Note: This article is part of a series. Check out the full series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 13.

Launching a new business is not easy, never mind bringing to market an entirely new product or service.

In this series of articles, we gathered 100+ successful female entrepreneurs to share their stories and tips on building a business from scratch.

Shannon Farley

Co-founder and Executive Director of Fast Forward

Q: What inspired you to found Fast Forward and what were the main challenges you faced?

Today, there are over 500 tech nonprofits around the globe. But when my co-founder Kevin Barenblat and I dreamed up the idea for Fast Forward, the landscape was very different. We only knew of a handful of tech nonprofits. It was this exciting moment when the cost of computing had dropped considerably, and you could reach customers that were previously untouched by tech innovation. But there was no ecosystem in place to support tech startups building not for profit, but for impact. And there should be - tech’s capacity for scale has the potential to positively impact billions of people suffering from the world’s wicked problems - from health, to education, to climate change, to human rights..

I previously ran Spark - a global women’s fund - and I noticed over the years how technology had fundamentally shifted our work. Mobile phones had become ubiquitous. All of my grantees were using them, but nobody was building products for these women - let alone investing in them to build the products they wanted. This frustrated me. And then one day at a party, I was seated next to Kevin Barenblat, a tech entrepreneur whose company was recently acquired. He was thinking about what he wanted to do next, and asked me: "Why aren’t there more organizations like Wikipedia and Khan Academy? What would it take to get more of these organizations to scale?" My honest answer was: “Dude, don’t get me started!” There were a lot of reasons. A main one was that while there was a robust startup community in Silicon Valley, it didn't exist for tech nonprofits. After many conversations, that’s what we decided to build, beginning with an Accelerator for tech nonprofits.

Kevin and I wanted to focus on and invest in the kinds of founders who understand social problems, are willing to work on them, and have big visions for progress. And though we face many obstacles to helping these organizations scale, we're impatient optimists. We want tech nonprofits serving not thousands, but millions - and someday billions - of people, because that’s what our world deserves.

Q: What’s your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

We primarily partner with tech companies to infuse their financial and human capital to help tech nonprofits scale. The model provides meaningful employee engagement opportunities for these companies, and the tech nonprofits benefit from the funding and skills-based support that results.

Take HPE Accelerating Impact, a campaign we just ran with Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation. The campaign empowered each of HPE's +60K employees with a $25 giftcard to donate to the tech nonprofit of their choice. It injected $1.3M+ into the tech nonprofit sector, which was trajectory-changing for many of the participating tech nonprofits. And we're planning a virtual employee engagement event for Twilio.org next month, which will pair Twilio employees with tech nonprofits who need mentorship and skills-based training. It's by finding mutually beneficial partnerships like these that Fast Forward grows our revenue to support the sector.

Deena Von Yokes

Owner of Studio Savvy

Q: What inspired you to found Studio Savvy, and what were the main challenges you faced?

My inspiration was straightforward; I started in the industry, knowing I did not want to work for anybody else. I had my ideas at a young age. I knew I wanted to be a salon owner someday. I recently stumbled upon my senior yearbook, and it said so right underneath my senior picture in high school. It’s something I always found myself wanting to do, it’s what I felt was my purpose. Along my journey, I came across many challenges, but my main challenge was mostly learning how to hire good people, training and then building them within my business, while accepting the fact that not everyone’s going to work out or going to be a fit for the company. Therefore, it’s important to focus on what’s best for the health and overall structure of the business and try to remove the emotion aspect, as I have to say. This was probably the biggest challenge of all.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

Yes, I started my venture completely alone. I started designing hair at the age of 17 because I was obsessed with glamour and style while helping out at my mothers salon. By the time I was 21, I opened my first salon with a credit card due to the fact I didn’t have a whole lot of established credit at the time. Opening a business by oneself is one of the scariest things a person can do, but it is also the most exhilarating for what can come from it is truly a thrilling experience!

