FounderSpacefounderspace.work
- From idea to paying customers in approximately 3 months.
- 100 testing users in the first five days.
- 20 paying customers during validation.
For people wanting to start a businessVenture Studio
Start a new journey. Build your own business.
Losing a job sucks. We can help you build something meaningful.
Origin Studios is a venture studio that partners with people who want to build a business. You bring your skills, we help with everything else from business, product, technical and growth and if it's a right match, we become the co-founders that you need.
Origin Studios is an independent venture studio, not affiliated with or endorsed by Canva.
Why us
6
Businesses built
$20MIL
Revenue generated
15+
Years building businesses
100+
Tech products built
Track record
Startups we've built from idea to first customers.
FirstUsersfirstusers.tech
- Built and launched as a new product in 2 months.
- More than 300 users in the first week.
BrandScanbrandscan.ro
- From opportunity to working software in approximately 3 months.
- 10 users in 1 week.
We use the same approach with every new Origin venture:
Move quickly. Talk to customers early. Build only what is needed. Find out whether people will pay.
You don't need a technical co-founder or a startup team before you begin.
Origin gives you the strategy, product, technology and go-to-market team to turn what you know into a company.
You bring
- 01Your idea, or the problem you can't stop thinking about
- 02What you learned in your career: design, product, marketing, engineering, growth
- 03Access to the people you'd build it for
- 04A few hours a week for customer conversations and key decisions, or all of your time if you have it
- 05The willingness to be the founder and make the calls
We bring
- Business strategy
- Customer and market research
- Positioning and pricing
- Product strategy
- Design and branding
- Software and MVP development
- AI and automation
- Marketing
- Go-to-market execution
- Sales infrastructure
- Ongoing founder support
You focus on the things only you can do. We help with the rest.
How we work together
A clear budget. Equity comes only after customers.
We work with you step by step. Our fee is $2,000 per month while we validate and build, so a $10,000 budget covers about five months of work. We take no equity during this stage. Once the business has its first paying customers and we both decide to continue, the monthly fee stops and Origin becomes your 25% co-founder.
01 · Explore
$2,000
of a $10k budget
One month to find out whether there is a business here: market research, customer conversations, pricing tests. At the end we decide together whether the evidence is strong enough to continue. You can stop after the first month.
You keep 100% of the company
02 · Validate & Build
$8,000
the rest of a $10k budget
We build the minimum needed to start selling, then improve it based on what customers tell us. That is $2,000 a month, so a $10k budget covers the whole build.
A
Origin takes no equity during this stage. Everything we build for the venture remains yours.
B
No long-term commitment. You decide each month whether to continue, and if you stop you keep everything we've built.
03 · Structure & Grow
$0
fee · 25% equity
Once the business has its first paying customers and we both decide to continue, Origin becomes your co-founder and receives 25% equity. The monthly fee stops. From there we keep building the company together and are paid only through our equity.
You keep 75%
How it works
Three stages. You decide at the end of each one.
Stage 01
Explore
1 month · $2,000 · 0% equity
Is there a business worth pursuing?
Before you spend anything on building, we find out whether the idea deserves it. At the end of the month we decide together: continue, or stop if the opportunity doesn't justify more investment.
If the evidence is strong, we continue. If it isn't, you've spent one month of the budget, not all of it, and you still have the rest to try something else.
Within 30 days, you should have enough evidence to decide whether to keep building.
Together we
- Define the customer and problem
- Research the market and competitors
- Speak with potential customers
- Test the value proposition
- Test willingness to pay
- Define positioning and pricing
- Identify the simplest path to market
Stage 02
Validate & Build
$2,000 / month · 0% equity
We build the actual business.
If the idea looks promising, we build and sell at the same time. We create what is needed to win the first customers and put it in front of them as early as possible.
We don't spend twelve months building before testing the market. We build, sell, learn and improve continuously.
Our target is to reach the first paying customers within 3–4 months, although the timing depends on the business and its sales cycle.
Depending on the business
- Brand and positioning
- Website and landing pages
- Product or MVP
- AI-powered tools
- Sales materials
- Pricing and commercial model
- Prospect database and outreach infrastructure
- Marketing experiments
- Customer onboarding
- Analytics and reporting
Stage 03
Structure & Grow
$0 fee · 25% equity
We become co-founders.
After the first paying customers, and when we both believe the business deserves to continue, we formalize the partnership. Origin receives 25% equity and the monthly fee stops. You own 75%.
From then on we keep working on the company alongside you without charging a fee. Our return comes from the 25% we own.
As the company grows, you take over more of the day-to-day. Origin stays involved as your long-term co-founder and venture partner.
That can include
- Delivering for the first customers
- Improving the product
- Finding the next customers
- Building repeatable acquisition channels
- Automating manual processes
- Hiring the first team members
- Financial planning
- Fundraising
- Strategic partnerships
- Preparing for international expansion
Spend it wisely
$10,000 is not a lot of runway. Spend it on evidence.
The usual path
- Set aside $10,000
- Hire freelancers or an agency
- Spend months building the product
- Launch it
- Find out whether customers want it
With Origin Studios
- Set aside $10,000
- Validate the opportunity first
- Talk to customers
- Build what they need
- Win the first customer
- Own 75% of a business with traction
You make the biggest commitment after you have evidence, rather than before.
Questions
Questions about building with Origin Studios.
Who is this for?
Anyone between jobs who wants to start something of their own and would like a team to build it with. You don't need a technical background. Your experience and your understanding of the customer matter more at this stage.
How does the $10,000 work?
Our fee is $2,000 per month while we validate and build, so $10,000 covers about five months: one month of Explore and up to four months of Validate & Build. Origin takes no equity during this time. If you stop after the first month, you've used $2,000 and you keep everything we made.
When does Origin take equity?
Only after the first paying customers, and only if both sides decide to continue building the company together. Until then you hold 100% of the company. After that Origin receives 25% and you keep 75%.
What happens when the $10,000 runs out?
By then the aim is for the business to have its first paying customers. If we both want to continue, the monthly fee stops and we become co-founders for 25%. If either side doesn't, you walk away with everything we've built.
What if the idea doesn't work?
Then finding out early is a good result. The first stage exists to test the assumptions behind the business before you commit the money. You can stop after the first month and keep $8,000 of your budget.
What is a venture studio?
A venture studio works alongside founders to create new companies. Unlike an agency that delivers a project and leaves, Origin helps validate the idea, build the product, find the first customers and continue growing the business as a co-founder.
Apply
Have an idea you want to build?
Tell us what you have in mind. A rough idea is enough: we read every application personally and reply within one business day.
Test the idea. Build the proof first. Keep the company.