What I Learned After Selling My Company to Snapchat for $54 Million | Entrepreneur

"In 2014, Snapchat acquired our startup, Scan, for $54 million, back when QR codes were still relatively new. Most people hadn't tried them, and phones didn't support them natively. The technology was promising, but the experience wasn't, so it sat behind a clunky UX. We removed that friction and made QR codes easier to create, scan and deploy, which led to quick adoption."

"Too many founders begin with presentations or investor outreach before proving their product. From day one, Scan was grounded in user need. We built it to let people easily scan and generate QR codes, nothing fancy, just functional and straightforward. Just like with any startup, we didn't raise capital immediately. We did, however, start early, pay attention to all helpful comments, and make changes often."

Snapchat acquired Scan for $54 million in 2014 after Scan simplified QR code creation and scanning, improving a clunky user experience and driving rapid adoption. QR codes were nascent and phones lacked native support, so removing friction enabled widespread use. The acquisition resulted from demonstrated usage and alignment with Snapchat's vision, not flashy fundraising materials. The founders prioritized building a functional product, iterating based on user feedback, and delaying outside capital. Early traction included more than 1 million downloads, 25 million installs by 2012, and over 100 million downloads globally later, proving product-market fit and attracting acquirers.

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