Q:What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

Hire-train-build are three of my top focuses when it comes to creating revenue. I use a commission-based pay scale. As stylists grow, their commission grows. To increase revenue from there, I put a lot of time and energy into marketing the business. I feel it’s essential to keep an outstanding reputation through continuous education for my stylist. Most importantly, I believe business owners have to have a niche, which is for us specializing in blonde hair. We’ve even become known as “The Blonde Salon!” I also believe in finding and taking the top technique and skills and specializing in it so that you’re known for something. That’s how we attract and grow both the business and our reputation. It’s what will set businesses apart as well! I always ask the question, what makes us unique and different? A niche market is an area where I believe a company can stand out.

Yael, Stephanie & Mishel

Co-Founders - Blumenes

Q: What inspired you to found Blumenes and what were the main challenges you faced?

We are inspired by the desire and need to help others find relief without using narcotics. The main challenges we have faced is in educating people in understanding the value of CBD and its natural benefits. Besides educating the public about the benefits we also encountered obstacles in payment processing and platform acceptance of Hemp & CBD products because it is still new to the public. In researching and developing our product, we found there were limited companies that were actually transparent with their ingredients as the standards have yet to be established.  We decided to use the standards of Clean & Natural as our guide to developing and promoting  our products.  Through our journey of our  CBD business discovered that it is mainly a male driven industry and we didn't allow the male dominance to interfere with our desired product development.  It has actually been a fun process as we have combined  our serious business side along with our sense of humor to open doors.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

The three of us  began this venture over 2 years ago as we were going through our own personal family challenges.  Meeting up with each other helped us turn our pain to a positive and production direction. We turned our ideas and dreams into reality just by going on hikes with each other and brainstorming.  Our words manifested into ideas and then reality.   It was these challenges that led us down the rabbit hole of learning and understanding the CBD world as well as product development . Sometimes  hardships and challenges connects you with people in unexpected ways.  As we began the  conversation around making a quality CBD product that would heal & nourish  our muscles and joints in a  holistically  and effectively, we sought our professionals in the industry.  Their guidance fired us up and propelled us to achieve our dreams.   As a company we thrive working in a team atmosphere.  Having our 3 dynamic & unique personalities has created a team environment that is not traditional but efficient. Turning our dream into a reality just had to become real for us.  We have been on an unstoppable mission.  

There's an old African proverb that says “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

Our business model is tri-fold. We sell on Amazon, Our Web page & in a multitude of retail stores such as Pro Golf Shops, Country Clubs, Retail Stores, Doctors Offices, Hair Salons, High End Grocers & Dispensaries.There were  so many variables to combat. Business basics, Marketing, business growth , a healthy mindset , personal development, money, finance, systems and productivity. We spent a great deal of time setting our foundation of our business to align with our values.  This has been our guide in decision making and trust in the process. Most business owners are usually looking for more money, our primary goal has been to develop relationships.  Our relationships are especially fundamental to our business because this industry is relationship driven and driven by trust.  Our revenue has grown in directions we didn't even expect.  In the beginning of Covid we had a senior buyer approach Blumenes to create a similar Blumenes CBD product with their company name.  It took us 1 month with our chemist to come up with a great product That has been sold throughout the United States. The lesson here for everybody listening is to new ready and willing to do what it takes when opportunity comes knocking.  

It is rare to see a CBD company run by women. Part of the Blumenes sales strategy moving forward is to reverse engineer the traditional gender dynamics of the industry by inspiring women to get on board and help each other out.   Our long term goal is to establish a one stop shop for CBD self care and self transformation as we align our model and beliefs in “ BE KIND TO YOURSELF”. Trademarked!  We believe so much in the “Be KIND TO YOURSELF” metaphor that we took the unitive to trademark this slogan.

What truly makes Blumenes stand out is that we developed a luxurious Natural & Clean Wellness Cream and because this product proved to be effective we are now Brand developers making Anti-Aging CBD Skin products and we believe we are on the forefront of the CBD Anti-Aging Industry.  We are felling so grateful and blessed to be in this epic position as we feel that CBD is transforming the path to wellness

One off the biggest lessons we have learned, that sometimes its not only about business but that it is in raising our energy by maybe singing a song, making a funny video, or maybe its something that pushes us out of our comfort zone, and sometimes it can just be our inner weirdo that gets us laughing!  We are lucky because as partners we believe in giving back and paying it forward.  We are involved a several. All in all, at the end of the day, feeling the gratitude is our compass that seems to be guiding us.  

At the end of the day, be authentic, be little bit crazy and ALWAYS KIND!

