Why this VC's failed men's beauty startup taught him everything about timing

The UK's beauty service providers for for male beauty, which I didn't subscribe to all of these myself, but think barbershops, think spray tan salons, etcetera.

3:16 / 3:53

The UK's beauty service providers for for male beauty, which I didn't subscribe to all of these myself, but think barbershops, think spray tan salons, etcetera. The fact that I didn't subscribe to all of them is actually probably one of the reasons why it ultimately failed. But back in 2014, you had a business called Wahanda, which is now called TreatWell, and it's become a massive success. And most of the listeners probably have come across it, but they focused just on women back then. So we thought men's market is more fragmented, better suited to a marketplace model. And two years of aggregating all these service providers onto our app, we had to to shut it down.

About this clip

Matt Chandler from Octopus Ventures shares the story of his failed men's beauty services marketplace that launched in 2014, two years before the market was ready. He explains how they tried to create a male equivalent to Wahanda (now TreatWell) but had to shut down after two years of aggregating barbershops and other male grooming services.

Why this clip

A candid admission of failure from a VC perspective that reveals timing and market readiness insights for marketplace businesses.

3:16 - 3:5336sfounder story

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What they said next

VCs are too slow and entrepreneurs are questioning what value they actually add

29:06 - 39s · market insight

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