Creation of Pawnshop Aggregator by a Lean Startup Method

Author: Peter V. Aminev, student of the faculty of Business and management, HSE. Relevance: production companies are no longer the main driver of economic growth, now technological startups are. The approach of startups creation is different from the classic one: it does not require for a detailed plat, is based upon the requirements of the clients, and allows to spend less time and money to test the business-model. This work is devoted to the application of the former one. The problem: the creation of a startup using the concept of lean approach. The purpose: to create an aggregator of pawnshops by a «lean startup» method. Object: pawnshop aggregator. Subject: the method of creating of a «lean startup». Research objectives: • To study the concept of «lean startup», highlight its advantages and disadvantages, compare with the classic approach • Justify the grounds for the choice of the business-model though the analysis of Russian and international venture-capital markets • Conduct the «customer development» and create the «minimum viable product» for business-model of the pawnshop aggregator • To decide on the relevance of continuing and further development of the project The total amount of the graduation thesis is 56 pages. It includes: introductory part, 4 chapters, conclusion, list of references (54 in total) and annexes. Contents of the chapters: 1. In the first chapter, we define the concept of "startup", describe its characteristics and the main stages of its life cycle 2. In the second chapter, the «lean approach» is compared with the classic one. It also provides the description of the methodology of «customer development» and the principles for the creation of the «minimum viable product» 3. The third chapter describes the business-model selection methodology, provides the assessment of the attractiveness of different markets and business-models for the implementation in Russia 4. The fourth chapter describes all steps of creation of the pawnshops aggregator: market analysis, unit-economy forecasting, creation of «minimum viable product» and testing of the sales funnel In the result, a business-model for the pawnshop aggregator is developed and tested. One-page site with the calculator of the loan terms was created as a «minimum viable product». The sales funnel will be tested though the launch of contextual advertising with the help of Yandex Direct and Google Ads.