Watch back: Andrew Jervis (ClickMechanic) on going from startup to scale-up
For anyone who missed it, or wants to watch it again, the Andrew Jervis fireside is now up on YouTube.
Quick recap of who he is: Andrew grew up here on the island, then built ClickMechanic into one of the UK's leading online car repair marketplaces. Fourteen years of it. He came at it from a family of mechanics and went the software route instead.
The reason I wanted this one on the channel is the theme. Most founder talks are about getting started. Andrew's was about what comes after, the bit where a startup turns into a scale-up and things start to break.
Some of what he got into:
What actually broke first when they scaled, and what they had to rebuild
How you build trust in an industry where nobody trusts either side
Vetting mechanics you've never met and keeping quality high as supply grows
Raising from angels and VCs, and the time he turned down part of an oversubscribed round
What he'd do differently if he started ClickMechanic tomorrow
Watch it here:
Two things I'd like from this thread:
If you were in the room, what stuck with you most? Drop it below. It helps people decide whether to watch.
If you're mid-scale-up yourself right now, what's the thing breaking for you? Andrew's answers might be exactly what you need, and it's a good one for the room to chew on.
More fireside recordings going up over the coming weeks. If there's a founder you'd want us to get in front of a camera, say so.