Meet the founders of WhatWeWant
Tell us a bit about yourselves…
DF: I’m Dimitris Faf, Co-founder of WhatWeWant and Business Management and Entrepreneurship student at Pearson College London. I have always been fascinated by business and setting up businesses, and prior to taking on this venture, I gained some banking experience at Berenberg bank and interned at other organisations.
YF: I am Yiannis Faf, Co-Founder of WWW. I have worn many hats in my few years as a professional; from a seafarer, to a marine insurer, and now CEO of a Maritime health monitoring company called Care4C and Co-founder of WWW.
How did you come up with the idea for WWW?
DF: I came up with the idea when I was at my best friends party and they asked me what I was going to give them for Christmas. I said I had something planned, but the truth is I didn’t know what to get them. I’ve always found presents difficult because you’re restricted by a budget, when in reality people really want the more expensive items. As I was heading home, I started thinking about how useful it would be if there was an app where people could list what they wanted, and then people could contribute to it, rather than having to buy the whole item.
Then a couple of days later I was revising for my exams, and I came across some stats that said that every year $1 billion dollars is wasted on gift cards, and it brought me back to my idea.
It was a bit of a lightbulb moment, and from there I decided to get to work on seeing if I could make this app idea a reality! Fast forward to now, after some market research and getting my brother Yiannis involved, here we are!
YF: Continuing from the story above, I was the second person to join the WhatWeWant journey. My brother came up with the idea, spoke to me about the concept and, after a few weeks of discussions, we formed the basis of the app you see today.
What has been your favourite part of the process so far?
DF: So far, the best part of this process has been running my own business. I’m learning so much about myself: how to work with others but above all how tough it is to set up a business. It has been a real learning curve in terms of trying to deal with and solve the unexpected. But I am also enjoying the process as well.
YF: Innovating and problem-solving, coming up with new ways to solve the issue that formed the initial concept and then going through the build process. We also got to meet great people and teams that have got us to where we are now. I’ve enjoyed the thought-provoking conversations that have led us to where we are now.
What is the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far?
DF: The biggest lesson is that I have learnt is to always try to keep improving everything. You start to realise that making mistakes is an important lesson, and that teaches you not to make the same mistake again.
YF: If you have an idea and it has a solid foundation, then put 100% into it. No one can foresee if you will succeed or not — it does require that leap of faith — but if you surround yourself with a good team and resources you have the best chance of succeeding.
Has the process been how you imagined it?
DF: Not really because I have never run a proper business before, although I did have some experience of running smaller ventures with friends and have worked in various places. I have realised there is a lot to manage, you always have to keep trying and learning new things. You have to make sure you’re prepared for everything and to keep on trying to achieve something every day. It is essential to keep improving everything for the business and for the users’ experience.
YF: Honestly yes. After reading a whole load of books on startups, it was pretty close to how they described the process. In saying that, no book can really answer the problems you face and I must say we have made some mistakes along the way, but all you can do is chalk it up to experience and move on.
What are your hopes for WhatWeWant?
DF: My hope for WhatWeWant is to change the way the world gives gifts, so people can start getting what they want! It’s a big issue as people are wasting their money on things people don’t want or won’t use. These unused items sometimes end up being thrown away, which isn’t great for the environment! The main aim is that people understand that this app is for the benefit of the users. It’s a fun app that allows you and your friends to get what you want.
YF: Ideally, we would love for WhatWeWant to be people’s first thought when it comes to gift-giving of any sort, from weddings to holidays. As with all ideas we had various iterations and services we would like to offer, but we have kept it simple, which is much harder than you think. Once the dust has settled, we will go back to the drawing board and see what way we can improve the experience.
