This couple used a camper van to run a side business while on vacation. With ChatGPT’s assistance, its revenue surpassed $1.5 million.
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This couple used a camper van to run a side business. Image Credit: Courtesy of White Elephant Online. Leliah Kishbaugh and David Mancarella.
This couple used a camper van to run a side business, In August 2020, during the height of the epidemic, David Mancarella was working remotely as a director of product management at a New York City-based property-tech company. He and his colleagues were concerned about what would happen to their custom of hosting holiday parties. Every year, the staff participated in the gamified and frequently amusing gift exchange known as “white elephant.”
Mancarella tells Entrepreneur, “I thought there must be a way to play white elephant virtually.” “I’m positive that exists. Naturally, though, I looked it up on Google after the call and discovered it didn’t exist. Because up until then, it wasn’t actually necessary for it to exist. People would just engage in face-to-face play. Before the pandemic struck, people weren’t actually attempting to do it virtually.
Her husband revealing his new company concept
This couple used a camper van to run a side business, Leliah Kishbaugh, Mancarella’s wife, remembers her husband revealing his new company concept at their Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, home, where they had relocated a few weeks prior to the pandemic. She points out that while it wasn’t the first time he had an idea for a business, it was the first that didn’t already exist.
A few days later, Mancarella contacted engineer Andrzej Brynczka, with whom he had previously collaborated, to discuss the project. With Brynczka on board, the side business came together really quickly. To maximize the holiday season, Mancarella and Kishbaugh intended to start the company before Thanksgiving.
That marked the formal launch of White Elephant Online, their new company.
Before founding her own real estate development company and co-founding the womenswear brand NILETA, Kishbaugh worked in finance. She acknowledges that she prefers business names that “are a little bit punchier,” but in this instance, her husband’s preference for a “straightforward, optimized” name paid off.
According to Kishbaugh, “if anyone was looking to play white elephant virtually, we were there because there really weren’t any competitors.”
When White Elephant Online’s website launched in early November 2020, the co-founders were thrilled to have gathered over 400 email addresses, but that was only the start. According to Mancarella, “it kind of exploded.” Their side project attracted almost 165,000 users by the end of the year.
At first, White Elephant Online cost $99 for corporate use and was free for individual games with up to 25 players. Since then, White Elephant Online’s price plan has changed. Depending on the number of players, a tiered structure for enterprises and organizations ranges from $69 to $299. For up to ten participants, the service is still free for personal use.
There were some difficulties in getting the product up
This couple used a camper van to run a side business Naturally, there were some difficulties in getting the product up and running so rapidly, such as a bug that caused hundreds of customer care calls by automatically entering customers’ first names in both the first and last name fields. As a result, the co-founders had to take initiative.
To keep the side business running well with their small team there are still just three of them they developed strong support materials and used Zendesk early on.
The spring after White Elephant Online’s launch, Mancarella left his position in product management; the co-founders now saw the company as their “quasi full-time business.”
Tens of thousands of virtual gift exchanges for more than 350,000 users have been facilitated by White Elephant Online since its establishment, generating more than $1.5 million in lifetime income.
The co-founders noticed a sharp decline in the number of personal games played on the platform as the pandemic’s effects subsided and people started going back to work. They then thought about how to continue expanding the company.
In the hopes that it would be “sort of like a lead funnel,” they introduced a covert Santa generator a few years ago.
This couple used a camper van to run a side business According to Kishbaugh, it didn’t quite work out that way since the pair didn’t want to risk cannibalizing White Elephant Online by promoting the free product too much to its business audience. It’s also really crowded in the secret Santa area.
Whether in person or digitally, the gift generator allows us to reach out to those who just play white elephant.
More recently, the couple came up with a different idea: a generator for present ideas that goes well with the white elephant offering.
“The fact that we’re obviously virtual is one thing that’s limiting our business,” Mancarella says. “Playing in person doesn’t actually require a tool. To get started, all you need is a hat or bucket to toss some numbers into. Whether it’s in person or digitally, the gift generator allows us to reach out to those who merely play white elephant.
Additionally, White Elephant Online has gathered a substantial quantity of information on some of the most well-liked white elephant gifts as it marked its fifth anniversary in November of last year.
This couple used a camper van to run a side business Although, AI isn’t employed on White Elephant Online’s platform, the co-founders have used ChatGPT on the back end to sort through some of that gift data and obtain insights that would have previously been too time-consuming to delve deeper into.
While Snoop Dogg’s From Crook to Cook: Platinum Recipes from Tha Boss Dogg’s Kitchen consistently ranks in the top 10 on the platform, white elephant exchanges are known for their ridiculous gifts. However, according to the co-founders, tech devices like Apple Air Tags and Bluetooth speakers are also consistently popular.
It’s not like many businesses who have weekly or biweekly iterations.
White Elephant Online is, of course, a very seasonal business, with advantages and disadvantages. Mancarella and Kishbaugh work on it from September to December.
This couple used a camper van to run a side business According to Kishbaugh, “it is great because it gives us a lot of flexibility.” “We would travel in our camper van and [visit] numerous national parks prior to having a child.” It’s fantastic that we can now spend so much time with our daughter.
But because of the seasonality, the company only has a limited amount of time to test and deploy the technologies necessary to take advantage of the holiday rush.
Mancarella explains, “It’s not like a lot of companies where you’re iterating every week or two and kind of adjusting the numbers compared to last month.” “It’s like, ‘Okay. A completely new season has begun. Let’s see what we can accomplish.
We adore becoming business owners. You gain a lot of knowledge.
The co-founders of White Elephant Online anticipate the company’s next phase of growth and expansion, although the company has maintained a healthy revenue rhythm year after year.
The co-founders advise prospective entrepreneurs not to spend too much time in the planning stage because it’s crucial to launch a product and see consumer reaction. They achieved success by implementing their business idea early on.
Knowing where to direct your precious energy goes hand in hand with that.
This couple used a camper van to run a side business Kishbaugh states, “We love being entrepreneurs and doing all of the things by ourselves.” “You gain a lot of knowledge. It’s intriguing. However, in order to truly succeed, you must know how to spend your time.
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