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  • January 2017 (Revised October 2021)
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Delivering the Goods at Shippo

By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Jeffrey F. Rayport and Olivia Hull
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:24
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Abstract

Laura Behrens Wu, CEO of software start-up Shippo, prepares her pitch for a Series A funding round following a successful seed round. Customer adoption of Shippo’s e-commerce dashboard application, which allows small and medium retailers to compare delivery rates between shipping providers and print package labels, has been steady in the nine months since it went live. But traction with the firm’s developer friendly product, an API that allows large enterprise customers to automate their shipping needs, had initially been slow until one customer single handedly tripled the API label volume in late August. Now in November 2014, with nine months of runway remaining, Behrens Wu must decide where to direct the company’s limited resources. Should Shippo stay focused on the app while raising the next round of funding, pivot to an API-focused strategy, or pursue both products?

Keywords

Application Program Interface; API; API Strategy; Customer Cohorts; Churn; Retention; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Business Startups; Strategy; Transition; Customer Focus and Relationships; Technological Innovation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Valuation; Shipping Industry; Technology Industry; Retail Industry; San Francisco; California; United States

Citation

Bussgang, Jeffrey J., Jeffrey F. Rayport, and Olivia Hull. "Delivering the Goods at Shippo." Harvard Business School Case 817-065, January 2017. (Revised October 2021.)
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About The Authors

Jeffrey J. Bussgang

Entrepreneurial Management
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Jeffrey F. Rayport

Entrepreneurial Management
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Related Work

    • April 2017 (Revised April 2017)
    • Faculty Research

    Delivering the Goods at Shippo

    By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Olivia Hull
    • January 2017 (Revised October 2021)
    • Faculty Research

    Delivering the Goods at Shippo

    By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Jeffrey F. Rayport and Olivia Hull
Related Work
  • Delivering the Goods at Shippo By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Olivia Hull
  • Delivering the Goods at Shippo By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Jeffrey F. Rayport and Olivia Hull
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