: A Turning Point
In this segment, Avni describes the moment she received the funding offer from Y Combinator, highlighting the relief it brought. She emphasizes that funding buys time for experimentation and growth. This segment captures the emotional highs and lows of startup life and the significance of securing financial backing.
"swinging so so we got in there and we just told the partners about poppy about what we were building about what we saw about our growth about our how our users just loved what we were building and nee..."
Building Momentum: The YC Experience
Avni discusses the ongoing work during Y Combinator, focusing on user feedback and product development. She highlights the importance of maintaining a growth mindset and the iterative process of building Poppy. This segment emphasizes the continuous effort required to succeed in the startup world.
"have it a seed VC firm in Seattle also decided to fund us so the week before heading into YC that was the bank balance in my business banking account and my brother over the holidays asked me why were..."
The Ongoing Challenge of Growth
In the final segment, Avni reflects on the challenges of building a product that meets user needs and the ongoing commitment to growth. She acknowledges that the journey is far from easy but emphasizes the importance of staying connected to the roots of the business. This segment encapsulates the essence of entrepreneurship and the relentless pursuit of improvement.
"Loop of building and advancing we closed our seed round shortly after demo day a little bit over $2 million and we went came back to Seattle in May and we moved into our first official offices and I r..."
Lessons from Two Startups
Avni shares five key lessons learned from her experiences with her first and second startups. She emphasizes the importance of curiosity over passion, the need to engage with users, and the focus on solving problems rather than just building products.
"every day our job is to build something that people want as measured by our growth every day we're working on just growing the company and putting our heads down even now there's things that we're wor..."
Funding as a Tool for Experimentation
In this segment, Avni discusses her evolving perspective on funding, viewing it as a valuable resource for running experiments rather than just a budget. She explains how this mindset shift has influenced her approach to achieving profitability and growth.
"going in the beginning being a Founder as I'm sure so many of you guys know is lonely you need to talk to people but just which people in the very beginning because we are both firsttime Founders we t..."
Focusing on Growth Metrics
Avni highlights the importance of identifying a key growth metric for startups. She shares her experience of focusing on bookings filled as a measure of success, illustrating how consistent growth in this area is crucial for connecting families with caregivers.
"to that next level the last thing is about Focus as Founders I think this is the hardest thing what do I focus my time on in the early days with my first startup I thought it was all about product lau..."
The Challenge of Starting and Persisting
Avni encourages aspiring founders to commit to starting their projects and emphasizes the importance of perseverance. She shares her own journey of applying to Y Combinator multiple times before succeeding, inspiring others to keep pushing through adversity.
"together really effectively so pick your one number and choose to grow it consistently the thing that I want to end with is that I think you guys as ERS have two really important jobs the first is to ..."
Finding Your Support System
In this heartfelt segment, Avni discusses the significance of having a support system, including family and a dedicated team. She stresses the importance of building a community that enables founders to thrive and continue their entrepreneurial journey.
"week the second is to keep going I applied to YC three times before getting in poppy is my second startup I am standing here on the stage because every morning I choose to be a Founder I choose to kee..."
Empowering Female Founders
Avni concludes her talk by reflecting on her journey and the need for more female founders in the startup ecosystem. She shares her belief that anyone can succeed if they set goals and commit to their entrepreneurial path, inspiring the next generation of women in business.
"and keep going it's been an incredible three-year Journey so far and if there's one thing that I know for sure it's that the world needs more female [Applause] Founders two years ago I sat in your sea..."