NewCo Toronto 2018

Pivoting to the Basics: Refocusing Your Business on the Core

Course corrections, or pivots, are normal for startups and ventures, with many startups first building a user base, then determining how to monetize that user base. Although pivoting a business is challenging and means potentially abandoning a tremendous amount of invested time and effort, it is also an opportunity to reset and breathe new life into an organization and its team. 500px started as a social blogging website in late 2003 and was launched as an official platform site for photographers to share their best work in 2009. Over the past near decade, the company grew and expanded across business lines and developed and launched various products and offerings to both creators and buyers of photography. Come hear from CEO, Aneta Filiciak, who will discuss the journey of the company through times of expansion, pivots and the path forward post-acquisition. In this session, she will be highlight the importance of always validating changes to a business' focus against the value provided to users, and lessons learned along the way throughout the phases of a startups' life.