While there is never a certainty that a startup will flourish, many do. In 2022, almost half of all startups failed, typically for variety of reasons but mostly for lack of funding. However, several of them set a noteworthy example for upcoming entrepreneurs.

In this article, we will examine the histories of these motivational endeavors that have forged their directions, persisted in the face of adversity, survived, and prospered.

The Story of Rejection — Airbnb
The website Airbnb, transformed the way we travel, is now well-known. But it got off to a difficult start. The company’s co-founders, Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk, faced difficulty staying solvent in 2008. They made the decision to look for finance, but venture investors rejected them repeatedly.

Undeterred, they came up with innovative ways to obtain their initial money. They created limited-edition cereal boxes based on the 2008 presidential election and sold them to raise $30,000. They were able to survive because of this innovative strategy, which also helped them secure further capital.

No Marketing, No Ads — WhatsApp
WhatsApp, a messaging application used by billions of people globally, had a distinctive strategy for expansion. They steadfastly refused to rely on marketing or advertising. In actuality, they made no marketing-related expenditures. Investors were suspicious of this unorthodox technique. Brian Acton, the co-founder, continued nonetheless, putting an emphasis on user experience and word-of-mouth expansion. After a final $8 million investment from Sequoia Capital, WhatsApp’s user base skyrocketed. Later, Facebook paid $19 billion to acquire the business, demonstrating that there are occasions when forgoing more conventional finance methods can be advantageous.

Growing Gradually — Pinterest
The visual bookmarking and discovery platform Pinterest took a different route to raise its capital. Ben Silbermann and Evan Sharp, the product’s co-founders, chose to construct it slowly and thoughtfully while putting an emphasis on user feedback and enhancements. The standard early-stage investment rounds which many entrepreneurs sought were not attracted by this strategy. They were able to produce a highly polished product as a result, nevertheless. Finally, a group of angel investors who shared their convictions gave them $200,000 in early finance. Today, Pinterest is a publicly traded business with a billion-dollar market cap.

The Idea Of Success — Uber
The founders of StumbleUpon, Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick, launched Uber to alleviate the taxi crisis in San Francisco. This is another instance of an entrepreneur using their business idea to address a significant issue. The current market value of Uber is $75.5 billion, but getting there wasn’t always easy. Uber is an excellent example of tackling obstacles head-on to develop a sustainable, quickly expanding business model by overcoming difficulties with regard to local government laws and pricing.

The Lesson
As you can observe, there is no single method that works for all starting businesses. But these highly successful business people did share one thing: they were inventive and committed to making their venture a success. Your startup success story starts with your dedication and hard work, regardless of whether your startup concept is a novel approach to an established market or a fix for a pervasive issue.