Tessa Paradis

Co-Founder - Totemteam inc.

Q: What inspired you to found Totem and what were the main challenges you faced?

For several years, personal development has been part of my life and inspired me every day. When I met my partner, we had this shared aspiration for humanity. I was painting at the time, and the primary subjects of my work were animals to which I’d attribute a quality. After a number of projects here and there which had the goal of helping people to communicate and compliment one another, we developed Totem. In 2015, I embarked on this adventure after more than 15 years in a marketing agency, because Totem’s mission was PERFECTLY aligned with my values: connection, creativity and contribution! At that time, as well as giving birth to our little boy, we created Totem, the feel good game, and without knowing it we were going to enable thousands of people the world over to connect with each other! The more the project developed, the more I knew I was in the right place and that we had the right business idea. And, the ultimate motivation of an entrepreneur is PRIDE in BUILDING something that doesn’t exist, and EXPERIENCING the true impact that Totem has! That’s what gave me the strength to continue in the face of adversity.

We hear so much talk about the mental load, I’d say the main challenge I face is wearing several hats. Finding a balance between taking care of the tasks that build up at work and taking care of things at home, making sure our son has everything he needs, that the laundry gets done, appointments get made, activities organised, etc…. Being a good girlfriend, wife, mother and colleague…

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

It was a friend of ours who came to us with the idea of a game at first. He knew us both well and that we were always up for new projects that were aligned with our values and could even change the world.

With all three of us being passionate about the topic of personal development, we then combined our strengths, my artistic talents and graphic designer experience, my partner’s Jade Tremblay entrepreneurial background and our friend’s, Carol Rancourt, for concept of a game, to create the first version of Totem.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

At our company we create effective communication tools which are thoughtful, fun and enriching. Our flagship product, Totem - the feel good game, allows us to learn what others like best about us. Selling over 70,000 copies in more than 33 countries, this relationship building tool quickly found its place among families, in schools and within organisations that wanted to build stronger connections among their employees. We quickly understood that the game, initially intended for families, was gaining traction among businesses. Our brand new ONLINE team building platform is a major innovation here at Totem. Communication among colleagues and self awareness are essential for well being at work. Above all, we want to continue our mission of bringing out the best in people, so we have successfully adapted our “team building” activity to be hosted live on our online team building platform. This will increase our revenue considerably.

Betsy Merryman

Founder - Merryman Communications

Q: What inspired you to establish your company and what were the main challenges you faced?

Merryman Communications is an unconventional, network-model marketing communications and PR agency specializing in healthcare.

The short version of the story behind why I created Merryman Communications is that I was laid off from a large, global agency during the Great Recession. My son David was eight at the time, and I was tired of all the travel and wanted more work-life balance.  Senior-level marketing and PR jobs were not plentiful, and so I decided to pursue independent consulting. Meanwhile, working with a team has always been one of my greatest joys of going to work every day, so I didn’t want to work with only with me, myself and I. I suspected that clients would be open to an alternative to the big agency business model and rate structure. Hence, I created Merryman Communications with a Win-Win-Win approach: Clients get the same “big-agency know-how” with seasoned team members who do great work, the team gets flexibility as well as interesting and wide-ranging opportunities, and as an agency we all get to grow and be successful together. Merryman Communications was at the forefront of the virtual agency, work-from-anywhere world – one that so many have joined this year out of a pandemic necessity.

Many friends and family members thought I was crazy for starting a business in the middle of a recession. It was a long, slow, slog at first, and sometimes lonely. Business development has never been my first love. At times I felt intimidated mastering the IT and operations side. But here we are 10 years later, and that initial struggle is long behind me. 

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

Yes, and I built my virtual team as I built the business. However, I also relied on friends and colleagues who’d done it before me, and they were always happy to provide advice and share their lessons learned. 

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

Our business model supports our Win-Win-Win philosophy and ensures the interests of team members, clients and the agency are aligned so that we can all be successful together.

