Julian Sarafian is a graduate of Berkeley and Harvard Law School. After working at Biglaw firm Wilson Sonsini in corporate and transactional law Sarafian quit to advocate for mental health, pursue content creation and entrepreneurship. He is currently building a movement focused on mental health in social media and his book writing. His written work has been published in The American Lawyer and Bloomberg Law.
What is Nest.Mode all about?
Nest.Mode is a startup aimed at revolutionizing home goods in a way that is cost efficient, aesthetic, and sustainable. Our first flagship product – the Nest Wall – is designed to evolve the status quo of shower storage. Armed with magnetic bottles, two holsters for accessories (including space for your bar soap, loofah, a small plant, or shampoo bars), and an easy slide-on, slide-off installation process for the wall itself, we’ve designed it to level up showers everywhere.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
I’m a graduate of Harvard Law School who left the legal world to explore entrepreneurship. My co-founders and I have always loved building things so we put our heads together for months until we all felt aligned on the perfect idea – and now here we are! We are currently pre-launch and building our community out on social media, primarily Tiktok and Instagram.
What would you say are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
- Tenacity – you will fail a lot because that is how the process works. What is important is sticking to it and not giving up. If we had given up every time we faced an obstacle our company would have been obsolete long ago.
- People skills – business is as much about communication both with your teammates and customers as it is about quantitative skills. Many companies fail simply because of a breakdown in communication amongst co-founders, so staying on the same page communicatively is a must.
- Judgment – you must know what opportunities are worth seeking and which are not. When to research and when to execute. When to accept that the idea will remain an idea and when one will go forward with your time and energy. There is no substitute for judgment and much of it comes from experience, analytical thinking, and weighing judgments of others.
What are your plans for the future, how do you plan to grow this company?
We intend on launching on Kickstarter in the coming months. Our community has been very supportive of us, and assuming our launch goes well we are aiming to expand as an e-commerce (and also land in brick and mortar retail) soon thereafter. Amazon and other e-commerce retailers are also on our radar.
How have the pandemic and Lockdown affected you or your new business?
For us, it has thankfully not affected us too deeply as we are pre-launch. However, the recent supply chain disruptions have affected our R&D which has delayed our launch.
How do you separate yourself from your competitors?
Our product is distinct by nature. The current options for shower storage are simply not well suited to a modern shower aesthetic. We also pride ourselves in being closely connected to our community and in touch with what our folks want. We are hoping to be more than just a company in how we build a relationship with our supporters.
What were the top three mistakes you made starting your business, and what did you learn from them?
- Not communicating enough with our early supporters. Throughout our growing process we’ve faced obstacles that are out of our control. Looking back, communicating these issues to our supporters would have given them helpful insight into why we took the time that we did to launch.
- Not getting started early enough – it’s cliche, but the most important part of the entrepreneurial process is starting, and even if that means starting by getting something on the calendar each week, or sending out that first Tiktok post, getting started earlier is the key.
- Not knowing where our money would be best spent. Looking back there are certain areas our money would have been better spent (thinking here primarily of which firms we partnered with for our early prototypes), so doing our due diligence with timing expectations with those early expenses is one place we could have improved.
Tell us a little bit about your marketing process, what has been the most successful form of marketing for you?
Our primary marketing platforms are Tiktok and Instagram. Tiktok has been very successful for us, netting us nearly 20,000 followers in a little under two months. Instagram has been going well, as well, with currently nearly 3,000 followers in the same period of time.
We post content related to the Nest Wall on each platform, ranging from how it works, to creative skits, to Tik Tok trends. We find that Tiktok has been the best platform to reach our people and build our community.
What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?
Building the product. Given the supply chain issues out there we have struggled to find an affordable partner to help us build our earliest prototypes of the product. As a small team with a limited budget, it was difficult to find the right fit and took some time.
What was your first business idea and what did you do with it?
This is our first idea we are taking seriously to market, but in middle school I sold duct tape wallets if that counts!
What are you learning now? Why is that important?
How to take a company from pre-launch marketing into launch execution. It’s important because every company must eventually launch no matter how much interest in the potential product there is. On the execution side, this looks like shipping and logistics, packaging, and everything in between.
If you started your business again, what things would you do differently?
I would build more of a direct roadmap and clear timeline assuming things go successfully. I think our team was overwhelmed by the support we received on social media and having a clear plan of attack (and timing as well) on how to execute next (as opposed to broad notions as we had) would have been helpful.
What are the top 3 online tools and resources you’re currently using to grow your company?
- Tiktok – Use this to market your product no matter what it is.
- Notion – to stay organized as a team.
- Drive – to keep everything in one place.
What’s a productivity tip you swear by?
Deep breathing. It clears one’s mind and allows one to keep focused and work harder. It’s also amazing for mental health!
Can you recommend one book, one podcast, and one online course for entrepreneurs?
Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker, How I built this by Guy Raz, and Technology Entrepreneurship: Lab to Market (Harvard course).
If you only had $1000 dollars to start a new business, knowing everything you know now, how would you spend it?
We would do the same thing we are doing now: prototype a product and market it digitally via platforms like TikTok, Youtube, and Instagram.
What helps you stay driven and motivated to keep going in your business?
The simple idea that something we create can add value to others’ lives is so exciting for us! We’ve always cared about sustainability, and helping build a product that can push our world in a more sustainable direction energizes us.
What is your favorite quote?
“There comes a time in every life when the past recedes and the future opens. It’s that moment when you turn to face the unknown. Some will turn back to what they already know. Some will walk straight ahead into uncertainty. I can’t tell you which one is right. But I can tell you which one is more fun.”
– Phil Knight
What valuable advice would you give new entrepreneurs starting out?
TAKE ACTION NOW! Even if it’s small, even if it’s just ideation. Set out a structure, make time for it, and begin executing! You miss every opportunity you don’t take, and not taking action is akin to missing opportunities left and right, especially if you want to be an entrepreneur.
Who should we interview next and why?
Spencer Markel, a friend of mine and serial entrepreneur. Also a former lawyer – he is currently an executive and co-founder of Pearpop, a social media influencer platform. Spencer has built two successful companies already and has an incredibly dynamic personality – he’s someone who has inspired me in my own entrepreneurial journey.
What is your definition of success?
Giving it – whatever “it” is – our best shot.
How do you personally overcome fear?
Remind ourselves of why we do what we do – and that the worst that the world can say is no. For us there has never been a silver bullet for getting around fear – it’s been more of a process of slowly pushing back on it and taking action in spite of it.
How can readers get in touch with you?
Our team email is team@nestmode.co – feel free to drop us an email anytime, or even to just say hello. You can reach our CEO, Julian, directly via his discord or Twitch (beacons.ai/juliansarafian) or via his email, team@juliansarafian.com
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