You would expect that event-focused startups would be some of the hardest hit by the global pandemic and lockdown, and for the most part, you would be right.

But Peatix is one event startup that adapted fast and is now actually thriving during the lockdown.  We've talked with Taku Harada before, and if you have not done so already, you should check it out. It's a great conversation and there is no overlap with today.

Today we talk about how startups can pivot and survive during the pandemic, why having too much money can be a curse for startups, and we dive into what's gone wrong with Japanese B2B SaaS startups.

It's a great discussion, and I think you will really enjoy it.

Show Notes

How an evets company pivots during Covid-19What makes a good online eventWill people play for online eventsWhat will be the long-term behavioral changes from the lockdownThe surprising secret to scaling a social networkTips for Japanese who want to run an international startupThe trap of startups having too much fundingWhat's wrong with Japan’s SaaS companiesWhy Japanese enterprise has too much influence on startups The importance of an ecosystem is not what you think 

Links from the Founder

Everything you ever wanted to know about PeatixFriend Taku on FacebookFollow him on twitter at @takumeisterPetix on YouTube

Leave a commentTranscriptWelcome to Disrupting Japan, straight talk from Japan's most successful entrepreneurs. I'm Tim Romero and thanks for joining me.

Today we get a chance to sit down with (at a very safe social distance) with Taku Harada the founder of Peatix, and we’ll talk about how this particular event planning and booking company is not only surviving but thriving during this covid crisis.

And hey, this is the very first DJ episode I’ve released, where I’ve interviewed someone over video conference.  Oh, I’ve recorded a few interviews that way them before, but I’ve always found something lacking. Something impersonal and not fully connected when you talking to an image on a screen rather than a person in the same room.

But this time was different. Maybe because Taku and I are old friends, or maybe just because we all, myself included, are getting more used to living our lives online. So we’ll be doing more interviews this way, at least until things return to the way they were in the before times.

This is actually the second time we’ve had Taku on the show, but this is all new information, and I strongly encourage you to go listen to the other interview. It’s a great discussion about the things no one ever tells you when you first start your startup. I’ll have a link to that episode up on the site

But today we are going to talk about how to build, and expand, your customer base during lockdown, some things you should know about fundraising right now, and what the hell is wrong with Japanese B2B SaaS companies.

But you know Taku tells that story much better than I can, so let's get right to the interview.Interview

Tim: So, I’m sitting here with Taku Harada of Peatix, the event ticketing and promotion service. Thanks for sitting down with me.Taku: It’s great to be back, I guess. We talked several years ago. It’s nice to see you again.Tim: Likewise, and we’re being very appropriately socially distanced here, you being in New York.Taku: Very much.Tim: Yeah. Yeah, actually, you were one of my very first guests on the show and that was, man, almost six years ago now.Taku: Was it six years ago?Tim: Yeah, 5 ½, six years. Times change.Taku: When was it, 2013 or so? I’m curious to find out what I had said back then, if it matches up with the way I’m thinking right now.Tim: Yeah. We finished off a bottle of wine at the old engine yard office in Tokyo.Taku: Yeah, an Ebisu, right?Tim: Yeah. Now, it was a really great interview and we’re not going to cover the same ground again today although I mean,