A Start-up Story

A Simple Idea

After finishing up recording our weekly podcast (don’t ask), first founder and engine of Shiine, Nathan Wipane, laid out a simple idea - to bring digital rideshare advertising to Australia. “I have an idea that I’ve been working on. Essentially, to install vehicle mounted LED displays atop rideshare vehicles, offering sought after ad space in prime locations. I have run into some roadblocks, but if you guys are onboard I think we might just be able to pull it off”. Co-hosts and now co-founders, Sean Wharton and Jordan Russell were quick to say “We’ve been waiting for you to ask. We’re in.” That was it, the unpolished raw idea that turned out to be anything but simple.

We often laugh about making a podcast that eventually flopped, but we also wonder, ‘would any of this have ever happened if we didn’t decide to just start that podcast’. We can’t say what might have happened, but we have learnt, the opportunities ahead are relatively unknown, they are discovered as we go. 

“The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on” - Louis L’amour 

100 Phone Calls and 1

Registering the business and creating a logo, our spirits were high, and our excitement… Well that was short-lived. Turns out putting a TV on the roof of a car wasn’t exactly legal. Nonetheless, our course was set and the first stop was the WA Government. Taking on the role of business relations, Sean was in for a challenge. The phrase “No pressure Sean, it’s only the fate of the business”, floated around a few times. After exhausting our (not so) extensive contact list, we turned to cold calls and cold emails to anyone in the Government who might listen. This went on for almost a year, and it was always the same response “this is a really cool idea, but sorry you can’t put a LED sign on a car”. After countless calls, and keeping in mind we had begun prototype development to help our cause, we can wholeheartedly say that we hit a wall. Had we just wasted all this time and money for nothing? Sensing this, as a last ditch effort, a friend of Sean’s dad gave us a number, “Give Jason a call, he might be able to help with this”. 

After connecting with Jason Marocchi and the team at GRA, we were given one shot at a meeting with the minister of Main Roads and the DOT. I don’t want to bore you with the details, and since you’re reading this you can probably guess how it went (...we did it). That one phone call was the tipping point for the start of our venture. 

“Volume negates luck” - Alex Hormozi (The Game w/ Alex Hormozi Ep. 611)

Another Day, Another Problem

Once again, the excitement was short-lived, which has tended to become a common theme. It’s funny actually, when things go right and we get something done, our first thought is “Fu*k yeah”, our second thought is “What’s about to go wrong”. Sure enough, something goes wrong. But on the floor, handling Shiine’s operations, Jordan takes on the responsibility of building the infrastructure for Shiine to operate. Navigating the challenges of international supply, driver coordination and campaign logistics and allocation, Jordan was thrown into the deep end; as we all were. Self-funded and on a budget, our mission to build a lean startup meant we were bound to out-of-the-box thinking (often involving a mallet, literally). And as we connected with new people along the way, new ideas arose that shifted our focus to develop capabilities beyond what we had imagined, which of course came with a new set of problems. Although we are just getting started, Shiine is the fruit of a minimum viable product, that through constant problems, constant feedback and constant improvement, grew into what you see today.

Suits, Ties and Board Meetings

I’d like to say we knew what we were doing from day 1, but looking back, ‘young and naive’ as the saying goes. Before Shiine we each had projects or small businesses which had taught us a few things, but one thing was certain from day 1, Shiine would be a whole different game. Which meant we needed a new way of doing business. 19 years old and ready to take on the world, we put our costumes on and had our first dining room board meeting. Perhaps we were empty suits at the time, but that small action pushed us out of our comfort zone and set the standard for how we were going to build Shiine. At the core focus of this, is collaboration and innovation - a drive also shared by Parakram Vishwakarma (PK). After doing some initial tech development to prepare for our launch, PK’s skillset was quickly showcased. His shared vision to push the boundaries and challenge our capabilities found him slot seamlessly into the team. And as another school friend turned partner, PK’s drive and appetite to learn beyond just the scope of Shiine, was the missing piece of the puzzle that has and will continue to push Shiine to new heights.