Lessons from the Trenches: Wins, Losses & a Smarter Way to Move Your Money

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TL;DR: One startup flew too close to the sun (and melted). Another rocketed past the competition. And if you’re still paying ridiculous fees for international transfers, Wise is here to make you feel… well, wiser.

"The secret to getting ahead is getting started." — Mark Twain

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🚨 Startup Autopsy: Quibi – The $1.75 Billion Flick That Vanished

Remember Quibi? The short-form video platform that raised $1.75 billion and then promptly collapsed faster than your New Year’s resolutions? It was supposed to revolutionize entertainment with bite-sized, mobile-only shows. What went wrong?

Why It Was a Good Opportunity:

✅ Huge war chest from investors, including Disney, Warner Bros, and Alibaba
✅ Led by media moguls Jeffrey Katzenberg & Meg Whitman
✅ Betting on the rising trend of mobile-first video content

Why It Flopped:

❌ Launched in April 2020—right when people were not commuting and had all the time in the world for long-form content
❌ Content was exclusive to Quibi, with no easy sharing—bad move in the age of virality
❌ Ignored user behavior—YouTube and TikTok were already dominating short-form video

Moral of the Story: You can raise a billion dollars, but if you don’t understand your audience, you’re still toast.

​➡️ Quibi’s Crunchbase Profile​

Another good reading is "11 Reasons why Quibi crashed and burned in less than a year" on the Verge​

If you prefer a video about the failure of Quibi, that is too long to be a short (Quibi) and too short to really be long, watch this 12 minutes about Quibi.

🚀 Startup Success: Notion – The Productivity Beast

If you haven’t used Notion, you’re either superhumanly organized or still using sticky notes like it’s 1999. Notion is the all-in-one workspace that lets you take notes, manage tasks, and collaborate effortlessly.

Why It Was a Good Opportunity:

✅ A flexible, all-in-one tool replacing Evernote, Trello, and Google Docs
✅ A cult-like following among productivity nerds and startups
✅ Brilliant freemium model—hooking individuals before upselling teams

Why It Succeeded:

🔥 Community-driven growth—users created free templates, which fueled adoption
🔥 Timing—came just as remote work and async collaboration skyrocketed
🔥 No marketing budget—let organic word-of-mouth do the heavy lifting

Lesson: Give people something they love, and they’ll sell it for you.

➡️ Notion’s Crunchbase Profile​

💰 The Tech Optimization You Need: Wise – No More Insane Banking Fees

If you’re still paying high fees for international transfers, I have bad news: you’re funding your bank’s next holiday party. Wise (formerly TransferWise) is the startup that flipped global banking on its head—giving founders, freelancers, and businesses actual fair rates and zero hidden fees.

Why Founders Swear by Wise:

✅ 50+ currencies with low, transparent fees
✅ Faster transfers—often instant or within hours
✅ Multi-currency accounts to hold, spend, and receive money like a local
✅ BONUS: Sign up today and get £50 when you make your first transfer!

🔗 Get Wise Today & Claim Your Free Transfer​

Wrapping It Up…

Startups live and die by execution, timing, and whether they actually solve a real problem. Quibi had the cash but not the community. Notion had no budget but built something people couldn’t stop raving about. And Wise? Well, they took the entire banking industry and made it look prehistoric.

The question is: where will your startup land?

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