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Potential app idea

Idea threads

Tanner Lewis

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Hello millionaire fastlaners!! I am currently thinking about a passive income tree, as you should too. My idea is like DoorDash. You hire someone using my app that will go the local mall in your area and pick up anything you want there, mostly clothes. What do you think. Do you think people would pay for this service? It will lower time of shipping because the clothes delivery person could just go to the mall pick up the clothes and then deliver it the same day, and then give like a $7 tip.
 
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G

Guest1413tpa

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Hello millionaire fastlaners!! I am currently thinking about a passive income tree, as you should too. My idea is like DoorDash. You hire someone using my app that will go the local mall in your area and pick up anything you want there, mostly clothes. What do you think. Do you think people would pay for this service? It will lower time of shipping because the clothes delivery person could just go to the mall pick up the clothes and then deliver it the same day, and then give like a $7 tip.

Brick and Mortar Retail in the US is dead in my eyes, BUT, it still serves a place with certain stores like Best Buy, Apple, etc. In other parts of the world, it may be a massive success.

Could be a good idea, how would you test it though?
 

Tanner Lewis

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Brick and Mortar Retail in the US is dead in my eyes, BUT, it still serves a place with certain stores like Best Buy, Apple, etc. In other parts of the world, it may be a massive success.

Could be a good idea, how would you test it though?
I would have to spend a large amount of time developing the app with people I know. Then just advertise on social medias hoping people sign up and use the service to get clothes delivered quickly.
 

Jon L

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DoorDash can compete with Amazon because Amazon can't really warehouse, sell and ship freshly made food. There is a clear advantage to buying restaurant food locally, and not just for environmental reasons.

However, buying clothing from a local retailer gives no advantage. A Calvin Klein tee-shirt from Amazon is the exact same shirt as a Calvin Klein tee-shirt from a retailer down the street, except that a local retailer has to add all sorts of costs to that shirt that Amazon doesn't carry. Further, by delivering clothing bought from an app, you're cancelling out any advantage that a local retailer would have over Amazon: the ability to see, touch and try on a garment prior to purchase.
 

Rabby

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I would have to spend a large amount of time developing the app with people I know. Then just advertise on social medias hoping people sign up and use the service to get clothes delivered quickly.

It sounds like you're doing that out of order to me. Why spend a long time with multiple people to make something, and thenadvertise and try to see if anyone wants what you made? Can't you test it out somehow? Maybe a simple website for a local area, that solves a smaller subset of the whole problem? Maybe even start by talking to people who you think might be future users, and see if they'll sign up for a simple retrieval service.
 
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SEBASTlAN

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How does DoorDash get all the local food business on their app? I would hopefully do the same but with local clothes stores, and malls.
Most local food businesses have a handful of items they sell, and they don't change much. Clothing is seasonal, and some stores carry hundreds of SKUs. I doubt they would update it on your app every time they sell an item or discontinue it.
 

MHP368

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I would have to spend a large amount of time developing the app with people I know

no you wouldn't just clone an existing app, you're just copying and pasting a business model to a new set of items.

i live too far from my nearest major city for ubereats and doordash so a local just did it themselves

You could even go more bare bones and start with just a website until you can see if the idea has legs.
 

Kasimir

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DoorDash can compete with Amazon because Amazon can't really warehouse, sell and ship freshly made food. There is a clear advantage to buying restaurant food locally, and not just for environmental reasons.

However, buying clothing from a local retailer gives no advantage. A Calvin Klein tee-shirt from Amazon is the exact same shirt as a Calvin Klein tee-shirt from a retailer down the street, except that a local retailer has to add all sorts of costs to that shirt that Amazon doesn't carry. Further, by delivering clothing bought from an app, you're cancelling out any advantage that a local retailer would have over Amazon: the ability to see, touch and try on a garment prior to purchase.

Agree to 100% with @Jon L. Additionally I think cloth is something that is difficult to deliver without the option of returning it. I'd rather put everything in the app except clothing. Grocery food, electronics, and so on. But then you're competing with Amazon and that's nearly impossible.

The only possibility I see is to do it oldfashioned for the generation who aren't able to buy things on Amazon. They can call you and tell you what they need. And you get somebody to buy it and bring it to them. But that's difficult to scale and all your costumers are probably dead in 20 years.

But otherwise, you'll have a difficult life competing with Amazon.
 
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Gabbe18

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I would have to spend a large amount of time developing the app with people I know. Then just advertise on social medias hoping people sign up and use the service to get clothes delivered quickly.
If I were you I would do everything manually to test the idea. Meaning talk to some people in your area you think could be interested in something like this. Talk to friends, colleagues, your community, etc. Tell them about your service and that you would go and get them clothes for 10 bucks or whatever price you see as appropriate.
After you have gotten them their clothes ask them if they would use an app with a service like this. If they say no then ask why and try find out how you can make something that is more valuable to them. If they say yes collect their email to keep them updated with potential app developments and progress. Do this with a few people and then you have more of an idea if this is something worth working more on instead of spending a large amount of time developing an app and then hope someone will use it and sign up.
 

