You Need to Solve a Problem

It’s entrepreneur 101: find a problem, build a solution. Simple.

The follow-up is what kind of problem you should be looking for. There are the big ones, the world-changing ones. Then you have the selfish problems, or what we would call first-world problems. Serious entrepreneurs don’t dwell on these – they’re for second-class visionaries.

And then there’s us. We had a problem limited to two people, with the issue being that we couldn't find a shoe that didn’t compromise either our taste or our ease of driving.

We went on to solve this problem both for the sake of the challenge and for the sheer enjoyment of creation. And of course, with our first prototype in our hands came the what if.

To us, planning in business is about making a series of rigorous educated guesses. Our only option to answer this specific question was to get out there and give it a try. To search for people like us, with our shared passions and inspirations. To play it out. Worst case scenario? We would laugh at our attempt and how crazy we were a couple of years down the road.

However, 10 months in, it turns out we’ve been surprised by how many of you, who we’re sure smile whenever you hear a car rumbling by, have become our customers. Against all odds, our problem has become a business. 

And yet, we really don't know much about you. We would love to know why you decided to become our customer or why you’re considering our products. No statistics, nothing business-related – we’d love to simply gather around some drinks and read your notes. We’d really like to know your story and your ride, no matter whether you’re into Porsches or McLarens, endurance racing or F1. 

Should you want to share your story with us, you can email us at founders@vandel.co and we’ll be sure to get back to you.