StartUs Presents: Parkbob

Describe Parkbob in 50 or less words.

Parkbob is a smart parking service enabling a seamless digital on-street parking experience in cities.

Why did you decide to pursue your own dreams rather than someone else’s?

I always took greatest satisfaction from building up things from scratch. At a certain point I recognized that I have to face restrictions that limiting what you can achieve – if you do it for someone else. So I took the decision to go for it and follow my own dream.

In 7 years from now: How did your startup change the world?

People will be able to spend their time with their families and friends rather than wasting time looking for a parking spot. Self-driving cars will be able to automatically know where an available parking spot is. The whole process of using a car in a city will be much more convenient.

In what ways do you measure your success and how do you make sure you don’t lose track?

Our investors and business angels are a great peer group and corrective. At the same time we always try to refer to our vision for our users. To make parking better and easier.

Describe your typical working day from coming to the office to leaving it.

We are still a small team of 6 at the moment but working is mainly communication. What is inspiring at our stage of maturity is the switch between micro-problems (who gets the toilet paper) to strategic decisions (is it the right time to get a strategic investor on board) within minutes.

Already pivoted? Did customers use the smart parking service like you imagined it in the beginning?

Actually, we found out that we can give much more value to the users with just providing them the information where they are allowed to park, what it costs and how long they are able to stay. This was more of a side-product in the beginning but proved to be a cornerstone for our service.

Bootstrapped or financed: What fuels your startup now and what will in the future?

We boostrapped for over 18 months and are now financed with 3 business angels and a potential institutional investor. We will start to generate revenues next year but are still reliant on external funding.

With ferocious competition and a booming trend to build new companies: How do you make sure you don’t get lost in the shuffle?

Focus on the value to bring to users and B2B clients. This will keep us on track.

What do you look for in team members?

Passion, passion, passion.

Why would a talent join your team?

Because everyone in the team is a co-creator of our vision and product. Everyone will see his bit in the result and will receive a share of the success.

What was your most memorable moment so far?

1. Loosing one of the co-founders in bootstrapping phase. It proved out to be healty, but it was a severe blow at that time.
2. Getting a positive funding decision from our business angels.
3. Receiving inspiring feedback from users of our service.

What advice would you give fellow founders for their startup?

With the ongoing hype around startups, it’s easy to loose track and follow crowd. Focus on yourself, your product and your customers. Sooner or later the crowd will follow you.

_____________

Sharing is caring so please share this post. Thank you!