Locally.fm wanted to help food truck vendors connect with customers by using GPS technology and text alerts.
But, as founder Steve Palmer said he realized, there wasn’t a need for that kind of technology.
“In the end we recognize that we didn’t tap into a real problem and it is hard to create the best solution for a problem that really doesn’t exist,” Palmer wrote on Locally.fm’s website and in a blog post which he sent to the Philly Startup Leaders listserv.
The startup shut down last week. It was headquartered in Lititz, Pa. in Lancaster County where Palmer lives, but Palmer took the business to Callowhill incubator Venturef0rth for a few months to be closer to the action, he said.
Startup culture calls for entrepreneurs to “fail fast,” but it’s not always that easy to do, much less be open about it. You could see that in the more than a dozen responses to Palmer’s PSL listserv email, in which many applauded his courage in shutting down the venture and being honest about what didn’t work.
Before you go...
Please consider supporting Technical.ly to keep our independent journalism strong. Unlike most business-focused media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational support.
3 ways to support our work:- Contribute to the Journalism Fund. Charitable giving ensures our information remains free and accessible for residents to discover workforce programs and entrepreneurship pathways. This includes philanthropic grants and individual tax-deductible donations from readers like you.
- Use our Preferred Partners. Our directory of vetted providers offers high-quality recommendations for services our readers need, and each referral supports our journalism.
- Use our services. If you need entrepreneurs and tech leaders to buy your services, are seeking technologists to hire or want more professionals to know about your ecosystem, Technical.ly has the biggest and most engaged audience in the mid-Atlantic. We help companies tell their stories and answer big questions to meet and serve our community.
Join our growing Slack community
Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!
The person charged in the UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting had a ton of tech connections
From rejection to innovation: How I built a tool to beat AI hiring algorithms at their own game
Where are the country’s most vibrant tech and startup communities?
