My startup has closed down

My startup has closed down

2:57 AM

My startup has closed down

After experiencing the tide of entrepreneurship in previous years, in 2019, the turmoil no longer emerged, capital is cautious and even large companies face many challenges and uncertainties. Many entrepreneurs have to stop the pace of entrepreneurship, and the market has put forward higher requirements for entrepreneurs who have not yet left.



The fuel economy interviewed six entrepreneurs who chose to shut down the company in 2019. The reasons for their failures are different. Some people choose to stop losses in time because of the break of the capital chain. Some people have to withdraw from the market because of internal differences and external squeezes. However, they are most intuitively aware of the fact that the entrepreneurial and capital environment is still cold this year: the market is shrinking and financing is difficult.

“The industry reports that various industries are still growing, but the reality is that every family is laying off employees.”

“It took a week to clear 70,000 leather pants and 20,000 lipsticks, and then the wages of more than 20 employees were settled.”

"In the second half of last year, two capitals decided to vote for us, and we finished the test, but by the end of the year, the other the party told us that we have no money."

"The monthly cost of the optical server is sixty-seven thousand. Several partners start to post money on their own, and finally, they have to pay a lot of money every month."

After a few years of hard work, entrepreneurship has become a way of life for them. Many entrepreneurs interviewed told the Finance News that although they chose to leave temporarily, they encountered various problems and difficulties in the process of starting a business, but they did not regret it. If there is another chance, they will still choose to start a business again.

After many failures in the transformation, my entrepreneurial spirit is still not dead.


Lily Commodity Supply Chain Entrepreneur

Entrepreneurship needs a restless heart, and I, in my mother's words are "something special since childhood," and you must try to decide what you want.

In 2015, I resigned and left Beijing to start a business in Tianjin, and settled in an incubator in Nankai District. The story we tell is to help merchants create “a great deal of money in a circle of friends,” a small commodity supply chain that serves businesses. Commodities are ordered and supplied by our manufacturers. At the same time, we have found a cooperative logistics company in the same incubator to help us solve the problems of delivery and warehousing.

After about half a year, the project is on the right track, with an average of 20,000 orders a day, a net profit of 2 to 3 yuan, and can earn 4 to 60,000 a day. In its heyday, our spike activity can sell 15,000 tickets in half an hour and lipsticks can sell 5 million in a year. This momentum lasted from mid-2016 to mid-2017, and it was wonderful to recall.

But since then, we have started to go downhill. On the one hand, we have no risk awareness, we have no technical team, we all rely on logistics companies that cooperate with us, and on the other hand, external competition is becoming more and more fierce.

Later, we also thought about the transformation, tried to share the tissue machine and shared the charging treasure project, but I disagreed with the partner. I feel that the shared project has to burn money in the early stage and needs financing, but the partners strongly disagree. After burning all of our money, we still don't want to give up, try to pick up some advertisements, but unfortunately, we don't see any improvement.

In the end, there was no way. We spent a week clearing 70,000 leather pants and 20,000 lipsticks before we settled the wages of more than 20 employees. I was very depressed at the time and decided to go back to Beijing.

That was in May 2018, my entrepreneurial heart was still not dead. I came back and spent some time looking for projects, but found that e-commerce and e-commerce supply chain financing projects are much less than before, capital is more and more cautious, safe At first glance, I decided to go to work first. A friend introduced me to the insurance company. After thinking about it, I decided to join the ranks of insurance brokers.

For those who have created a job, it is not easy to return to work step by step and to live nine to five. But thanks to the experience of starting a business, it gives me different perspectives on how to look at the problem, so that I can use the advantage of "Tao"

Entrepreneurship is a quick earning, and selling insurance is a small fire. This year, my eager mood has gradually calmed down. It is not a bad thing for me to have the opportunity to polish in a big company.

I think everyone has a heart for entrepreneurship. Now, my partner has started a second venture in Hangzhou. At that time, the cooperative logistics company was also transforming into a toy logistics supply chain. They are all insisting that my heart will never die.

