How Two Co-Founders Crafted a Brand That Stands Out

Written by Inta Buša, Co-Founder

Starting a business often feels like a time-consuming process. I see many people (more than ever, I think) sharing on Threads or X something like:

'I hate my 9-to-5 job; I want to start a business, but I don’t know where to begin, and it feels so scary.'

But what if you could go from idea to business plan in just 6 hours? That’s exactly what I did when I teamed up with amazing Svetlana to create a unique matcha brand—one that stands out.

Here’s how we accomplished it and how you can follow a similar approach to generate your own business idea and create a business plan in a single, focused session.

Step 1: Use sprint approach

When Sveta and I decided to create a business, we knew we had to work efficiently. We set up a hackathon-style sprint, complete with a tightly structured agenda and a list of potential advisors we could call for quick advice. To stay organized, we created a Miro page in advance, where we could structure and refine our ideas as we worked.

Before our official six-hour session, both Sveta and I began brainstorming ideas individually. This passive pre-hackathon preparation allowed us to hit the ground running. By the time we sat down together, we had already generated 30 potential business ideas.

Step 2: Idea generation (2 hours)

We brainstormed problems we and others faced, identifying areas where our skills and experiences could offer solutions. After researching market trends, we narrowed our list from 50 ideas to a top 10, then top 3, before choosing matcha.

Step 3: Outline your business plan (2 hours)

We drafted an executive summary outlining our matcha product's unique identity and brand story. We conducted market research, identified our target audience, analyzed competitors, and confirmed that our twist on matcha had strong potential.

Step 4: Detail Key Sections (2 hours)

We created a marketing strategy focused on digital channels like social media and e-mail marketing. We also outlined a financial plan, conducted a SWOT analysis, and developed a execution plan with next steps.

Step 5: Final Review (10 minutes)

In this step, we reviewed the resources needed and discussed how to acquire them, identifying who might hold the knowledge or experience in the specific areas we require. We listed all the next steps and set deadlines for each of them.

The Result: A Business Plan Ready to Launch

By the end of our six-hour sprint, we had a solid business plan for our matcha brand, ready for growth and expansion. While the plan wasn't perfect and we didn’t have all the answers yet, the structured approach allowed us to turn an idea into a viable business concept quickly and effectively, with everything in motion and continuously evolving.

Final Thoughts

Starting a business doesn’t have to take forever; with the right preparation and a focused approach, you can go from idea to business plan in just six hours. Our matcha brand is proof that combining creativity with structure can lead to amazing results, fast.

If you’re ready to launch your own idea, consider adopting a hackathon mindset—you might be surprised at what you can achieve in just a few focused hours.

You can follow NOT GREEN to see our progress!

 

Best of luck! 🚀

Inta