A Self Interview with Tony Short - Founder of StudioAlt

by Startacus Admin

StudioAlt is an e-commerce store that supplies physical toolkits to the Digital, Tech and Startup community to help empower & aid collaboration. Intrigued? Well read on for Tony Shorts Self Interview...

What is StudioAlt? 

StudioAlt is an e-commerce store that supplies physical toolkits to the Digital, Tech and Startup community to help empower and aid collaboration. Currently this focuses on agile products such as Planning Poker Cards, Sprint Planners and accessories such as Post-It Notes and Sharpie pens.

Where did the idea come from?

I was about six months in my new role as a Project Manager for a leading digital, creative and technical agency when I took part in a three day Agile training event. It was at that event that I first experienced Agile & Scrum methodology and was stoked with the potential and simply put; I fell in love. 

Shortly after that event, I went about implementing most of the features, particularly techniques such as backlogs, estimating and sprints. What I found though was whilst there were a ton of online, digital toolkits for Agile & Scrum there weren’t many UK suppliers of toolkits that offered physical, tangible tools.

Which problem are you trying to solve?

From my research it suggests there doesn’t appear a service that focuses solely on providing non-digital products for Designers, Developers or Account Managers. Being a bit of an old romantic when it comes to physical and tangible things, I aim for StudioAlt to be suppliers of non-digital toolkits that will aid engagement, be tactical and ignite collaboration amongst teams.

Who are your Customers?

We exist to support the Digital, Tech and Startup communities and create meaningful relationships with those around us. For example, we feel we add value to Startups by helping them avoid unnecessary recurring payments when they are just commencing their journey. Rather than having to subscribe to online Agile tools we provide Sprint Planners that they can download, print-off and stick to the wall as a method to get their resource together to collaborate.

How are you funded?!

The project has been bootstrapped and supported by the guiding principles set out within The Lean Startup by Eric Ries which encourages a minimal viable product without spending too much money or time to launch a product or service. With these constraints I have been able to launch a store with only a small collection of items, including Planning Poker Cards, Sprint Planners, Post-It Notes and Sharpie Pens.

What advice can I offer to others?

From my experience, I’ve found it’s possible to use tools such as Shopify to get your products on sale with minimum time and effort, so that you can start test assumptions and learning what your customers really want.

This lean approach shifts the focus away from your project being all about technology and integration and instead allows you to learn how to sell to your customers, test features and product ranges. StudioAlt is built and powered by Shopify, which is a SaaS e-commerce
platform that enables rapid, low cost development underpinned by a prominent app store.

The future?

Short-term we will continue to focus on agile products with a particular focus on servicing the UK with Planning Poker Cards. I am constantly engaged with the Designers,
Developers and Product Managers to understand what their non-digital toolkit requirements are and working with established partners I trust and have used myself during my 13 years involvement within Digital and Tech.

Tony Short - Founder

Tony has 13 years experience within IT for both the Public and Private Sectors. As a Project Manager, Tony combines his knowledge of software development, business analysis, lean methodology and project management to deliver projects for the only software company within the FTSE 100. 

He combines his knowledge of software and technology with his passion for lean methodology and timely data.

twitter.com/thetonyshort

[email protected]

 

 

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• #self interview
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Published on: 13th January 2014