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Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

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Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#391
post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I wanted to start a scammy business running on recurring subscription I wouldn't have gone into all the trouble of developing new instant coffee ;) Obviously, we want to build a product that we and our subscribers love and choose to keep subscribing. Right now we have a lot of them. The biggest thing with the subscription is clear CAC vs. LTV. With our current model this equation works and we can profitably acquir…

Isn't this just restating what I wrote in VC-speak? > The biggest thing with the subscription is clear [Customer Acquisition Cost] vs. [Long Term Value]. i.e. "recurring billing results in more people failing to cancel, because they either forget or are deterred by our 'customer retention program.'" > With our current model this equation works and we can profitably acquire new customers. i.e. "we wouldn't be able to…

LTV = Lifetime value

No, it's not what you said. Your explanation misses the segment of customers that want the product every month but wouldn't exert a manual effort over and over again when it could be automated. Hence an increased LTV per customer with no change to the CAC. This doesn't really have anything to do with Sudden but rather subscription business economics. Automatic billing is not inherently bad; it's largely positive and convenient.

Also remember this company is not random — there's a ton of diligence involved with getting into YC as well as with VCs which they are backed.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#392
post #123

Maybe I'm biased, as a fellow YC founder, but I don't understand the negativity. 1) Sudden is the first company that I've actually considered buying instant coffee from. In the US, there's a pretty strong stigma against it, so that's not an easy task. 2) $3 per cup isn't a lot of money, roughly equivalent to a cup of coffee elsewhere in SF. Especially if I don't have to stop anywhere and can just put it in a water bo…

There is definitely some SV bubble around this. I can buy a local cafe pour over cup for less than this product. I can buy my own beans and heat the kettle and pour that over in less than 5 minutes. If I'm desperate and in hurry then I can make a cup of Keurig for a fraction of the cost.

> There is definitely some SV bubble around this. I can buy a local cafe pour over cup for less than this product.

Sorry, but I've been to dozens of pour over coffee shops across the country and this claim seems exaggerated.

Sudden is $2.38 per cup in the base 8-pack. If you could show any cafe in the country that does a pour over for less than that price, I'd be surprised. The market trends much more towards $3.50-5.50.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#394

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How would a French press wake up your kids?

I'm guessing it's the grinding the beans. Electric grinders are LOUD.

Not all of them are. At least my old one was way louder than my current. Same price range, too ($20-$30 I think, both were presents). I think I could use this one in my kitchen without waking up anyone. There's a good possibility that the old one was also noisier just because it was getting old and perhaps rattled a bit. Both are blade grinders, maybe burr grinders are louder by nature. I think if I really wanted it more quiet I could even wrap it in a towel or pillow :-p
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