The Great Recession which engulfed the entire nation from 2007-2009 perished the world’s economy in an unthinkable manner. Millions of people from all around the world lost their jobs. Companies filed for bankruptcy as the Global Financial Crisis drove them penniless.
With the emergence of Coronavirus, the scenario reeks resemblance of what the world had endured during the Great Recession. In this pandemic, when companies are laying off their staff to save their sinking ships, Startups are emerging like a knight in a shining armour.
Is it wise to establish your business when a pandemic is around? Building a business from scratch can be extremely strenuous, both mentally and physically for entrepreneurs. You have to be passionate, ambitious, career-driven enthusiast while creating a company. Kick starting your dream amidst a pandemic might have it’s own set of challenges but there is a silver lining to everything. History has proved that startups surfacing during economic downturn actually succeeded in building multimillion dollar business empire.
Here are 8 common household names which began their journey during economic downfall –
1.Airbnb
Their journey began in 2007 when Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia couldn’t afford to pay rent in San Francisco. To meet their needs, they furnished their loft into a simple bed and breakfast and bought three air mattress. Pretty soon, they realised that their idea has more potential than they had ever imagined. Nathan Blecharczyk joined their venture and became the company’s first chief technology officer. They inspired others to renovate unused rooms and rent it out. Seven months into their business, Airbnb recorded 10,000 users and 2,500 listings. In March 2017, the estimated value of Airbnb was $31 billion.
2. Uber
Initially known as Ubercab, Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp stumbled upon the idea of rental cab in Paris in 2008. While returning home on a cold winter night from an annual tech conference, they failed to book a cab. The idea was to create an app for booking cabs to help stranded civilians. The journey of Uber was filled with obstacles. The company faced severe resistance from the taxi industry. People arranged large scale protests against Uber as they feared losing their daily wage. But the road to success isn’t easy. Soon, Uber came up with their carpooling service along with their food delivery chain. The company’s estimated value was $75.5 billion in 2019,making it one of the most successful startups in the history.
3. Venmo
Can you believe a yogurt shop is the reason behind Venmo’s existence? Iqram Magdon-Ismail and Andrew Kortina met each other in University of Pennsylvania. Their objective was to find an easier and secured mode of digital transaction. In 2009,while helping their friend to set up a yogurt shop, they “realized how horrible traditional point of sales software was”. The idea was solidified when one time Ismail forgot to bring his wallet during a trip to visit Kortina. Their first archetype endorsed exchange of money via text messages but it eventually turned into an app. Braintree procured Venmo for $26 million in 2012 and eventually PayPal acquired Braintree for $300 million.
4. WhatsApp
Be it a teenager or an aged person, everyone is familiar with WhatsApp. The sheer joy of sharing our emotions and feelings through emoticons, voice messages and texts is inexplicable. Former Yahoo employees Brian Acton and Jan Koum wanted to revolutionize the mode of messaging app. In 2009,they began their journey and in 2014, Facebook acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion. The need to spend such a humongous amount on an app that nobody knew back then seemed ludicrous. But,in 2019,WhatsApp registered 2 billion users from all over the world making it one of the most popular apps worldwide.
5. Instagram
Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger originally launched Instagram on iOS in October 2010. They wanted to create an amalgamation of instant camera and telegram. Instagram allows people to share photos and videos and also, tag and follow others. The variety of filters that Instagram provides captivates everyone. In 2012, when Instagram released it’s version on Android, the app was downloaded more than a million times in a single day.The app kept on modifying it’s features with IGTV, Instagram Live and Reels. Instagram valued a whopping amount of $100 billion in 2018.
6. Pinterest
Every kid had a scrapbook to store memories, pictures, artworks. It was like a small book full of hidden treasure. Who would have thought to create a digital version of scrapbook to store memories for eternity? Bil Silbermann, Evan Sharp and Paul Sciarra launched Pinterest in 2009. Within nine months of it’s launch, the website had 10,000 users.According to Experian Hitwise, the site became the third largest social network in the United States in March 2012. In 2019, the market capitalization of the company was $14 billion.
7. Netflix
The term ‘Netflix and Chill’ is heard by all. But, how many of you know the actual struggle behind creating one of the most popular online streaming platform? Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings established Netflix in 1997 with an investment of $2.5 million. The company initially focused on renting out DVDs. Netflix recorded it’s billionth DVD sale in early 2007. Soon, they realised they can attract more customers with online streaming service. On October 2018, Netflix’s customer base reached 137 million worldwide, making it world’s biggest online video subscription service. The journey began with 30 employees and now they’ve more than 8000 employees worldwide.
8. Zoom
‘Social Distancing’ is perhaps the most used term in 2020. Every now and then, there are slogans and banners everywhere, requesting us to keep safe distance while maintaining our normal lives. Life without Zoom seems unimaginable now. From online classes to important meetings, Zoom has been our saviour. The concept of telecommunication came to Eric Yuan’s mind when he had to travel for 10 hours to meet his girlfriend. He wanted to create a safe space where he could see his girlfriend in no time without travelling. Thus, Zoom came into existence. This cloud based peer to peer software platform has been the Messiah of mankind. From 10 million users in December 2019 to 200 million users in March, Zoom’s journey is one of the most commendable ones. It helps us to maintain stability in our work environment without jeopardizing our lives.
Nothing comes easy in life. You have to risk everything in order to get everything in return. Being a part of something so new and fragile can be scary. One wrong step might shatter your lifelong dream. But without risks, you can never achieve the fruit of hardwork. Recession or no recession, a bright idea and innovative mind can conquer any obstacle laid down in it’s path.
The Silent Observer. 