// STARTUP COMPARISON
Shippit (funding stagnation) vs Scytl
Shippit (funding stagnation) failed in 2022 due to Competition. Scytl failed in 2020 due to Ran Out of Money. Different causes, different sectors, different eras — but the same simulation outcome.
| METRIC | 🔥 Shippit (funding stagnation) | 🔥 Scytl |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | SaaS | SaaS |
| Country | Australia | Spain |
| Founded | 2014 | 2001 |
| Died | 2022 | 2020 |
| Raised | A$30M | $100M |
| Peak | A$30M raised | Elections in 42+ countries |
| Primary Cause | Competition | Ran Out of Money |
// WHY EACH FAILED
🔥 Shippit (funding stagnation)
Competition
Shippit built a multi-carrier shipping management SaaS for Australian e-commerce merchants. After raising A$30M, Shopify launched its native Shopify Shipping product with carrier integrations embedded directly into the Shopify checkout. For Shopify merchants — the majority of Shippit's customer base — the native Shopify solution eliminated the need for a third-party shipping tool. Shippit restructured in 2022, refocusing on enterprise customers.
// LESSON
SaaS tools that solve problems for a dominant platform's customers are building on borrowed time. When Shopify, Salesforce, or HubSpot ships the feature natively, your SMB customer base disappears. Build platform-agnostic features or enterprise-depth that the platform won't replicate.
SaaS tools that solve problems for a dominant platform's customers are building on borrowed time. When Shopify, Salesforce, or HubSpot ships the feature natively, your SMB customer base disappears. Build platform-agnostic features or enterprise-depth that the platform won't replicate.
🔥 Scytl
Ran Out of Money
Scytl was the world's leading provider of election technology, having processed votes in over 42 countries. It raised $100M from Vulcan Capital and others. In 2020 COVID-19 caused the cancellation or postponement of hundreds of elections globally — Scytl's entire revenue base. Unable to survive the collapse, Scytl filed for insolvency in June 2020 and was acquired by Paragon Group.
// LESSON
Market leadership in an event-driven market is concentrated risk, not a moat. When the event cycle pauses globally, your entire revenue base pauses with it. Diversify revenue streams before a black swan can.
Market leadership in an event-driven market is concentrated risk, not a moat. When the event cycle pauses globally, your entire revenue base pauses with it. Diversify revenue streams before a black swan can.
// EXPLORE FURTHER