When I first began covering the D.C. Tech startup scene in February 2012, I noticed an inspiring trend: the vast majority of young business ventures I encountered had some connection to a university in the DMV region. Whether the idea was first developed on school grounds or the company launched while the founder(s) were still nurturing hangovers in college, each entrepreneurially-minded squad that I interviewed had a strong, long-standing relationship with a local academic institution.
That's when I realized just how intriguing the background stories of such startups are, accounts that tell the tale of what it takes to create a business from the ground up while balancing studies and maintaining a competitive GPA (in case of failure, you have to have a back-up job plan, which is bound to require semi-decent grades). So I started to cover these untold stories, these fantastic scoops showcasing what exceptional talent is being groomed on D.C.-area university campuses. That's what led me to Yapper, an app proudly made in the District that, based on geolocation, connects you to all of the relevant real-time conversations happening in the bars, offices, coffee shops and other establishments within the vicinity.
Yapper immediately piqued my interest not only because of its informative nature, but also because of its close ties to George Washington University. All three co-founders are currently Foggy Bottom MBA students, but their university connections go even further back than that.
Co-founders Justin Lichtenstaedter and Rob Wyant were Sigma Chi pledge brothers at University of Miami, tight from the start of college to graduation day. Over the years, though, they lost touch – that was until they serendipitously reunited at a GW open house weekend for incoming MBA students.
"I thought to myself, that can't be Rob right there," Lichtenstaedter said while reminiscing about his pre-GW years. "I went straight up to him, tapped him on the shoulder and was like 'you're going to school here?' It was good to know someone else from Miami that I was friends with would be at GW."
As for how the Miami duo met their third co-founder Dane Hinnen, it was a stroke of luck during GW orientation. The three quickly grew a friendship through the MBA program, bonding over common interests like sports.
It wasn't until the end of their first year in business school, around late April or so, that the lightbulb went off for the motley crew of young innovators. "It was the first really nice day of the spring and Rob invited us over to his place to have a few beers on his rooftop," Lichtenstaedter said over the phone. "We started talking about the different things you see around the city – really strange things. Like, we talked about wanting to talk to people on the street when crazy things happened on the metro. It was that day that we started toying with the idea for Yapper."
Each co-founder has brought something to the table thanks to their diversely different backgrounds. But, according to Lichtenstaedter, it has been their personality skills that have really transformed Yapper for the better. "I'm the more vocal type that'll walk up to anyone. I'm the hustler in charge of cold calls," Lichtenstaedter explained. "Rob is the visionary that comes up with creative ideas and thinks about the future. Then there's Dane. He's the analytical type who will be like 'okay you guys have these ideas, but let's look at the numbers and see how everything's going to work out.'" They balance each other out.
It's not only their brilliant personalities that have pushed Yapper forward. It's their connections to GW that have proved invaluable to Yapper's progress, too. Lichtenstaedter couldn't help but stress how supportive Jim Chung, executive director of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Office of Technology Transfer, has been of the fledgling venture. "We went to Jim Chung's office totally blind and he introduced us to the concept of the lean startup method. He opened up the GW community to us, proving to be a great advisor for Yapper. Whenever we have problems, he's always available for a meeting on the fly."
But it's not all rainbows and butterflies. When asked what it's like balancing business school and startup life, Lichtenstaedter admitted that it hasn't been easy.
"It definitely can be a lot," he said. "During the beginning processes it sometimes felt like Yapper was not evolving the way we wanted to because of school. Fortunately, now we're on our last semester so a lot of our workload is out of the way." Each co-founder is only taking three classes this spring.
"I think the hardest thing is working with teams in other classes," Lichtenstaedter added. "I want to be understanding and make time for my peers to work on these school projects, but Yapper is so much more of a priority for me. I don't want to be that guy in class that just shows up and doesn't do anything, but at the same time I don't want to neglect what needs to be done for Yapper. At the end of the day, that [Yapper] is what I'm going to be doing after school."
That said, Lichtenstaedter never imagined launching a startup until he started at GW. It was the university, ironically enough, that gave him the confidence to start something from scratch. So while he'd rather be hacking away at his business than be in a classroom, Lichtenstaedter has his education to thank for the Yapper idea.
Image via Justin Lichtenstaedter