• Team members are compensated at rates that they set themselves, based on experience and fair market value, and we mark-up their rates. We have ongoing commitments in place, but they always have the chance to say no to new opportunities depending on their own work/family juggling acts. 
• The agency assembles teams of associates for each client, and we operate seamlessly under a unified brand and billing system. Because we operate virtually without offices and associated office expenses, our overhead is very low and we pass those savings on to our clients. While we provide the same services and experience as a traditional agency, our rates are lower, so budgets go further.
• We work with each client based on a customized, agreed-upon plan and budget estimate. While we agree on a minimum monthly workflow, beyond that we only bill for the hours actually worked. 
  

As an agency, we embrace team members who bring substantial skill sets, regardless of location. Done strategically to leverage the considerable talent available, the model has allowed like-minded senior communications professionals to work collaboratively with other talent across a wide range of healthcare industry categories and therapeutic areas.

Since our founding, Merryman Communications has grown steadily. Our relationships and reputation are key to our successful revenue growth. All of our clients come to us through word of mouth, and almost a third of past client contacts have come back to work with us again. We’ve also grown by expanding into new opportunities with current clients who’ve come to rely on us and trust us to grow our capabilities to address new needs.

The recession 10 years ago provided a strategic opportunity to offer a virtual agency model, and who knew back then that working from anywhere would become a social distancing standard in 2020. It’s been a rewarding 10 years, and the greatest reward has been building and working with an amazing team of smart, like-minded people. Plus, I’ve had the best work-life balance of my career.

Dana Hewling

Owner and Creative Director - B.ID

Q: What inspired you to found B.ID and what were the main challenges you faced?

B.ID was founded in 2014 after I was let go from my last job. As I was on the job hunt and applying for roles at various agencies I took freelance projects to keep busy (and to keep money coming in). After a few weeks I got my first Houston-area client and met the woman who would become my mention and a great source of inspiration, I decided to stop appying for job and stay the course on my own. However, freelance life wasn't my goal and I knew to provide the best service and work I needed to build an agency, enter b.iD.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

Yes, I started the company on my own. I of course had the support of my family and mentor but I was on my own for the most part.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

Like other agencies, we are a service-based business which is tricky. We have grown our review each year by having an amazing team and implementing and optimizing various processes that allow us to get a lot more done without sacrificing service or quality. Of course we also make it a point to look for opportunities and ensure out services and capabilities match the nees of our clients minimizing any gaps or holes in their commmunication or matketing efforts. Lastly, making sure that service is always a top priority helps with client retention and referrals.

Gina Shi

Founder of munchrooms

Q: What inspired you to found and what were the main challenges you faced?

I was inspired to start munchrooms because I myself am a huge snacker and have a tendency to go after very unhealthy options. I also want to live a more sustainable lifestyle and our mushroom jerky is a great meat alternative for beef jerky lovers.

The main challenge I currently face is the lack of options for sampling. Mushroom jerky is quite novel, but I feel like it's one of those products you just need to try to really understand what it's all about. I've been looking at online avenues to do sampling in a COVID-friendly manner.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

Yes, I started this venture alone and have bootstrapped with my own savings.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

Our business model is DTC, B2B, B2B2C currently. We just launched in mid-July, so we're still figuring out a lot of things. One avenue that has been really helpful is SnackMagic - they allow employers to give their employees a stipend for snacks to be delivered to their homes given that most offices are now closed. We are currently also stocked in Veg In-N-Out, Vegas's first vegan market. Currently we are in the works to partner with CoolHaus as one of their winners for Women Owned Small Business Month and excited for that.

Tiffany Hall

Founder of Empower Cocktails

Q: What inspired you to found Empower Cocktails and what were the main challenges you faced?

My goal was to launch a product that would be an enjoyable addition to Providing a product for consumers,' "happy place" moment, or during their fun time with friends and family. Launching a cocktail brand fell squarely in that category.

In addition, the spirits industry is filled with opportunities for a female founder. Since so many products are targeted to men, I wanted to give women one more choice on the spirits store shelf.

Today, I am still amazed and grateful that Empower Cocktails is available in stores. As the CEO, I learn new things about managing the business each day. It has helped me become a more confident businesswoman. The biggest challenge I have is juggling motherhood while running/growing my business. However, with unwavering focus and determination and a supportive network of family, friends and work colleagues — anything is possible.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

I have always had the support from family and friends. Moreover, I leveraged an incredible network of former classmates and work colleagues who have helped with my entrepreneurial journey. Nothing is built alone.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

‍We've expanded our revenue by garnering placement in over 35 stores in the East Coast region.

