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Mariya Nurislamova, Founder of Scentbird at the Female Founders Conference
15 segments available
Recorded live at our Female Founders Conference in New York, Mariya Nurislamova shares the story of building Scentbird. We’re also posting the other talks from the Female Founders Conference today. You can see all of them and read the transcripts at https://blog.ycombinator.com If you’d like to learn more about the Female Founders Conference, head over to https://femalefoundersconference.org
Segments Timeline
The Birth of Scentbird
Mariya Nurislamova introduces herself and shares her journey of building Scentbird, a fragrance subscription service. She reflects on the challenges and rewards of entrepreneurship, emphasizing the importance of the YC community in her journey.
"really bright and sunny today I can't unsee the slides but I guess that's okay hi everyone my name is Maria for the past four and a half years I've been building a company called sunbird Sebert is a f..."
The Year of Misery
Mariya recounts the early struggles of Scentbird, referring to it as the 'year of misery.' She discusses the mistakes made, including not talking to customers while trying to build a fragrance recommendation system based on her passion for fragrances.
"take you I guess behind the scenes of how we build the company and some of the early mistakes we've made and God knows there were plenty so chapter one of our story it's called the year of misery I ki..."
The Discovery Kit Fiasco
Mariya explains the initial business model of Scentbird, which involved a discovery kit of fragrance samples. She shares the challenges faced, including low conversion rates from samples to full-size purchases, highlighting the importance of understanding customer needs.
"call its Smart Search but basically you can say okay like I won a fragrance for a workout that smells like oranges and we basically got your back the problem was we all decided as founders to quit our..."
A Shift in Business Model
After realizing the limitations of their initial model, Mariya discusses the pivot to a 'try before you buy' approach, where customers could receive full-size bottles of fragrances. She shares the challenges of fraud and the need for a sustainable business model.
"back to the drawing board and mind you this is we still haven't talked to one single customer about what is it that they really truly wanted so we're all still living in our heads so oh and this was a..."
Finding Support in Tough Times
Mariya shares her experience of reaching out to mentor Michael Seibel during a challenging phase. His encouragement and advice led to a pivotal shift in Scentbird's business model towards fragrance rentals, which proved to be a game-changer.
"were like okay well maybe the problem with our first business model is that it takes an additional step for people to buy the full-size bottle so why don't we shove them the full-size bottles right aw..."
The Winning Business Model
Mariya describes how the new fragrance rental model allowed customers to try fragrances without commitment. This shift resulted in a surge of orders, marking a significant turning point for Scentbird's growth and success.
"very much in the red got very upset um I think I mean saying that this was blood sweat and tears is really not saying much so I think we came to a point where we came to a point where I think we reall..."
Facing Investor Challenges
As Scentbird began to scale, Mariya discusses the difficulties of securing funding. She shares her experiences pitching to investors and the disconnect between her business's growth and their perceptions.
"team that I think has the best potential to make fragrances work it would be sunbird something shifted for me and he thinks sometimes they're only that one mentor to kind of like hold her a hand for s..."
The Importance of Mentorship
Mariya reflects on the value of mentorship and the lessons learned from her interactions with investors. She emphasizes the need for supportive advisors who understand the entrepreneurial journey.
"we basically turned off all the fancy features in our site it was a one-pager really ugly looking with this ugly picture that's why I have it up on the slide and they basically it worked like magic pe..."
Applying to Y Combinator
Mariya shares her experience applying to Y Combinator for the second time. Despite initial rejection, she highlights the importance of persistence and the eventual success of securing funding.
"business was scaling well scaling a hundred customers not really scaling it's really early on and you know I we went through an experience of pitching a demo day at the first accelerator here in New Y..."
Lessons from Rejection
Mariya discusses the lessons learned from rejection and the importance of resilience in entrepreneurship. She shares how these experiences shaped her approach to fundraising and business development.
"and I pitch people I pitched I didn't count maybe 40 people everybody told me no but the noes are not the like knows never really upset me what upset me were the crappy yeses and I'll tell you what th..."
Building a Strong Team
Mariya emphasizes the significance of surrounding oneself with talented individuals. She reflects on her hiring decisions and the impact of having a strong team on Scentbird's success.
"out of that meeting and walked into another meeting and it was probably even worse although I don't know it depends but it was a real estate investor and he said Maria sunbird is awesome I love your i..."
The Power of Communication
Mariya discusses the importance of communicating ambitious goals and dreams. She encourages women entrepreneurs to be bold in their aspirations and to share their visions with the world.
"Sunbird is raising a hundred K I want you to put all of it and I'm gonna give you a good deal and the reason you should do it is a we're growing like crazy B I'm gonna get into Y Combinator in three w..."
Advice from the Right People
Mariya shares a crucial lesson about seeking advice only from those who have achieved what you aspire to. She recounts a discouraging conversation that almost led her to abandon her entrepreneurial dreams.
"all I said was hey I have a hundred K and I want you to fill that whole hundred K there is no room for anybody left in that round so what I ended up doing afterwards is every investor pitch that I had..."
Scentbird's Growth Journey
Mariya concludes by sharing Scentbird's growth trajectory, including team expansion and customer reach. She attributes much of the company's success to the support received from Y Combinator.
"see and I'm like what a third time to get rejected a third time I did apply to YC and long story short we got in hence they invited me to speak here cuz you know if I didn't get in for a third time pr..."
Final Thoughts and Encouragement
Mariya offers final thoughts on entrepreneurship, encouraging aspiring founders to pursue their dreams and consider applying to Y Combinator for transformative support.
"please don't die I'm gonna buy 10 subscriptions I'm like what she clearly cared and that was like probably the most that was probably the first time when I truly realized we might just make it because..."