Three years of business, I moved three times, from 360 to 50


Wang Dazhi Founder of IEX Limited

I have done more than two years of blockchain and stopped in January this year. The process is extremely difficult. Before starting a business, I was a CTO of a study abroad group. I studied blockchain technology for many years as a hobby. At the end of 2016, I met an investor and turned the blockchain into the main business.

Who knows that on September 4, 2017, the seven ministries and commissions including the China Banking Regulatory Commission and China Securities Regulatory Commission issued the "Announcement on Preventing the Risk of Subsidy Issuance Financing", which increased the uncertainty of the digital currency market. Our employers immediately withdrew their capital and cash flow. Broken. At that time, in addition to doing some tokens and services for other projects, I also made an exchange. The exchange was profitable, but the profit could not support the operating cost of the 40-person team.

After September, the company faced a transformation, the business stopped a large part, quite a group of people, and two times did not pay the wages, borrowed the money from the usury to be strong.

Just started the business, we rented a large office of 286 square meters in Jianguomen, plus a small office of more than 80 flat. After the accident, the project that had been done for half a year was not willing to stop, leaving some people to continue to adjust the product direction in the small office. At that time, the entire industry was seeking to go out to sea. It took us two or three months to reorganize and put the exchange overseas.

It was also from that time that I began to suffer from insomnia for a long time. Too many things were spinning in my mind. I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t do it because my eyes were dry. I couldn’t sleep because I couldn’t sleep. Until the beginning of last year, the market was getting better. I was not willing to continue to study the underlying technology of the blockchain outside the exchange, so I used the money earned by the exchange to raise another blockchain technology project.

Who knows that the blockchain technology project has not been completed yet, and the exchange does not make any money. At that time, the optical server cost sixty-seven thousand yuan per month, and even could not afford to pay for itself. To maintain the operation, several partners began to post money and moved to a 50-flat commercial and residential apartment in Guangqumen. In the later period, the money was earned less and less. In the end, it became a part of the money to be paid every month. It was not until January of this year that it could not sustain it and shut down the project.

During the period of contact with a variety of employers, their request is to turn the exchange into an explosive product, but we still want to make the industry healthier. Despite the struggle and vacillation, we finally did not compromise. Fortunately, when we are trading on the exchange, no one project has an accident, and there is no need to worry about legal liability for causing third-party losses, or freedom.

In the end, I had to go back to my old job for more than ten years and start over. Entrepreneurship is sometimes like mental illness, half of excitement and collapse, but no matter what is going on.

It is said that good equity has not been fulfilled until the company’s bankruptcy.


Liu Hua Internet of Things Industry Entrepreneur

I and three partners started their business in 2014 and developed a system based on the Internet of Things for use in catering. To put it simply, consumers go to the restaurant to order a good meal before going to the hotel. After the hotel is done, put it in a small cupboard and go to the restaurant to take a meal with the mobile phone. We raised more than 70 million yuan before and after and immediately went to the B round. As a result, the company's internal consumption was too serious, and it could not last until the end of last year.

I am younger with another partner, and I am a partnership with a long-term investor. I am the chairman, I am the CEO. The earliest talk is that the chairman takes 20% of the shares, and I and another The partners each took about 8%, but, in the past few years, the previous commitments have not been fulfilled.

He explains that the company now has no money, and the equity is not worth the money. If the company does not do it in the future, you have to bear certain responsibilities. It is for us that we have not given equity. But this is two different things. The company does not fail, there is no money on the account, and it is my problem. It is my problem. It is his problem to give no equity. I don't think he ever thought about separating the shares.

Company decisions require several people to vote, but the chairman has one veto. When the company encounters problems, the chairman does not bother to deal with it and does not discuss it with others. At that time, the B round of financing had not come in. When there was not much money left, if we could shrink in time, the loan through the bridge should be maintained, but because of the relationship between the partners, everyone did not promote it.

