May 15, 2018
Nathan Resnick went from selling Livestrong bracelets in middle school to founding Sourcify —the fastest growing B2B sourcing platform backed by Y Combinator. He started Sourcify a year ago and has since helped thousands of different companies bring their products to life.
In this episode, Nathan reveals how to spot opportunity in creating and sourcing products as well as what it takes to make it as a product-based business.
Episode Topics
- E-commerce, e-commerce, e-commerce
- How Nathan got the idea for Sourcify
- Uncovering opportunities in creating and sourcing products
- Nathan’s business model and marketing strategy
- Knowing when to pivot in business
- What it’s like applying to and getting backed by Y Combinator
- Financing as an opportunity in the supply chain
- The single most impactful experience that lead to Sourcify’s success
- Purchasing and profiting from manufacture runoff
- The one quality every entrepreneur must have to be successful
according to Nathan
[4:41] Starting line: In middle school, Nathan noticed the Livestrong bracelet trend and realized he could buy them in bulk online. He resold them to his friends for a "pretty good margin."
[9:05] Evolving Entrepreneur: Early in high school, he made money sneaker hunting for his friends.
[10:53] During his junior year, he spent a year in China as a foreign exchange student. He’d go to local markets and purchase runoff units at a steep discount then resell them online for a "very hefty" margin.
[13:14] Bitten by the bug: Nathan saw how products were produced on the ground floor. "As that dynamic grew, I always wanted to create my own product and felt the urge to. I didn't wanna sell someone else's product."
[13:30] First invention: In college, he invented the 1st leather watch strap without holes and grew it to a 6-figure store on Shopify the 1st year. As the company grew, he attracted media outlets like Huffington Post and Entrepreneur.
[14:56] Seeing and solving a problem: After people started asking how he produced products overseas faster and more effectively, "We realized there was a huge opportunity to create a platform that would streamline that manufacturing process." Sourcify was born.
[18:40] There has to have been a problem on the manufacturing side...?
[19:45] Seeing opportunity: How Nathan discovered that low-quality leads were a problem for manufacturers.
[22:15] First-hand experience: What it's like applying to Y Combinator...and getting accepted!
[27:26] Winning business model: "There's obviously a lot of ways to manufacture products...but our approach is different and our mindset behind what we do is a lot different — and that's what sets us apart."
[30:54] "It took Dropbox 11 years to go public. A lot of these billion-dollar companies that people think happened overnight happen actually over 10+ years."
[31:13] Growth strategy: Sourcify's growth is fueled by providing value through content marketing (webinars, blogs) and SEO.
[33:05] Single out the most impactful experience you had that lead to your Sourcify success: “People talk about passion, determination, and motivation but if you don't have the ability to get back up when someone says no to you, then you're not gonna be successful."
[34:50] Points of conflict: “You have to be excited about what you're doing or you won't be as determined to work as hard.”
[35:40] Show recap.
Connect with Nathan:
TrySourcify.com <-- tell him you heard him on EU!
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