We, Shahzad Younas, set-up muzmatch as a website over years ago (2011) as an area job whilst I was still working at Morgan Stanley to aid my neighborhood. Traditional solutions just failed to cater to the requirements of Muslims after a life lover maybe not casual dating.
2011 – The muzmatch website got fairly revolutionary at the time. No monthly fees, and was actually fully PAYG – shell out 50p to review images, A?1 to talk to you. Current choices were terrible.
We distributed your message at all feasible, standing outside mosques after prayers handing out leaflets and putting small notes on automobile windshields in Muslim avenues, in addition to only becoming typically irritating
Your website became, with plenty deploying it, and even a number of , smartphones are removing and I also realised SOFTWARE happened to be tomorrow, maybe not website. muzmatch must be an app. It just had to be!
I stop my 9 12 months investment banking profession and took the jump. From the bed room of my personal home, we read building programs.
We developed one type of the muzmatch app in MS phrase, and discovered just how to laws, taking 4 several months to construct the apple's ios application, and 30 days to create the Android application. shut the existing website all the way down and established the software! muzmatch was reborn!
muzmatch was actually and it is the only real app I have ever before constructed. It is the first worldwide Muslim relationships application to occur.
The software launched with zero people, and increases organically, with numerous latest people signing up for globally. 2016 – I make my personal first get.
We used on Y Combinator, and flew off to SF for interviews with Paul Buchheit (creator of Gmail). Regrettably we had been denied given we had been pre sales. YC need all of us to prove this could be a proper businesses.
We're a little startup combat to guard ourselves contrary to the prominent matchmaking providers on earth
2016 – we register trademarks for MUZMATCH in the US and Europe. you registration goes through and is nonetheless appropriate now.
Complement team lawyers place the European TM enrollment and submit an objection to it saying it's moving down her match/match center concept TM (just submitted in 2015!)
2016 personal lawyers give us letters demanding us to cease utilization of the MUZMATCH brand, claiming they would not allow another dating company to achieve the English word match in their name.
Interestingly they allegedly experimented with acquire Bumble 2 times, and when refused both days, charged Bumble for the same patent infringement states over their unique use of swipe gestures in application
We decline. Additionally they commanded we alter the looks and design of the logo it self. We do not and wouldn't normally wish to be confused with complement class – they affects our business to-be connected with them.
We change our brand name, and take off the heart logo design and alter the font found in the muzmatch logo design. Products go quiet. Match party continue steadily to lodge arguments to the EU Trademark.
2017 – muzmatch grows like crazy. We reapplied to Y Combinator (with sales and fantastic increases) and thankfully after traveling over to SF, muzmatch got accepted toward summer time 17 batch!
We increased a $1.75M seed round article demo day. 2017 – Whilst I happened to be in SF in the exact middle of YC, United States complement Group CEO Mandy Ginsberg keen for more information about us, and in addition we need videos telephone call along with her.
– complement class reach out to us stating they were contemplating observing united states more and learn more about the business. We had been flattered. Constantly good to analyze the competition. Their EU CEO/CFO/Biz Dev come to our offices in London.
We enhance the continuing TM arguments these include processing. They will not back down. We lodge a UK signature registration for MUZMATCH.
2018 – complement cluster invite you for their offices in Paris, so we signal an NDA and show some internal facts. I was eager to learn how they discover all of our companies and potential. After some forward and backward on facts, they generate their unique first present for all of us – $15M. Only a little higher than our very own seed valuation at YC. A lowball give in my sight.
A couple of months later on they upped this give regarding a number of the further terms. We mentioned no thank you.
– they make another greater give of $25M with a few extra clawback terms and conditions whenever we didn't struck some targets. We said no cheers. We carry on growing the group and biz, with a group of approximately 7 individuals.
– We hit one million customers on muzmatch! Business growing better. Match people invite all of us for dinner at Ivy, with team CFO Gary Swidler. They offer all of us $35M for business.
I got almost destroyed all desire for this talk and also the present was actually thoroughly unexciting. Did not find out how complement would help us with developing. muzmatch had been beginning to take control of the planet. I refused her offer and said why don't we only keep in touch.
2019 – Match people after that purchase a Muslim competitor, Harmonica, declaring that Muslim markets was 'not effectively supported by american products'.
A couple of months later they sue muzmatch in the UK IPEC process of law alleging trademark infringement We reply straight back, saying our very own brand try a redline that we will defend toward conclusion. This has existed for over ten years, without confusion with Match team, and acts a market they have never desired to provide until now.
– fit cluster up the ante and file a lawsuit against muzmatch in Waco, Tx alleging patent infringement (use of swipe motion) and cyberpiracy (use your MUZMATCH brand).
– It is very high priced litigating in the usa. We made the commercial choice to stay our very own people case with Match cluster.
We choose to remove the swipe gesture from muzmatch app as well. Generated zero affect this product. Swiping actually is lifeless.
– We struck 5 million customers internationally, splitting internal information each week – record communications, fits and achievements (over 150,000 men and women locating their spouse on muzmatch!). Employees grows to over 60 everyone and counting. Software live in 15 dialects.
The UNITED KINGDOM suit vs fit party continues to be real time, therefore check-out trial 17th/18th Jan from the UNITED KINGDOM IPEC.
If we lose? We are forced to change the brand, as well as the title muzmatch will perish. We are going hornet gay sitesi to probably have to pay information problems.
We fight, because we should. It is very important that products designed for our very own neighborhood are built BY the community, and that we really do not enable our selves is determined and subject to others.
We request prayers, duas and good wishes from your community, the people and all of all those who have benefited from muzmatch and discovered their spouse.