BUILDING THE OPERATIONAL BACKBONE FOR A STARTUP FIGHTING THE LONELINESS EPIDEMIC
AT A GLANCE
industry:
social wellness
service provided:
FRACTIONAL COO
ASMBL COMMUNITY
ASMBL is a social wellness and local discovery app on a mission to combat loneliness by making it easier for people to make real-life plans with the people they already know. Currently operating as a web app with a native mobile launch on the horizon, ASMBL is focused on Brooklyn, NY as its launch market with plans to expand across dense urban metros.
The Challenge
Building a startup from the ground up is hard. Building one without external funding while simultaneously trying to attract it requires a different kind of operational discipline entirely.
ASMBL came to ADINA at the earliest stage of the business. With a clear product, compelling mission, and a promising market opportunity, the foundation was strong. What the company needed was an operational and strategic partner to help position that vision into something investors would back and users would adopt.
With no runway to waste and a mobile app launch on the horizon, every decision had to be intentional. The challenge was building the right things in the right order with the resources available.
Core Problems
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The company had a strong product concept but no defined path to securing the capital needed to bring the full mobile experience to market. Without a clear investor positioning strategy, the vision risked staying a vision.
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Without a defined revenue framework, ASMBL had no way to demonstrate commercial viability to investors or potential business partners. Pricing had to be developed thoughtfully, rooted in market research and what the target audience would realistically support at this stage of the business.
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Critical positions needed to execute on the product roadmap were unfilled. Without a UX/UI designer and a technical lead, the path to a fundable, launch-ready product was stalled.
"There is nothing more difficult than starting a business. Every decision is new and the outcomes are uncertain. Having a strong operational foundation helps ensure we are reducing those uncertainties through action."
-Yetty Emmanuel, Founder + CEO of ASBML
Our Approach
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Understand the Business
The first step was getting deep into the vision before making any recommendations. That meant understanding what ASMBL was building, who it was building for, and what it needed to look like to attract the right investors. We mapped the Brooklyn launch market, defined the target user, conducted competitive analysis, and identified the gaps between where the company was and where it needed to be to be fundable and launch-ready.
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Build the Framework
ADINA got to work building the infrastructure to support it. A pricing model was developed to specifically target local businesses, rooted in market research and what the target audience would realistically support at this stage. Two critical team roles were filled: UX/UI designer and a CTO, giving the product roadmap the technical and creative leadership needed to accelerate.
A go-to-market strategy was built around the Brooklyn market, sequencing decisions in the right order to maximize impact with limited resources.
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Activate the System
ADINA continues to serve as the operational partner of the business, keeping every workstream aligned around securing the investment needed to bring the full mobile experience to market and launch by end of year.
Every meeting, every decision, and every deliverable is evaluated against that goal.
Roadmap to Launch
ASMBL is currently operating as a web app with a native mobile app in development, focused on Brooklyn, NY as its launch market. The goal is full mobile launch and seed funding by end of year.
what this means for you
Every great company starts somewhere. The most successful ones start with the right operational foundation in place before the reality of scaling a business is realized.
ASMBL is building something that matters. A product that tackles loneliness as a public health crisis, designed to get people off their phones and back into the world together. What ADINA is here to do is make sure every decision between now and launch moves the company closer to the investors and users it deserves
""Loneliness is one of the defining challenges of our time. Building a company to solve it means we cannot afford to get the foundation wrong” said Emmanuel “The right operations are what give us the runway to keep fighting for the mission."
The earliest stage of a business is the most important stage to get right. If you are building something and need a partner to help you do it with intention, that is exactly what ADINA is here for.