They set themselves up to fail when they all lived each near other and set up an office. At that point, they were not a remote company, they were just people who worked from home a lot.

Working remotely is a totally different mindset, with different tools, different ways of communicating. When you have NO options to get together in person, you must develop the tools and techniques to make your communications work. These guys gave themselves an out, so they never had to do that.