FLF Alumni Insights: Hopela Inc.

What is the name of your organization? Hopela, Inc.

When did you pitch at First Look Forum? March 2014

How has your business grown (financially & otherwise) since you presented at First Look Forum? We’ve exceeded our pilot program goals by 150% and got strong confirmation for the product-market fit with exciting word-of-a-mouth growth. We’ve raised our first Angel investment, and added new team member, and moved to bigger office space. It’s been an exhilarating ride building great partnerships, solving challenging problems, meeting new people, and learning from our customers, our partners, users, investors, and fellow entrepreneurs.

What is the most valuable lesson you learned from participating in First Look Forum? First Look Forum was a great opportunity for us to learn and our first big pitching event. The biggest lesson learned was that beyond all the practice, prep and stress there is discovery of our strength and a clear understanding of the personal limitations and boundaries that needed to be broken. Pitching is hard. It’s nerve wracking. However, it opens up doors to a world of possibilities that leads to bigger better opportunities.

What advice would you give to future First Look Forum applicants? Put your story out there. Be yourself. Take advice and practice, but don’t stress out about the font size. Be honest and set your own goals for success. Ask for feedback. Dig through all your why’s before making big decisions. Give back! Most importantly, have fun.

Learn More About Hopela by visiting their website

Guest Blog Written by: Irina Menn | CEO | Hopela, Inc.

Irina Menn is the CEO of Hopela, an innovative mobile giving company that makes it easy for donors to give in the moment of inspiration and keep track of all their charitable giving in one convenient spot. Irina mergers professional product management experience with her software engineering and computer science background to create market winning products in the consumer and B2B space. Irina brings over 15 years of industry experience with market leaders and startup firms, including bSquare, Microsoft, OpenText and Mercent, to bring innovative products to emerging markets. Her passion is to make the world a happier place.