Startups

PackLate shuts down: ‘We had to make our one basket work or die trying’

PackLate, the Conshohocken-based B2B startup that provided listings for vacation rentals, shut down as early as December because it wasn’t growing quickly enough, according to an announcement on PackLate’s website. Founder Steve Barsh did not respond to initial requests for comment. In late 2011, PackLate, which raised a $685,000 seed round from investors like First […]

packlate blue logo

PackLate, the Conshohocken-based B2B startup that provided listings for vacation rentals, shut down as early as December because it wasn’t growing quickly enough, according to an announcement on PackLate’s website.

Founder Steve Barsh did not respond to initial requests for comment.

In late 2011, PackLate, which raised a $685,000 seed round from investors like First Round Capital and Genacast Ventures in 2010, pivoted from a consumer-facing business to a B2B model. Following the pivot, Barsh reported a 10x increase in revenue.

On its website, the PackLate team offered some advice to entrepreneurs, including:

If you pivot, make sure that you have enough cash on board that you don’t have all of your eggs in one basket and you preserve optionality. Packlate could only afford one basket and that basket did not grow quickly enough. We realized we had to make our one basket work or die trying.

The PackLate team’s willingness to be open about what worked and what didn’t is one way to promote the “fail fast” spirit locally.

Read the rest of the announcement here.

 

Companies: First Round Capital / Genacast Ventures / Packlate
Engagement

Join our growing Slack community

Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!

Donate to the Journalism Fund

Your support powers our independent journalism. Unlike most business-media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational contributions.

Trending

From Belgaum to Baltimore and beyond, this founder leaned on family to build a biotech juggernaut 

Philly grandpa scores Super Bowl tickets thanks to a local startup that raises money for nonprofits

Philly vs. Kansas City: Who’s got the stronger tech economy?

How this Comcast director of product management is bringing heart to AI

Technically Media