I used to just throw money at every tool problem until a failed startup changed my mind

I used to just throw money at every tool problem until a failed startup changed my mind. There was this startup in Austin called ToolKarma that tried to be like a Netflix for power tools. I was a beta tester and watched them burn through their funding in 10 months because they kept buying expensive brand-name tools instead of testing what people actually needed. They'd get a bunch of Milwaukee and Dewalt stuff that sat in the warehouse while users kept asking for basic stuff like tile cutters and pipe wrenches. I learned from that mess. Now before I buy any tool for my own work, I spend 20 minutes searching forums and asking two or three people who actually use it every day. That startup taught me that having a flashy inventory means nothing if you haven't checked what the job actually needs. Has anyone else seen a business fail because they bought top-tier gear before understanding their customers?

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brookethomas1mo ago

Yeah, 'spending 20 minutes searching forums' hits hard. I've seen shops go under doing the opposite, buying shiny stuff nobody asked for.