At this stage of our build, getting stuck in wherever necessary to move us closer to our Dossia launch is the norm. Right now, I’m in charge of developing our physical Dossia, while Pim and Nuria focus on fleshing out the digital platform.
And let me tell you, finding a decent manufacturer is one of the hardest, most patience-draining, soul-taxing processes I’ve ever experienced.
I’ve spoken to over 20+ manufacturers over the last two years. I need two manufactures in total: one in the UK and one abroad. It made the most sense to start approaching manufacturers on my home soil first, so I searched far and wide for a UK Manufacturer to take a chance on our idea. After cold calling and pitching multiple UK manufactures, we got responses like “this is impossible”, “no it can’t be done” and '“this is too expensive to be practical” until we met Chris. He believed in our vision and has taken a chance on us - thanks Chris! Everyday, we’re getting closer to our goal thanks to his and his team’s belief in us.
Next stop was our international Manufacturer - this where things start to get painful. By the 7th international manufacturer, I was starting to wane. It’s not even that they’re unkind, most of the manufacturers I’ve spoken to have been lovely. (Okay, one was annoying, but at least they still believed in the vision.) The problem is: either the quality is trash, or the cost is astronomical. Or they don’t do custom. Or they don’t respond. Or they say they can do it and then ghost you halfway through.
It’s chaos.
All I’m looking for is someone who help me create a stunning, customisable planner that stands proudly beside the beautiful platform we’re also building from scratch. But so far, I’m struggling to find someone who can help me build what I’m dreaming of and that kinda sucks.
This is not the post I planned to write today. I wanted to write something clever and reflective and wise. Instead, I’m here screaming into the void “building a company from scratch is the wild fucking west”, and doing it with limited resources is just... pain.
If you want to create something truly disruptive, original and beautiful - you basically have to either sell your rights or sell your soul. That’s the deal. You get more money than you need, sell out your dreams and morals to the largest paying investor and build! build!! build!!!!
While I’m open to all types of collaborators (creative and financial), I refuse to work with individuals who think money makes people dance. All I want is to make a great product, fund ourselves (although some very VERY hands-off sponsorship doesn’t hurt), and build alongside my incredible team.
But right now, financially and creatively, I feel like I’m hitting a wall.
If I had the money, my arse would be in China right now. I’d be walking factory floors, showing them samples and iterating until it was perfect for all the amazing people on our waitlist, for myself, and for my team.
And before anyone comes at me with “why don’t you just go to China?”- please. I know. But that still requires money, contacts, logistics. This isn’t as simple as a flight and a dream.
I’m trying. I’ve been building this company for two years with nothing but determination, joy, and grit. But right now, everything feels... hard. Like, frustratingly hard.
Buy some basic white-label stuff. It’s not the right quality, but we could go to market quickly. The problem? I do believe you only get one chance to make a first impression. And launching with something I’m not remotely proud of feels riskier than waiting. (Maybe there’s a hybrid option here somewhere, idk.)
Bring in a product designer. Get them to help me build a simplified, beautiful version. Then send it to an international manufacturer, go back and forth, and eventually bring it back to our British manufacturers for the final stages of production. That sounds amazing… and entirely too expensive.
Fly to China. Bring a friend who speaks Mandarin and figure it out on the ground. Fully bootstrapped, scrappy startup style. Honestly, this would be my DREAM. Paid to do R&D with my friends? I would simply pass away.
But here’s the thing. All of these depend on a few major factors:
When are we launching? We want the digital product ready by August and live by September for beta. That’s two months away. Doable? Possibly. Affordable? Nope.
How much will it cost? We’ve got about £500 total to get a V1 of the physical and digital product off the ground. Bootstrapped. No salary. No funding. Just vibes and stupendously talented individuals.
Can I launch with something I’m not fully proud of? I honestly don’t know. The Virgo in me is nauseous just thinking about it. The tech founder in me says: launch fast, fail fast, iterate. But unlike tech, planners aren’t a necessity, they’re a luxury. You don’t get to “trap” people into a mediocre product on a subscription basis and hope they stick around for version two. You get one shot to stand out - and stationery stans are a meticulous, incredibly leaned audience. I want to do well by them.
While this vent might sound a bit whiny or champagne-problem-y, I want to be clear: part of what I plan to do on this Substack is tell the whole story - the good, the bad, and the whiny. And I think sharing these spirals is incredibly important for other founders, and for anyone who just cares about the Dossia journey.
This post? This rant? It’s part of the story so like… welcome ;)
That said, I know how important it is to have resilience, a dash of delusion, and a growth mindset when you’re building something from scratch. And honestly, I’ve got that new-age growth mindset bullshit coming out of my wazoo. I know I’m resilient, I know I’m curious, and I know I have a good dose of delusion, determination and gusto to build this bad boy, okay? I stay growing and shit. But some days, you don’t need a mindset shift. You just need to fucking vent.
I didn’t expect this post to give me answers. And it hasn’t.
But I am grateful this is the problem I’m facing right now. It means I’m close. It means the thing we’re building is real and I just have to figure this part out.
Thanks for reading my spiral.
I’ll have something more grounded next time. (Maybe. Probably not.)
Felt something? That’s not just the caffeine.
Subscribe and join our Dossia waitlist. We launch our beta this year and would love your support and feedback!!
If you’ve got extra time today, why not forward this to a friend, a group chat, or that one cousin who’s weirdly passionate about stationery and founder journeys.
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