Aldemis FOUNDRY

Articles

Straight answers for founders starting out

Written by the people who direct the builds — twenty-five years and seventeen-odd startups' worth of what actually happens in the first two years. No frameworks for their own sake.

01

The Seven Stages of a Business — and Why You Only Need the First Three

A popular growth model, and what twenty-five years of watching founders use it badly suggests you should take from it.

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02

The Top Reason Startups Fail Is Not the One You Think

The usual ranking treats these as separate causes of death. In practice they are the same one, arriving in stages.

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03

The Five Numbers You Actually Need in Year One

Runway, burn, product-market fit, churn and traction. Everything else can wait, and most of it should.

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04

Selling Is the First Skill, Not the Last

Almost everything about starting a business is arranged to let you avoid selling. That is the problem.

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05

Why VCs Aren't Looking for Good Businesses

The arithmetic behind venture returns, why fund size changes the answer, and why most founders should not raise.

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06

Your First Ten Customers Should Be People You Already Know

The advice to avoid selling to your network is half right, and the half that is wrong costs founders their first year.

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07

What a Technical Co-founder Actually Does — and Whether You Need One

Four distinct jobs get bundled into one title. You may only need one of them, and equity is the most expensive way to buy it.

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08

Five Ways First-Time Founders Waste Their Build Budget

The overrun is rarely caused by being overcharged. It is caused by five decisions that all feel sensible at the time.

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09

Does Your Idea Actually Need Software?

An odd article for a software company to write. The question gets asked far too late, usually after the money has gone.

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10

How to Brief Someone Who Is Building Your Product

Most problems in a first build are translation problems. Half a day of writing prevents most of them.

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