StartUs Presents: helloCash

Describe helloCash in 50 words or less.

helloCash is a cash register for medium and small enterprises. It is a cloud service and every company can use the free version from their existing device. Regarding the cash register law for 2016 we comply to all regulations. Moreover our company is the owner of the platform BookGoodLook, where you can book online appointments at beauty salons.

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

Working for your own goals and managing yourself has always been one of my and one of the co-founder’s, Laurenz Gröbner, dreams . Beeing self-employed has taught me so much about business and also about life – much more then I every learned at university.

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

Our system should be spread out like booking.com but for the beauty industry. People can book their appointments at beauty salons online whenever they want to. That means that in the beauty salons it is quiet and everybody can enjoy their spa without being interrupted by telephone calls.

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

We talk a lot about our goals. I am playing the emotional role as I always want to talk about different directions we can follow. Laurenz is playing the analytic part. He always wants facts and figures to come with the goals. Therefore, we are a perfect CEO match for pursuing our company goals. In practical it means talking and putting figures into Excel!

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

Leaving it? 😉 What I do first in the morning is answering emails. Normally I have a to do list for the week and for the day. Then I briefly go through all the tasks and I prioritize them. Of course I leave a lot of space open because normally there are interruptions that are more urgent. I make phone calls, write mails and talk to colleagues. The best thing we invested in in the near past was a phone agency that filters our calls. So we are not interrupted that often and can focus on specific tasks. For the strategic things I like to use the weekends because on weekdays it’s very busy in the office.

What are the cons of being self-employed?

I think the most obvious things are not getting a fixed salary, no real possibility of getting sick and other issues. But everyone knows that, when they start a company. From my point of view the cons are that you sometimes have to do things you are not really interested in like book keeping, organization and legal things. I think everybody has to decide for themselves, which type they are.

Already pivoted? Did customers use the booking platform like you imagined it in the beginning?

Yes, they do. Of course when you look back, we made really big steps regarding our development. Now costumers have a lot more opportunities. We also develop the system mainly inspired by the feedback of our customers. We also got some great feedback on our cash register. It is very easy to handle for the target costumer group.

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

We profit from our revenue. But we also have some inverstors on board. The plan is to build up the international network with revenues made from BookGoodLook and of course helloCash.

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

I think it is very important to concentrate on your business. There is a strong startup movement in Austria, especially Vienna of course. Of course it is important to compare your business with other ones and talk to other owners to get feedback.

What do you look for in team members?

The most important thing for me is, that they are reliable. It is good to have visionary team members but if they have good ideas, but can’t bring them to the road, the ideas are nearly worthless. I like it if people are independent and have their own ideas.

Why would a talent join your team?

Because we have a very interesting product and business. Our costumers really like our product, therefore we don’t need to push into the market. There is a lot to learn in our team and there are a lot of possibilities to grow, not only in terms of one’s personality and know-how but also your bank account will benefit.

What was your most memorable moment so far?

Whenever the press published articles about our company, I was really proud of myself and grateful at the same time. I think the most memorable moment was, when we won the i2b Businessplan Competition and we were on the main stage. I really liked that. But I have to say thatwith every single costumer, that gives us positive feedback, my days gets better and better!

What advice would you give fellow founders for their startup?

They should think through their idea and ask costumers for feedback. Moreover: do not spend to much time applying for sponsorship. It is A LOT of work!

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