Startups are often associated with success stories, but behind the glory are stories of failure. Many entrepreneurs have gone down in history for trying to do too much too soon or biting off more than they could chew. Here are the top 5 greatest startup failure stories in history.
Theranos: Theranos was founded by Elizabeth Holmes in 2003. It was a healthcare technology startup with the mission to revolutionize the healthcare industry by offering diagnostics results quickly and accurately using just a single drop of blood. Despite raising over $700 million from investors, Theranos was shut down after facing allegations of fraudulent sales practices and fake diagnostic tests.
Juicero: Juicero Inc. was founded by Doug Evans in 2013 with the intent to make cold-pressed juices easier to consume. It shipped users pre-packaged servings of fruits and vegetables in its signature ‘Juicero Pack’. With over $120 million in investments, the company quickly gained traction, but never gained the expected market share. Juicero ended up shutting down after continual production issues and sluggish demand.
Color Labs: Color Labs was co-founded by Bill Nguyen in 2011 as a photo-sharing application. The application quickly gained popularity, raising over $41 million in investments. Despite its positive early traction, the unsustainability of Color Labs’ business model ultimately led to its demise.
Tutorspree: Tutorspree was founded by Aaron Harris and Ryan Bednar in 2010 and was a website that connected students with teachers for personal tutoring. It quickly gained investors, raising over $3.5 million in investments. Ultimately, the company closed its doors when it failed to scale.
Beepi: Beepi was founded by Ale Resnik in 2013 and was an online virtual marketplace for car buyers and sellers. It quickly gained traction, raising over $150 million in investments. However, the company eventually shut down due to poor transaction volume, pricey transactions, and high cost of marketing.
While there is no guarantee of success when it comes to startups, learning from these failure stories can help aspiring entrepreneurs avoid making the same mistakes.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theranos
https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/1/15504636/juicero-shutting-down-cold-pressed-juice-machine-repackaging-produce
https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2015/03/05/how-bill-nguyen-lost-200-million-on-his-failed-photo-app-color/#3f919703e3b2
https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/tutorspree#section-overview
https://www.forbes.com/sites/leighbuchanan/2017/02/14/why-peer-to-peer-used-car-exchange-beepi-fell-apart/#44546e8bbfeb
