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by scubakid 337 days ago
Ah so with this business model there was minimal impact to existing customers? That's fortunate.

Out of curiosity, what kind of transactional product has a substantial production database that would be daunting to re-build in a 4-6 mo window given you still had the source code during that time?

And I hope you've taken your wife out for some nice dinners (or whatever she likes). Totally agree that having a supportive and encouraging partner can make all the difference in challenging times.
1 comments
themdonuts 337 days ago
The business is a car rental platform for niche destinations https://bonjourpaco.com/

At the time I was working with maybe 30 providers and it would be doable to rebuild the server and reconfigure all providers, cars, insurance, etc. Content would probably take longer, but also doable. But at the time I took it as a sign to shift to something else.

Glad I didn't and that the project came back from the ashes, literally.

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scubakid 337 days ago
Neat, someday I'd like to see the Azores. I've heard good things.

FYI if you click on a destination name, it's currently throwing a 500 error.

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themdonuts 336 days ago
Excellent, thanks for flagging!
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mlunar 336 days ago
Btw, there is a typo: renogiate should be renegotiate
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jbs789 337 days ago
Love the business. Appreciating every market is different… the Greek islands might be interesting to you.
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themdonuts 336 days ago
It was a massive difference when I started in Cape Verde. Specially the way of working, level of service and insurance options available (mostly non-existent). It's very satisfying to look back and the progress made over the years where, in a way, I helped to improve the customer service provided by the small local companies, closer to what you would see in the western world.

What's also funny is that the "1st dollar" coming in in any business is such a rush, such an excitement. That still holds true in my case! Even though the business is the same across the 3 websites, it's such an excitement to see the Madeira one growing (where I started more recently), compared to the Azores where I've been at for some years now.

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