Our investor is a listed company. They have invested a lot of P2P companies, and they are self-sufficient, let alone take care of us. For the time being, it would be better to chase after another round.

In this project, I put a lot of energy and time, and I am as big as I am with my children. In those years, I spent 150 days flying in the sky 365 days a year. In the latter stage, our valuation has reached 2-3 billion yuan. When I gave up my business, I was very painful, but there was no way. Looking back and thinking about it, I think the most important thing in starting a business is to find a partner. The ability is second because ability can be gained through knowledge and exercise, but the character is born.

If I start another business, I will not choose the Internet of Things track anymore. It is too hard and too lonely, and I have to focus on R&D and invest a lot. Now I am half-rest, then I will settle for a while, and I will not refuse to work in other big companies, but I should start a business at the right time.

The biggest lesson I learned from this venture is that the company's top-level structure must be clear, which determines how to drive the team in the future. The most important quality of entrepreneurs is honesty and unforgettable. When the company has a certain strength and industry influence, it is a huge test to keep the initial heart.

Always think that the company will die, it will live longer.


Zhang Lei Public Relations Company Entrepreneur

The moment I turned off the company, I felt liberated and relieved.

After I decided to turn off the company in September last year, I was suffering for half a year.

I started my business before 2010 and worked as a public relations company. The industry did not do well in 2016 and 2017. Some media began to contact customers and grab jobs with public relations companies. By 2018, our profits were squeezed at both ends. In the first place, Party A’s life was not good. The customer’s budget was cut by 20%. Second, the source of funds was squeezed and the procurement cost became higher. This has resulted in a drop in our profits by more than half in the case of constant turnover.

There are still orders every month, but I don’t make money, I feel like a company. Party A sometimes does not have the convenience to buy media, so it will pass the channel of public relations company. Gradually, I found that anyone I can do this can lose the core competitiveness.

Of course, this has something to do with me. I have never transformed, such as transforming media, transforming H5, or other companies with partial technology.

The business is not working, and the body is still paralyzed. The past ten years have been too tired, so as long as you sit for 5 hours in a row, you will feel uncomfortable, have a feeling of collapse, and have more than enough energy. For example, the vibrato sounds up, the resource for raising the vibrato; the employee's mood is not good, it is time to talk to him, but I can't care.

When I first started my business, I often lost my temper. In the end, I didn't want to send my temper because I knew that I had a bad temper. In the end, I was hurting my body.

Looking back, I think that a company should not only make one product, it should continue to enrich the product line, and should not only look at the immediate profit but also make some reserves for the future, always thinking that you will die, it may be Live a little longer.

Another point is that there must be a partner. If there is no partner, no one can come up when you are lax or when there is a problem with the body. This is terrible. After all, no one can guarantee that he is always in the state, and no one can guarantee that he is doing anything.

Although the company is closed now, the name of the company has not been written off. After all, it is a memory and experience.

After the failure of the business, I talked to more than 100 people to find a job.


Year of the year

Four years ago, I was optimistic about the development of a certain direction, but it was not the same thing.

After the company liquidated at the beginning of this year, I found a job for two months. Because I have done both the creation and the investment, I still have some expansion in my heart before I find a job. I feel that I don’t have much problem when I want to go there. As a result, the reality is poured into cold water.

In the past two months, I have talked about more than a hundred people. I can think of the big and small companies and funds in the entrepreneurial related chain. I almost talked about it.

They are all willing to talk, there are a lot of conversations that are still very deep, but it is no result, everyone is very cautious. Everyone has a difficult experience, even if it is a big company, there are still various problems, and there is a huge challenge at this time.

In this environment, the demand for talents of every company must still exist, but the expectations are getting higher. Especially for positions with a slightly higher level, the transaction is much more difficult than before.

The core is because the whole environment is very bad, and the industry that I am in the partial content, whether it is policy trends or advertising revenue is tightening this year. Even if the industry report says that various industries are still growing, the reality is that every family is laying off employees.

