Startup Istanbul
Startup Istanbul Podcast
From $0 to $9 Million per Week: The Up & Go Startup Story
2
0:00
-22:17

From $0 to $9 Million per Week: The Up & Go Startup Story

How Constraints Fueled This Bootstrapped Business's Meteoritic Rise
2

I recently had Touradj Barman on my podcast to discuss his entrepreneurial journey and founding Up’n Go, a contactless payment solution for restaurants.

Here are some of the key lessons I took away from our conversation:

  • Start with solving a specific, narrow problem - Up & Go began by simply focusing on easing check splitting

  • Get a customer before building the product - Partnered with a restaurant first to customize the product to their needs

  • Constraints force focus - Bootstrapping kept costs low so they could focus on the essentials rather than getting distracted

  • Turn challenges into opportunities - Pandemic accelerated contactless payment adoption, driving huge transaction growth

  • Persistence pays off - Depth of experience matters in competitive space; Up & Go now leads competitors in volume

Discussion about this podcast

Startup Istanbul
Startup Istanbul Podcast
The Startup Istanbul Substack is the ultimate resource for news, updates, and insights on the global startup ecosystem. Join us to stay informed and inspired by successful entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts.