eKoodo got into Start-Up Chile

Short post today, because I'm too happy to write a long one. eKoodo has been accepted into Start-Up Chile, the program through which the Chilean government invests in startups.

Quick recap for those who don't know us: eKoodo is a marketplace that connects people with the best sport schools and instructors around the world. You want to learn something new on a board, on the water, on the snow, and we help you find the right school and book it.

We are not a big company. We are a tiny team: two freelance developers, one UX/UI designer, one social media specialist, one sales rep, and me running operations and doing whatever else needs to be done that day. Everybody does a bit of everything. Some days I write decks, some days I answer customer emails, some days I test a checkout flow for the tenth time.

When you build something like this with a small team and a limited budget, you rarely get a clear signal that you are on the right track. You ship, you look at the numbers, you second-guess the numbers, you ship again. Most days the only feedback is your own to-do list getting longer.

Getting into Start-Up Chile is that signal. People call it a startup accelerator, and I'm sure it will be one for us, but right now it feels first of all like a vote of confidence. Someone outside our little bubble looked at what we built and decided it is worth backing. The investment matters (a lot, when your budget is measured in coffees), but honestly the validation matters just as much.

So, to the team: thank you. This is your result as much as mine. Every late fix, every design iteration, every post, every sales call that went nowhere and the ones that went somewhere. You treat eKoodo like it's yours, and that is the only reason we got here.

Now the real work starts. Being accepted is not a result by itself, it is permission to keep going with a bit more fuel. We keep doing what got us this far: follow lean principles, ship small, listen to the schools and to the people booking, and try hard not to spend money on things nobody asked for.

Tonight, though, I'm allowed to be proud for a few hours. Tomorrow, back to the to-do list. :)