BlackSuperman

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If I were you I would do everything manually to test the idea. Meaning talk to some people in your area you think could be interested in something like this. Talk to friends, colleagues, your community, etc. Tell them about your service and that you would go and get them clothes for 10 bucks or whatever price you see as appropriate.
After you have gotten them their clothes ask them if they would use an app with a service like this. If they say no then ask why and try find out how you can make something that is more valuable to them. If they say yes collect their email to keep them updated with potential app developments and progress. Do this with a few people and then you have more of an idea if this is something worth working more on instead of spending a large amount of time developing an app and then hope someone will use it and sign up.
I like the idea but whats to stop people from using personal shoppers? I only ask because obviously for it to be worth you'd charge a pretty hefty fee to make profit of some sort at the same time pay the people to pick up the items. As someone in a high end retail store, we have alot of personal shoppers coming in. So what will be the difference of using them vs your app?
 

AidenRafi

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Hey mate,

To be honest, the only way to find out if the idea would work is through validating it.

And you won't find that on an entrepreneurial forum.

Get out in the regular world and ask around (find out who your initial 100-1000 customers are) or create an MVE and see if people bite.

Cheers
 
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Gabbe18

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I like the idea but whats to stop people from using personal shoppers? I only ask because obviously for it to be worth you'd charge a pretty hefty fee to make profit of some sort at the same time pay the people to pick up the items. As someone in a high end retail store, we have alot of personal shoppers coming in. So what will be the difference of using them vs your app?
I am not pursuing this idea. I just wanted to tell OP what I would start off doing if I wanted to validate this idea and then based on the data and information I collect from that I would decide what would be the next steps to take. In terms of what would be the difference between using personal shoppers and an app, there isn't anything stopping people from using personal shoppers however that doesn't mean it can't be turned into a successful business but it might make it more difficult.
 

BlackSuperman

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I am not pursuing this idea. I just wanted to tell OP what I would start off doing if I wanted to validate this idea and then based on the data and information I collect from that I would decide what would be the next steps to take. In terms of what would be the difference between using personal shoppers and an app, there isn't anything stopping people from using personal shoppers however that doesn't mean it can't be turned into a successful business but it might make it more difficult.
Oh hey! That reply was actually meant for the creator of the thread. Something for Tanner to think about really. But great point. I agree it can still be a viable business idea. If anything it could be like a middle ground where people request a shopper (similiar to a marketplace). Just trying to spur ideas and get the OP to think really outside the box and consider question they never considered. But again! My bad for not clarifying it was meant for OP!
 

FierceRacoon

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Manually compile a list of 1000 items in a neighborhood. E.g. paper towels from A, epsom salt from B, dried fruit from C. You don't need to have every item from every place.

Then show it to some old folks who aren't going to the store. Don't build an app, just a list on a website.

Offer to order with free delivery and just take a taxi across town for the first 20 orders, even if they don't live nearby. You can even carry around most of those items in a backpack or stock the heavy ones at your place. Payment by venmo or some other app, after delivery. No delivery fee, no tip, do it at a loss.

If you manage to make those 20 sales (at a loss), then you'll know 20 times more than you do now.
 
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AidenRafi

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Manually compile a list of 1000 items in a neighborhood. E.g. paper towels from A, epsom salt from B, dried fruit from C. You don't need to have every item from every place.

Then show it to some old folks who aren't going to the store. Don't build an app, just a list on a website.

Offer to order with free delivery and just take a taxi across town for the first 20 orders, even if they don't live nearby. You can even carry around most of those items in a backpack or stock the heavy ones at your place. Payment by venmo or some other app, after delivery. No delivery fee, no tip, do it at a loss.

If you manage to make those 20 sales (at a loss), then you'll know 20 times more than you do now.

This x1000
 

lab_rat

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Hello millionaire fastlaners!! I am currently thinking about a passive income tree, as you should too. My idea is like DoorDash. You hire someone using my app that will go the local mall in your area and pick up anything you want there, mostly clothes. What do you think. Do you think people would pay for this service? It will lower time of shipping because the clothes delivery person could just go to the mall pick up the clothes and then deliver it the same day, and then give like a $7 tip.

Great Idea! A similar concept called Fetch is currently beta testing in Santa Fe, NM.


Might serve as inspiration.

Edit:
also just found this startup backed by Founders Fund:

This is just confirming that your idea has potential. Compitition is healthy and by skewing some value attributes it should be possible to create a competitive edge. Remember Facebook was just one out of 25 social networks back then, the same is true for Google.
 
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