Caroline Petersen

Founder - Gallery Design Studio

Q: What inspired you to found Gallery Design Studio and what were the main challenges you faced?

After working in corporate, I was frustrated by how information was overly complicated and dry. I developed a passion for helping people explain what it is they are selling by using clean information layout and exciting visuals.

Since I’m not originally from New York, I didn’t have an existing network to start selling to. So I joined every single networking group I could find and I walked into every room that would let me in, searching for clients. Not every pitch was successful. My other biggest challenge was identifying our niche. Based on my past work experience, my passion for making the complex easy to understand and the types of clients that successfully partnered with our company, I eventually realized specializing in the B2B tech space was the best fit for us. Having a strong focus, and not being generalists, strengthened and grew our company.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

Yes, I did start on my own. When I decided to dive deeper into graphic design, I attended Shillington School of Graphic Design. After my training I was thrilled to be offered a position at a large editorial company here in New York. But life is full of surprises and the offer fell through. The truth is I failed to get my dream job with that company. And then I failed a few more times. That’s when I decided to go solo. Eventually I secured enough business to start paying for a small office at a coworking space.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

We follow a commitment-free monthly model because we want to strike the balance of being proactive and have continuity with our clients, but also want to offer flexibility to upgrade, downgrade or cancel any given month based on the customer's business needs. We grow our revenue by anticipating our clients’ needs and offering services and products they may not have imagined. Our design perspective empowers us to visualize and realize what their customers desire that our clients might not currently provide.

Netta Dobbins

CEO - Mimconnect

Q: What inspired you to found Mimconnect and what were the main challenges you faced?

Mimconnect started from my own career journey. As a NYC transplant working in the media industry, I found that most of the time I was the only person of color or woman in the room. I started Mimconnect as a way to grow my own network of people who understood the nuances of being a BIPOC professional in corporate America. It became a central place where people could come to build their network, work through issues they were facing at their workplaces and get sound advice based in others experiences, find job opportunities and more.  Today, Mimconnect is the most active community helping professionals of color navigate their careers while serving as a consultancy agency to help companies recruit, retain, and develop diverse professionals.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

We have a 2-sided business model. On our B2C side we offer a premium access to our digital network. Premium access unlocks workshops around tactical skill building and access to pre-vetted career coaches of color. On the B2B side, companies pay us to consult with them. Our goal is to not just be a tech platform that sends companies diverse bodies to meet their quotas. We aim to provide them with the right, qualified talent that makes it easier for them to employ POC professionals -- and saves them time when doing so.

Nandini Easwar

‍CTO and Co-Founder of Speakfully

Q: What inspired you to co-found Speakfully with Jana Morrin, and what were the main challenges you faced?

The inspiration comes from a couple of places. It comes from a mindset of knowing and wanting to build something that has a meaning and cause associated with it. I had spent a large chunk of my career working in the financial services sector and reached a point where I felt that I was building technology and teams just very habitually, without passion. A pause and a significant shift of gear in my career led me to an introspective phase where I wanted to reinvent myself to use my prior professional experiences towards creating something consequential. That’s when I meet Jana Morrin, Speakfully’s CEO, and Co-Founder. Speakfully was in fact founded because of a very negative experience she had at her workplace. Her founding premise was based on what tools and support she lacked while dealing with mistreatment and that nobody should have to deal with the same. It was that unfortunate, yet real experience that inspires me and our whole team to think about a world where misbehavior in the workplace should be a thing of the past. Speakfully is an intuitive, therapeutic, data-driven technology platform that understands what one needs when they are experiencing resistance and hurdles, that prevents them from feeling safe or heard in a workplace or even personally. The platform also helps leaders in progressive thinking organizations to resolve, act responsibly, and increase trust with their workforce. We work very hard to remain authentic and communicate integrity as the basis of our platform.

One of the biggest challenges we face is a mindset and willingness to create transparency in the workplace. We face many leaders who want to help but operate from a sense of fear and turn a deaf year to employee mental wellness. We encourage them to take the bold step towards systemic action to create a positive work environment, by welcoming a diversity of opinion and inclusivity of all. Our philosophy is that no one should have to go through workplace mistreatment alone. In fact, we are actively trying to create awareness on ways to navigate it and welcome you to sign a petition with us.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

We are a team of individuals with various backgrounds working on the same goal. Speakfully was co-founded by Zach Halmstad, Jana Morrin, and me. We are backed up by a strong team of marketers, designers, and engineers who share the passion!

