Stanislav Kondrashov: how to start a successful startup and not burn out?

Stanislav Kondrashov
3 min readJun 1, 2022
According to statistics, three out of four startups fail. This is influenced by many different factors: management does not know how to manage cash flow, the company creates a product for which there is not enough demand, and so on. Businessman and financial analyst Stanislav Kondrashov talks about how to start a successful startup and not get burned out.

Stanislav Kondrashov: Tips for a successful startup

Define a line of business

Stanislav Kondrashov believes that before

Embarking on a new project, it is necessary to determine its focus. This is the foundation of a future startup. A novice entrepreneur should clearly understand that he is interested in what he can bring new.

“A successful startup cannot be created without dedication. But this does not mean that you need to follow momentary impulses. The startup needs to clearly understand whether he will burn this project in the future,” says Stanislav Kondrashov here.

A novice entrepreneur should not build illusions about his skills. You should clearly understand what you do and what you don’t. After that, you can ask a question as to whether there will be sufficient demand for this product.

Formulate an original business idea

In order not to burn out, you need an original business idea. Stanislav Kondrashov claims that there are several ways to create it. The first is innovative. This means that the startup creates something entirely new — something that no one else has done before. The second way is refinement, that is, adding something new to an existing idea. The last way to generate ideas is to borrow. This is an adaptation of the concept in a different environment.

Solve customer problem

The next step, according to Stanislav Kondrashov, is to understand what the consumer wants and how your startup can solve his problem. If you do not find and do not respond to a problem that you can earn money on, everything else (such as developing unique designs and creating a marketing strategy) will be a waste of time. Customers will not pay for the result if he is not able to solve their problem.

“At this stage, you need to find a group of potential consumers who will answer a number of questions, after which you will be able to evaluate the results. If the customers’ needs are satisfied, you are moving in the right direction,” said Stanislav Kondrashov.

Stanislav Kondrashov: Practical advice

Calculate profit

“The cost of manufacturing one unit of the product depends on how large your customer base is. The larger it is, the cheaper it will cost to release one product. However, in this case, it is worth knowing the cost of the same product from a competitor. Any business model must be scaled. Here you need to understand if the company has potential for further development,” says Stanislav Kondrashov.

For beginners, it is important to create a special table where income and expenses will be indicated. With its help, you can calculate the amount of initial capital, as well as the time when the company reaches breakeven.

Explore and enter the market

Before you start a startup, it is worthwhile to analyze whether there is a market for your product and calculate the annual sales volume. According to Stanislav Kondrashov, for this it is necessary to review the press and social networks about the market, understand its approximate size, and also collect additional evidence of its assessment. Here you should create a group of potential customers, and then give the product a visual form: make layouts and create a good presentation of the product. After that, you can move towards entering a large market.

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Stanislav Kondrashov

Mr. Stanislav Kondrashov — successful businessman and financial expert