Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Besart Copa. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Besart thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

The user. It’s all about the user. And this means conducting user interviews nonstop: potential users, current users, and, especially, users who left. At Chestr, we aim to talk with a current user every other week. These chats are incredibly rewarding because we can put a face on the actual people using our app and because we always learn about new edge cases that we could’ve never imagined ourselves.

One of the most common pitfalls for early-stage startups is working on something for too long before putting it in front of real people. For us, we spread the idea of Chestr on Reddit before we even wrote a line of code. We asked some of the most popular shopping subreddits “What are your favorite wishlist apps and how do you keep track of things you want to buy?” These questions got hundreds of likes and replies, validating our hypothesis: people were using screenshots, Apple notes, Notion, and Pinterest but there were unhappy with them. We still go back to those posts to look for insight or comments we might’ve missed. 99% of our installs today have come organically from Reddit.

In a startup – and all other things in general – success is defined by providing a useful product and service to your user. The way to do this is not to imagine what your user needs, but to learn – to be deeply curious and inquisitive – about how you can make your users’ life easier, faster, or more delightful.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Besart and I’m the co-founder of Chestr. Both my co-founder, Isaac, and I had worked in different tech and venture capital firms before embarking on Chestr. I worked at a Series B startup in the Bay Area, Citi Ventures, and Andreessen Horowitz. Isaac worked as a software engineer at Amazon, Delivrr, and Delphia, and was also a fellow at Pear VC and 8VC. If you surround yourself with entrepreneurs early in your career, you will want to eventually “jump in the ocean” yourself.

From my early experiences, I formed a strong conviction that the secret to a successful company is user obsession. I wanted to build something first and foremost useful for real people. This sounds contrarian in the “think BIG!!” crowd, but I believe that a razor-sharp focus on short-term utility is more important than long-term grandiose visions. If you’re an experienced founder with billions at your disposal, you can afford to take bets on long-term world-changing visions – and this is a good thing for all of society. But before getting to that, first-time founders need to learn how to first build useful products by serving real users.

I had a few ideas in mind before settling on Chestr. The main factor that weighted on Chestr was the fact that I really did need a tool to better save products I liked from different stores online. I used Honey a lot so I liked the niftiness of Chrome extensions. The first idea of Chestr was “Pinterest + Honey.” There were a few solutions already on the market but they were slow, too complicated, and with an unappealing design.

Both Isaac and I were intrigued by how focused our issue was: how can we build the best wishlist in the world? A timeless online tool characterized by impeccable utility and design. We’re still exploring this question everyday, alongside our users.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I recommend to every friend who is considering a startup these two main resources: 1) Tim Ferri’s “The 4-Hour Workweek”
2) All the videos from Y Combinator/ Michael Seibel talks

Ferri’s book is the Bible of “digital nomads.” But, incidentally, in describing how to start digital nomad passive income businesses, Ferris provides one of the most common sense descriptions of the “frugal mindset” founder. My favorite chapter in the book is where he describes how to validate ideas via Facebook and Google ads before actually investing in them. It’s a straight-to-the-point guide on how to be as resourceful as possible as a founder.

Y Combinator’s partner Michael Seibel is one of the most well-spoken figures in the startup world. His YC talks and Youtube videos are clear and to the point. An incredible resource on any topic related to starting and operating startups (spoiler alert: there’s a big emphasis on user empathy and obsession.)

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

Chestr has raised a $625,000 pre-seed round from Neo, an early-stage venture capital firm started by Ali Partovi. When Isaac and I first started our fundraising for Chestr, we focused on the terms of the deal as much as we focused on the people we were partnering with.

The first investor in your startup is like your “startup spouse.” They will have an incredible influence on your company. I’d read enough bitter stories about early investors becoming a drag on founders, so Isaac and I were very selective even if we had to reject offers when we had no safety net to fall under.

We loved Neo because they had three key qualities that resonated: 1) they were laser-focused on supporting founders, 2) they had a big emphasis on engineering talent, and 3) they had built a community around their firm that was kind and supportive. We loved all the team members we talked with, from the associates to the founder, Ali. As such, we were clear on our final call with them that they were our top choice firm to work with.

It was the best decision ever.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.getchestr.com/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChestrApp