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Growth startup v/s lifestyle startup: why should there be a difference at all?
- egor83 15y agoJoel Spolski had an article on the speed of growth a while ago: http://www.inc.com/magazine/20091101/does-slow-growth-equal-slow-death.html http://www.inc.com/magazine/20091101/does-slow-growth-equal-...
- xiaoma 15y agoI think the key difference is whether or not it's a big, winner take all market. If it is, then you pretty much have to get all the funding you possibly can and grow as fast as you can as Amazon and Ebay did. Jeff Bezos has written about how he was aware of the damage such rapid growth inflicted on company culture and how difficult it made managing the company. But, in that sort of market, it was the only way to go. For a small niche or for a market such as fast food that isn't winner take all, the lifestyle business is possible and probably preferable. VWO is a medium sized "winner take most" market, so it's reasonable that they're following a hybrid path.
- bradleyland 15y agoI hate to trot this out, but isn't this a bit of a strawman argument? "Lifestyle: Slow growth or no growth at all" It's not black & white. Self-funded lifestyle businesses don't typically grow as quickly because they can't sustain the high burn-rate on a self-funded basis, not because they don't want to grow. At least not in all cases. The focus on profitability is dictated by the fact that lifestyle founders often have their own money on the line, which they're anxious to get back. I know from personal experience. I didn't have millions of dollars in a bank account, begging to be put to work. I had a small chest of savings that I stored up by busting my ass and living in a 500 sq ft apartment for 7 years. I wanted that money back quickly because I faced a much higher level of personal risk if things went south.