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Ask HN: Is the term "Startup" always mean Tech Startup?

• mindcrime 15y ago
  With all due respect, I'd wager you've already spent more time worrying about this issue than could ever possibly be warranted. "Startup" is just a word, nothing more. Do what you want to do, quit worrying about how some people use a word. But if you really care about the opinion of some random stranger on the 'net, I'd say that a "startup" does not have to be a "technology company" but I'd say the definition has more to do with the scalability of the company. If you're starting a restaurant that will never be more than one location, and will just provide income for the proprietors, then I'd say that isn't what I think of as a proper "startup." But a restaurant that's the first of a planned nationwide (or worldwide) chain, that expects to eventually do billions of dollars in revenue, I would count as a "startup." On the flipside, just because a company is a "technology company" doesn't necessarily mean they'd be what I consider a startup. Look at the Micro-ISV movement and the idea of small software companies that aren't meant to scale up and grow big. I wouldn't consider those startups either. If you expect to take outside funding, and see a potential path to an IPO, you probably have a "startup" by most standards. But, again... none of this crap really matters. Forget playing semantic games with labels and definitions and get to work, regardless of what you call it! :-)
• ig1 15y ago
  The term startup more reflect the growth curve than the type of business, is it something that could grow 10-100x+ fold in a short (~5 year) time period. So something like Groupon or Zappos could have been considered a startup even though they were essentially retail businesses they had that hockey stick growth curve. Similarly a tech business which is very labour intensive (for example a consultancy firm) is unlikely to be a startup because scale that type of business tends to be a very slow and expensive process.
• thejteam 15y ago
  The term "startup" varies depending on who you are talking to. To most people, "startup" simply means a new business. Around here, it seems to have a specific meanign that I will not atempt to elaborate on because I would only get it wrong.