From household-name corporations to buzzy high-growth brands, many companies that dominate or disrupt their categories began their journeys as startups. These huge successes began as just a glimmer of an idea. What happens as that idea takes shape—through decisions, pivots, and persistence—determines which ones succeed.
Read on to learn what it takes to launch your startup so it grows from the outset, with tips from Evan Quinn, cofounder and CEO of Hiyo, one of the nation’s leading non-alcoholic beverage brands, sold at major retailers like Whole Foods, Sprouts, Target, and Wegmans, as well as the company’s own ecommerce site.
How to start a startup
- Develop your business idea
- Validate your idea through market research
- Create a name and branding that reflect your mission
- Write a business plan
- Fund your business and develop your product
- Launch your website and marketing plan
Building a successful startup is more manageable when you break the process into clear steps. From sharpening your idea to researching your market and building a brand, here are the key stages to work through before you launch.
1. Develop your business idea
Successful business ideas tap into a unique need or solution that hasn’t been addressed in the market. Before landing on a concept, founders often evaluate their own skills, interests, and lived experiences to identify problems they understand deeply. This often reveals unmet needs, patterns of frustration, or opportunities they’re uniquely positioned to solve.
Many startups identify a niche—a specialized market segment that may be underserved or overlooked by most businesses—while others jump on emerging trends with potential for lasting growth. Evan’s idea for Hiyo came directly from his lived experience, and the broader trend toward non-alcoholic beverages helped confirm the opportunity.
In 2019, Evan’s father was hospitalized for alcohol-related health issues. So was the father of his friend George Youmans, his former roommate at the University of Southern California.
“We saw the profound need for an alcohol alternative based on our own lives,” Evan says. “We also realized: We’'re at the very early stages of this sober-curious space, so there aren’t many players. We have an opportunity to create a unique offering in a very hot category. That was the aha for what we ultimately became.”
Evan and George went on to cofound Hiyo with their fellow USC classmate Cygne Cooper, who is now their chief creative officer. But getting to that final concept wasn’t all that simple; Hiyo evolved from several other startup ideas Evan began exploring while pursuing his MBA at UCLA.
“I was initially working on a charcoal coconut water called Black Palm, and my professor said, ‘‘Envision the big wall of beverages at Erewhon [a high-end Los Angeles grocery store] and tell me why you’ll stand out,’” Evan recalls. “We really couldn’'t answer that besides saying it would be a great hangover cure. Then we pivoted to a stress-relieving drink called Willow. Through that journey, we started fine-tuning the mood-enhancement component of what became Hiyo.”
Evan recommends that other entrepreneurs brace themselves to evolve, tweak, and even pivot entirely from their initial business concept.
“In the early stages, you have to be open to pivoting and feedback,” he says. “You need a 30,000-foot view, because otherwise you’ll think everything is golden: The idea, name, and attributes are perfect. And that’s where you run into issues. Staying flexible is my number one tip for founders.”
2. Validate your idea through market research
Not all fresh ideas will translate into a good business. To determine if there’s demand for your product, conduct market research. Thoroughly understanding your market typically involves conducting surveys, holding focus groups, and performing one-on-one interviews to help define and understand your target market.
Evan solicited direct interviews and feedback from many MBA classmates, as well as expertise from professors. “The non-business school way is talking to a lot of people,” he says. “People you’re close to won’'t necessarily give you honest feedback. They’ll tell you everything is amazing because they don’'t want to hurt your feelings or dim your dream. It’s only helpful if you dig into the honest feedback—strangers who’ll tell you what they really think because you’re not their best friend.”
Evan also conducted a broader market analysis, drawing industry-wide insights from reports and other sources. Industry analysts and trade publications like IWSR were starting to cover the sober-curious movement, Evan says, which supplied data—and validated the staying power and potential size of the burgeoning market.
Understanding your market also includes identifying emerging and long-term trends, reviewing search volume for your product, evaluating potential market-impacting factors, and conducting competitor analysis. All of this helps clarify your competitive advantage and unique selling proposition.
You can estimate market size by:
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Determining the total addressable market (TAM), the full revenue opportunity for your product
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Identifying your serviceable addressable market (SAM), the portion of TAM your business can realistically serve
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Calculating your serviceable obtainable market (SOM), the share of SAM you can reasonably capture early on
Evan says: “We went through considerations like non-alc is a big category with seltzers and juices, but we’re looking at people who are drinking it during that 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. period. We’re also a functional drink, which can be anything from kombucha to adaptogenic, so do we think we can address 30% of that category? These types of questions help you figure out your market opportunity.”
3. Create a name and branding that reflect your mission
Once you understand what your target audience is looking for and what you can offer that customer base, you’re ready to build your brand. A brand identity defines a business, product, service, or concept in the market. It differentiates your business from others and guides how you’ll present and market it.
Branding encompasses your company name and logo, your brand positioning and mission statement, a consistent color scheme and voice across channels, and more.
Choosing a business name is one key step: It should reflect your brand and resonate with your potential customers. Expert tips for naming a business include keeping the name short and memorable, yet not so specific that it restricts your business from growing. As you consider names, check to make sure your chosen moniker isn’t already in use. If you get stuck, try a free business name generator.
Evan and his fellow cofounders wanted to evoke a feeling of upbeat, sunny, California mellow. They wrote at least 300 potential names on whiteboards, Evan says. But something clicked when George said the phrase “happy in your own,” which eventually was shortened to the initials of that phrase: Hiyo.
