Ask HN: Need feedback on startup idea | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Need feedback on startup idea

3 pointssixQuarks5 comments

I was recently married and saw first-hand the hassles my wife and I had to go through to plan everything - especially finding a venue for the dates we wanted.

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The startup idea is kind of like an IKEA for weddings. (I know that sounds terrible, but read on)

The company will provide complete pre-made weddings that you can shop online or in person (kind of like the IKEA rooms). There will be signature designers that you can choose from with plenty of pictures to show you exactly how everything is setup including the chairs, tables, flowers, dj, photo-booths, and all the details of the wedding.

The pre-made weddings will be custom designed for particular venues. The startup will reserve high-demand dates many months ahead of time, so people who want a lavish wedding without much time can still get great wedding dates at high-demand venues (as long as they use the service).

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I'm really not that excited about the business model, but here is where I wanted your feedback.

For those of you familiar with Lean StartUps, how would I build a minimum viable product to test this model out?

While this isn't direct feedback to your idea (which sounds interesting I must say), this is what I would personally want:

Is there a site that acts like a marketplace for wedding planners? I'm pretty far from when I'll actually get married, but now that the topic is on my mind, I would really love a central place where I can peruse through different wedding planners and their wedding portfolios.

Oh, and I would also like a central place where I could see others' weddings (perhaps via video)? My gf would make me watch all these celebrity weddings on TV and would constantly tell me she wants THAT type of wedding. Well, I think a place where I could see others' weddings would be kind of cool. Business model? You can pause the video any time and a bunch of price tags pop up on a bunch of different items (like roses, food, decorations, etc.) which link to the respective companies, caterers, etc. that provided that item for the wedding.

That's a good idea. Were you thinking it would be a showcase site? (kind of like a http://dribbble.com for wedding planners)

There's definitely opportunities here for someone who wants to take the ball and roll it.

Yeah, although I wonder how many wedding planners exist in a given locale assuming most wedding couples seek local planners?

It might be overkill if you can see the portfolio of a NY planner when, in fact, you are living in Omaha and are more likely to pick someone from Omaha.

First, let me state that this is an excellent idea for a business.

Now... not so sure that this is a candidate for a minimum viable product. It seems to me it has to be all or nothing. This business by its very nature is going to have to hve a lot of knowledge of each local environment ("The pre-made weddings will be custom designed for particular venues.")

Although, now that I think about it you could ditch the venue scheduling and the physical store location. Then you have a web store with different wedding themes and the ability to download a list of plans and purchase some of the items.

Perhaps the poster who mentioned working with wedding planners has a point. Market to them initially, they may be able to serve as your window into local pecularities.

I do not have much experience in planning weddings : I have got married only once and I am still married. My primary contribution my wedding was to (a) show up sober (b) let the pros do their job (c) say yes.

Having said that, your primary competition is going to be wedding planners. Most of them have a solid experience and reputation; instead of trying to compete with them , you could try talking to them and see what you can do to help them.

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