It might come as a surprise, but 65% of startups fail due to co-founder conflict. That’s higher than the divorce rate in the United States.
But before you start drawing up a prenup with your business partner, there is a way co-founders can navigate the sometimes choppy waters of startup. We snagged a chat with co-founders Kelly and Emma from Shop You to find out how they maintain their flourishing relationship in the midst of startup chaos.
If the shoe fits...
To tackle the number one enemy of modern society, time, Kelly and Emma found an unmet need in the fashion sector: a shop built around a customer’s preferences based on their style, size and favorite brands. And so ShopYou.com.au was born, a personalized shopping platform designed to save time by offering tailored fashion recommendations without the high street hassle.
But it was not always smooth sailing.
Due to a lack of time, family demands and other business commitments, communication was one of the first things to drop off between the two founders, recalls Kelly.
“Emma and I are very objective-focused. We go for the results every single time and sometimes communication can get lost. We actually had a discussion, asking ourselves: are we communicating enough? Because we’ll both be off doing our ‘urgents’ and we’ll just stop communicating."
Aware their lapses in communication were a potential source of friction, they joined Fingerprint for Success (F4S), a tech platform with a suite of tools designed to help founders understand and optimize each other’s talents and blind spots.
The key to co-founder success.
Both use F4S insights to balance the impact of their blind spots. The net result is a deeper understanding of each other’s needs and a mutual respect for each other’s talents.
“F4S has been amazing. We did it at the beginning of our journey and found it hugely beneficial to understand each other's individual motivations” says Emma.
Kelly added: “It’s not that we sit down and say ‘Right, that’s your blind spot, how are we dealing with this?’, but our awareness of them is really heightened. So we know that our communication style has got to be really open.”
A transformational experience.
Launching in 2017, Kelly and Emma can’t wait for Shop You to transform the fashion shopping experience. It is the next significant step and both feel that F4S has helped smooth their startup journey - and their communication challenges.
“F4S really helps us understand each other better: where our differences are, where our blind spots are, and it’s really helped our relationship. It’s going to help us grow the business without a doubt,” says Kelly.
Learn how you and your co-founders can work together effectively and grow your business more quickly.
Join Fingerprint for Success for free.
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Shop You personalizes your online shopping experience to reduce time spent browsing online. Follow Kelly and Emma on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Shop You is an INVESTIBLE LAB winner, receiving investment capital to grow their business. Investible provides high-potential founders the financial and entrepreneurial support needed to scale, with a growing portfolio of startups located around the world. They believe in cultivating founders throughout their startup journey, from seed capital through to exit or IPO.
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