“It was finally like, ‘‘OK, we did it,’” Evan says. “It was trademarkable and felt true to what we were doing. When you land on the right name, it really feels like you’re a company all of a sudden.”
Cygne, an experienced graphic designer, was dedicated to creating a seamless visual identity for Hiyo, from the website to the product cans. She landed on warm sunset colors and a simple sans-serif font, reflecting the brand’s overall identity and the “sunset hour” moment when people unwind and connect. That feeling also reflects the product itself, as Hiyo’s ingredients are designed to produce what the company calls the “float,” helping people feel good without alcohol.
“We’'re trying to make it easier for the whole world to drink less alcohol,” Evan says. “We wanted the brand to be warm, authentic, and supportive, because that’s who we are as founders.”
4. Write a business plan
A business plan is a document that serves as a road map for structuring, running, and growing your company. It also acts as a tool to convince people to invest in or work with your new business.
Your business plan should outline the business’s short- and long-term goals, detailing the strategies and timelines for achieving them. Key elements include:
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Business model. Explains how the company will create, deliver, and capture value.
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Mission statement. Clarifies the company’s purpose and what it aims to achieve for its customers.
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Financial projections. Outlines expected revenue, expenses, and profitability to show viability.
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Operational plan. Describes day-to-day processes, resources, and responsibilities required to run the business.
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Market analysis. Evaluates the industry landscape, target customers, and competitors.
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Business structure. Identifies the legal and organizational setup, including roles and ownership.
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Marketing plan. Details how the business will attract, convert, and retain customers.
Evan worked on Hiyo’s startup business plan as his master’s thesis, along with George, Cygne, and other classmates. They spent months creating a 90-page business plan for Hiyo.
“We probably don’t use that 90-page plan a whole lot today. because we’ve evolved,” Evan says. “But in the early days, we were in hyper-growth mode, and I attribute that to the thoughtfulness that went into the business plan. Sometimes people bypass the process and just want to get to market, but I would really recommend going through this exercise because it sets you up for success.”
5. Fund your business and develop your product
Most startups require capital to begin. You might secure funding from a combination of the following sources:
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Your personal bank account. Founders dip into their own funds for low-cost, early testing when they need full control and minimal administrative work.
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Friends and family. A founder’s community can provide very early-stage funding when supporters believe in them personally, even before traction.
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Small business grants or loans. This approach is suited to founders with a clear business plan who want structured funding without giving up equity.
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Crowdfunding. This method can be effective for consumer products with a strong story or prototypes that people can get excited about.
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Startup incubators. Especially useful for first-time founders, incubators can offer mentorship plus small amounts of capital.
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Venture capitalists. Seeking VC money is generally appropriate only for high-growth startups with massive market potential and scalable business models.
Evan and his cofounders received their pre-seed funding from UCLA’s Knapp Venture Competition, in which they won a $40,000 grant. This allowed them to create a minimum viable product that provided third-party validation of Hiyo’s concept and connected them with judges who later became investors. Hiyo ultimately raised $1 million in venture capital before formally launching the product.
“You have to determine what it will take to get things off the ground, and if you need to raise capital,” Evan says. “We realized we’d need to put a lot of money into marketing and development and that we would not be profitable at first. That’'s why we chose to raise money pre-launch, but it’s not the right move for everyone.”
Once you have sufficient funding to get your venture off the ground, you can complete the product development process, find a manufacturer or supplier, and purchase your initial inventory.
6. Launch your website and marketing plan
Finally, it’s time to unveil your idea to the world. To launch your business website, you can use an ecommerce website builder, outsource the entire project, or collaborate with a designer. Your site should be visually appealing, easy to navigate, and populated with content, including a homepage, product pages, and an About Us page.
New customers won’t stumble upon the product on their own. Get the word out to your future early adopters by deploying your marketing strategy, which could include content marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), press releases, and influencer marketing. The right marketing mix depends on your business model: Product-based startups often get early traction through social content and influencer partnerships, while service businesses may see better results from SEO and educational content. Start with the channels where your audience already spends time and expand from there.
Hiyo spent $12,000 to build out its first website, and the founders chose to pay a marketing agency from day one to break through in the crowded beverage market. Today, the brand is a certified success, and it all began with a simple idea—plus lots of hard work.
“There’s no one way to start a business, so read and talk to as many people as you can,” Evan says. “Take those stories, distill what’s actionable for you, and use that to start your own path.”
How to start a startup FAQ
How do I start my own startup?
A successful startup begins with developing a strong business idea, validating it through market research, and ensuring there is real demand for your product. From there, create a business plan, secure the funding or resources you’ll need, find a manufacturer or supplier for your product, build your brand, and launch your website and marketing strategy.
Can I start a startup by myself?
Many founders launch startups on their own, especially in the early stages. Solo entrepreneurs typically handle idea development, research, branding, planning, and early marketing themselves. As the startup grows and responsibilities increase, founders may bring in contractors, freelancers, or cofounders to help support product development, operations, and long-term scaling.
How long does it take to start a startup?
Startup timelines vary widely depending on your product, business model, and available resources. Some founders move from idea to launch in a few weeks, while others spend months refining their concept, conducting research, testing prototypes, or securing funding. Most startups take several months to get fully up and running.
*Shopify Capital loans must be paid in full within a maximum of 18 months, and two minimum payments apply within the first two six-month periods. The actual duration may be less than 18 months based on sales.