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

We take pride in a very transparent operating model. Our product is available for free to people who would like to get support dealing with misconduct in all aspects of their lives. We also offer an end-to-end enterprise platform that’s data and evidence-driven. This helps leaders in organizations find patterns to solve issues before they become large problems for the business. Most organizations do not have a tangible metric to answer what factors drive their workplace behavior or culture. Our 3-tiered subscription-based model helps companies choose from a wide range of features that best suit their operating model.

Stephanie Corliss

Co-Founder/COO - SnapShyft‍

Q: What inspired you to found SnapShyft and what were the main challenges you faced?

‍I never aspired to become a founder actually. I was happy bringing in a steady income, working regular business hours and having time to be present in my kids' lives. I never thought I was capable of more really... I offered to provide some early support to my Co-Founder as he was taking part in a 10 week startup bootcamp/challenge (we won) and looking to build a prototype, etc. But then I started to witness the stories of how we were helping people very early on— many of them being women and many of those women also moms and I could relate to them in many ways. Here we were doing something both smart for business BUT also something that had such a major impact on workers financial livelihood, and creating better outcomes for them. In fact we have received a couple notes of gratitude because we helped save their homes - these stories are what keeps me passionate (and brings out my OCD to make sure our platform delivers time and time again).

The genesis of SnapShyft really began when my Co-Founder had very poor experience at a restaurant in Florida and was told it was due to staffing issues. This became a full on discussion between us that spanned several weeks. Both of us had experienced this from the other side of the table having been in the industry way back in the day— we realized nothing had changed with how these businesses manage labor in at least 20 years! So we started looking at why businesses were continually leaning on the old way of staffing, particularly in the hospitality, food service, and food manufacturing space— and realized we had a huge market opportunity in front of us. And again the more we peeled back the layers we started to realize the position the 16M+ workers were in (underpaid, underbanked, overlooked) and they really became the focal point of our efforts to build an equitable gig-platform.

Challenge-wise, there were a number of factors that produced tough(er) conditions for me (us):  we were both first-time founders; fundraising as a technology startup in the midwest presents its own set of challenges; slower technology adoption for the industry we set out to change; and as a female founder I've had to deal with the inherent bias in startup land; obviously the pandemic has had an outsized impact on sectors we serve, but we are already seeing the industry rebound (new business openings) and expect this to continue a positive trajectory as we all adjust and move past COVID.

Q: Did you start the venture alone?

My Co-Founder, Thor Wood, is actually my significant other and he and I have been building our startup together since September 2016. We also have 5 children between us (2, 4, 6, 11, 18). Working with Thor has its challenges since we personal and professional lives are fully intertwined, yet is far easier than working with a partner less known, in that we put feelings aside and cut to the chase easily knowing we are both rowing the boat in the same direction with mutual true stake in the success (or failure) of the company— we have found that our skill sets are very complementary to one another. We have our sights set on being massively successful, and look at what has worked well for husband/wife duos at Houzz, Slideshare, Cisco, VMWare, and Flickr among others as what is possible, as any sort of union (life partner, co-founders, investor/founder) requires sacrifice, team work, and acceptance.

Q: What's your business model, and how have you grown your revenue?

‍Our model is designed to be transparent for all parties— both businesses and the workers. On one hand it is transactional like other gig platforms (uber, lyft, doordash, instacart, etc)— We charge the businesses a flat booking fee for each successfully worked shift; The businesses can access additional features and value-add services through different monthly memberships we offer based on the unique needs of the business. And the workers pay absolutely nothing to use the platform— they receive 100% of the hourly rates and any tips when applicable. Makes it a no-brainer for them I think. We are seeing a continued evolution towards tech-enabled management of staffing/scheduling via the gig-economy— this really becomes ESSENTIAL in order for these businesses to compete and stay solvent, so we are excited as we press forward and leverage what we do well.

Note: This article is part of a series. Check out the full series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 13.