#subcom

Subscription Commerce is very seductive. It is realatively easy to implement from the outside. Some startups in this space have taken the Kids toys route like - http://flintobox.com/ and kukucrate.com

Some startups in this space

http://www.fabbag.com/

http://bakebox.in/

Here are few pointers you need to consider.

What does Subscription Commerce Do?

Peace of Mind Delivery of either frequently used or niche products

What they have to fix?

Get the first 100 paying customers

Decide between dense geographic concentrated vs sparse national shipping

Set clear profit margins and break even volumes

Understand Cost of Acquisition and Long Term Value

Figure out cost effective Acquisition Channels

Manage Supply Chain

Tackle customer complaints

Capture Market Space quickly

The right team

Your tech needs will be least of your problems. You need an Operations Guy, who has some experience in retail and logistics experience. Next comes Sales. A guy who can help you get customers. Finally, you need a person who can handle finance (need not be a hard core finance guy). Simple addition and multiplication skills would do.

Primary Focus - Execution Stage (2-3 months)

Get at-least 100-500 paying customers asap. Don't build a website. Put up a landing page. Call your target customers, meet them at events, talk to them. Get the 100 paying customers and manage all operations manually (if necessary). 

Next, figure out what products your customers are interested in. It is easy to delight your customer once. But, to be able to continuously deliver value, you need to really understand their expectations and how it changes over time. Don't focus on profitability, just try to break even.

Next Focus - Execution Stage (2-6 months)

After you figure out the right products, and have enough customers renewing their subscription, you need to focus on capturing a sizable market size. Build a website, have a clear messaging, have a simple subscription flow.

Figure out the right pricing, build proper logistics.

Start experimenting with different marketing channels. You will have a cost of acquisition. Ensure your cost of acquisition, your renewal rate and long term value add up to considerable profits. Don't bet on scaling first and then trying to break even (unless you have good financial muscle)

Key Parameters to Track

Conversion Rate on Different Customer Acquisition Channels

Retention Rate of existing customers.

Customer satisfaction after 1st delivery, 2nd delivery and 3rd delivery