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Sorry, the startup was named Chemdex (later Ventro). One article summarizing its downfall: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jun-24-fi-14133-story.ht
by panabee 6y ago
Sorry, the startup was named Chemdex (later Ventro). One article summarizing its downfall: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jun-24-fi-14133-story.html https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jun-24-fi-14133.... There were others like ChemConnect, but Chemdex was the most high-profile.
If the article is correct, high costs for building and maintaining the "Amazon for chemicals" were the primary cause of failure.
Many great ideas are a matter of when, not if. Knowing when to launch is as critical for entrepreneurs as is knowing when to buy for investors.
A modern Chemdex might thrive like the modern Webvan (ie Instacart) because if costs were the cause of death, a cloud infrastructure would address this issue.
Obviously, this is a very different model from the ARM model.
Hopefully one of these comparisons can offer helpful insights.