My mentality is still relatively stable. I have experienced 0 to 1 this startup, and I have done a good job. I also know that there are many problems from 1 to 100, and even if it is 100, it does not necessarily mean success. I am used to continuing to struggle in a state that is not too OK, and I can't stop doing it, right?

During the time I was looking for a job, I felt that everyone was not easy. All parties in the entire venture capital chain: from start-up companies to listed companies and the small and small companies behind them, it is not easy for everyone.

At this point, whether it is user growth or policy response, looking for entry points or the pace of financing, compared to three or four years ago, the difficulty has increased geometrically. The result is that the long-term requirements for the founders will be particularly high, and the key is that there is no short-board. The heart is strong enough to do it all alone.

During the two months of finding a job, someone asked me to continue to set up a business, but the time was too short. I didn’t meet people who especially trusted me and complimented me. I also felt that I was not ready, and no one could let myself continue to invest. The matter so gave up the road to continue to start a business.

After returning to the investor, I feel that there are not so many new projects this year. Unlike the original projects that were new years ago, I am very excited and excited. Now I am looking for a stable opportunity in the stock market. If you don't move, you can expect your company to achieve tens of billions of dollars. It will be more realistic and the pace will slow down.

The first two changes in the work were that others found me, saying that there is something you want to do, and then I went, without any stop. This time I was looking for a job. It was the first time I stopped and took the initiative to go outside to see a circle. It is also a very interesting process to not find any presets to find possible opportunities.

It doesn't matter if you fail to start a business, but you can't start a business for business.


Wang Xun, a continuous entrepreneur

The project I started before was a service-oriented robot. After about a year and a half, I switched to a charging pile for a new energy vehicle. It took nearly a year to raise 5 million yuan before and after, and the team also invested more than 2 million.

The most typical change I felt in 2019 was that the capital the market was relatively tight, and all the investors who came into contact with it, whether they had invested in our capital or a small investment company that had new contacts, did not take the shot.

The robot project, which has nearly 200 million revenues, is still not profitable. Later, I chose to abandon the robot market decisively and began to work on a new energy vehicle charging pile. Until the money on the books was not enough to support the later operations, I decided to stop the project and no longer have any obsession with entrepreneurship.

I didn't decide to give up the business at once, and it took a long time to get through the middle. At the same time, we are constantly looking for customers, constantly seeking financing, and even starting to give the team some warning. The real decision to give up is because I realize that the money can't be maintained, and I must stop the loss in time. Just as you decide to give up treatment for your sick child, you will feel sad, but you are very calm and know that this is not the way to go.

The charging pile project started under conditions where the conditions were relatively mature. In the second half of 2018, we did not expect the entire environment, including the entire capital market, to be cold. According to our original plan, after the products came out in the second half of the year, we will start the A round of financing and start mass production. In fact, in the second half of the year, there were indeed two capitals that decided to vote for us and even completed the tune but by the end of the year, the other party told us that there was no money.

In the early stage of the venture, a lot of research and development expenses are required. From the second half of last year to this year, the capital market is still cold. If the product cannot be mass-produced, the cost will not fall. Although the team did not survive, at least I have no regrets.

The key is not to start a business for entrepreneurship, even if I give me another chance, I have to see if there is a suitable project in hand. If there is no suitable project, I will not fully understand and judge the market. Even if I give me money, I will not start a business.

A company wants to succeed and needs a lot of factors, such as the ability, vision, and measurement of the founder, including the health of the entire team. The shortboard effect cannot occur, and no problem can be solved in every link. At this point, as long as the entrepreneur is still serious about doing things, it is worth admiring.


About

This is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Accordingly, it is difficult to figure out when to end it. But then, this is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Period.

ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon

:)
:(
=(
^_^
:D
=D
=)D
|o|
@@,
;)
:-bd
:-d
:p
:ng
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)