I'm Yoroomie, Mike Williams

Want to learn about marketplaces from someone who's recently built & scaled them?

I've recently built, launched, & scaled two marketplaces to successful acquisition. I've started sharing about it through creating content, resources, & more to help founders.

I'm always working with, helping, & investing in marketplace founders

I recently started Everything Marketplaces, a community & world-class network of 2,200+ marketplace founders & leaders from marketplaces like Thumbtack, Airbnb, Hipcamp, Whatnot, Reibus, and more. I also started Marketplace Capital, a venture fund that invests in early stage marketplaces.

I'm known for sharing about marketplaces. This is usually in the Everything Marketplaces community, but I occasionally send out a newsletter. Subscribe below if you'd like to receive it directly in your inbox.

Yoroomie?

I'm Mike Williams, or you might know me as Yoroomie. It's a long story, but in short it's a nickname I was given by friends (and former roommates) that's stuck.I'm an entrepreneur that builds, works with, and invests in marketplace startups.

What I currently do

I currently run Everything Marketplaces, a community & world-class network of marketplace founders & leaders from top marketplaces like Thumbtack, Airbnb, Hipcamp, Whatnot, Reibus, and more. I also recently started Marketplace Capital, a venture fund that invests in early stage marketplaces.I also advise a few select marketplace startup CEO's & teams.

What I did before

Before doubling down to focus on Everything Marketplaces, I ran Thinkbox, a startup studio focused on marketplaces. We built and launched our own marketplaces, worked with others, and also invested in them. We raised $0 from investors and reinvested our revenue and profits into startups. We backed 20+ startups that went on to raise over $200M. As of late 2021, we wound down the studio model to focus on Everything Marketplaces.I also previously started Studiotime, which was the first company we launched out of Thinkbox. I ran it for 8+ years, scaled it to 35+ countries, and eventually the largest online marketplace for booking music studios. It was called the "Airbnb of music studios" and was featured in VICE, Forbes, BBC, and more media outlets. I shared the story of how I initially built it as a side project in an evening, spent the weekend getting studios to signup, launched it, and quickly scaled it here. Studiotime was a highly profitable marketplace that was acquired (successfully) in 2021.I also built and launched Yoroomie App (fitting for my nickname), which was acquired within six months after launch (all cash deal). This was our first acquisition for a Thinkbox company, which allowed us to continue the studio model and reinvest our profits into other startups. I've written in-depth about how we built it as a mobile-first marketplace in 30 days, growth hacks we used to build initial liquidity, launch new markets, and what we also learned from it (and the acquisition) here.Prior to all of the above, I was the founder and CEO of Codeity, a hiring platform that was used by 500+ companies for sourcing, vetting, interviewing, and hiring software developers. It was a funded startup (we raised an early round) and was acquired in 2015 (see more here).

A few random facts & things about me (outside of marketplaces)

1. I cycled semi-professionally during college and then professionally (on a UCI Professional Team) for one season after graduating.
2. I went to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for college (while cycling professionally) and have my commercial pilot's license. I went from no flight training, private pilot, instrument rating, multi-engine rating, and then commercial ratings in the shortest amount of time in out of my class.
3. I'm into collecting watches, art, and architecture. I'm also into cars (example here).
4. A few of my other hobbies are running, tennis, & flying.
5. I also enjoy learning new hobbies & craft, cooking, wine (rose), & travelling.

Want to know when I share a new post or resource?

I'm known for sharing about marketplaces. This is usually in the Everything Marketplaces community, but I occasionally send out a newsletter. Subscribe below if you'd like to receive it directly in your inbox.

Marketplace Meetups & Events

I regularly organize events & meetups for marketplace founders. I typically do them in cities like LA, SF, and NYC. In the past, we've had a16z, FJ Labs, Craft Ventures, and Crexi host them. You can find upcoming events and request to join them here.

Want to know when I share a new post or resource?

I'm known for sharing about marketplaces. This is usually in the Everything Marketplaces community, but I occasionally send out a newsletter. Subscribe below if you'd like to receive it directly in your inbox.

The Yoroomie Startup List

Since it might be hard to keep up with, I made a list view for all of the startups that I've started (and current), advise, and also invested in (some indirectly via AngelList syndicates) below. I've also included a few past side projects so you can see a few ways I've pursued my interests through weekend builds. I'll try to keep this list updated.

Started
Everything Marketplaces
Thinkbox (wound down the studio model to focus on Everything Marketplaces)
Studiotime (acquired)
Yoroomie App (acquired)
Codeity (acquired)Investments
Leland
Laskie
Farmstead
Passport
Garten
Cabana
Publicist
Brandable
Burrow
mParticle
Zeotap
ProducePay
Public Goods
Cognomotiv
Drive Motors
Gone
Krue
Rinse
Service
Trusted (acquired)
VetPronto (acquired)
Interchange (acquired)Fund Investments
Shrug Capital (Limited Partner)
Bitwise Asset Management HOLD 10 Crypto Index

Advising
Offsiter
Trust.co
CryptoCribs
Crumbs App (acquired)Side Projects
Uni
Peerkey
Art Chatbot

Want to know when I share a new post or resource?

I'm known for sharing about marketplaces. This is usually in the Everything Marketplaces community, but I occasionally send out a newsletter. Subscribe below if you'd like to receive it directly in your inbox.

Marketplace Startup Resources

I'm sharing everything I've learned about building, launching, and scaling marketplace startups. Two have been acquired so far and I've also worked with later stage marketplace teams. I've made lots of mistakes along the way, learned most marketplace lessons the hard way, and now try to help share about it to help other founders. I'm always trying to create content & resources for founders to help them build a better (and successful) marketplace faster.

Books

The Guide To No Code Marketplaces New

Popular posts & resources

Shared in the Everything Marketplaces community:Marketplace Idea Stage WorksheetEssential Marketplace AdviceThe Guide To No Code Marketplaces25 Creative Ways To Get Your First Marketplace Users Or SupplyA Brief Guide To Building A Community-Driven MarketplaceThe Comprehensive Guide To Marketplace SEO"Marketplace Metrics & KPIs 101" On Marketplace Metrics, KPIs, & ResourcesHow-To: "Asking For Warm Introductions To Angel Investors & VC's 101", Tips, & Email ExamplesHow-To: "Reaching Out To Press & Media When Launching 101", A Strategy To Use, Tips, & Resources

Videos & tutorials

A few popular marketplace video tutorials that I've shared:How To Bootstrap A MarketplaceHow To Onboard & Grow Supply For MarketplacesHow To Generate Marketplace Bookings, Liquidity, & Revenue

Marketplace founder & leader interviews

I've had 150+ conversations with some of the most notable marketplace founders & leaders from marketplaces like Airbnb, OfferUp, Thumbtack, Zillow, Uber, Whatnot, Slice, Reibus, and more. You can find these conversations on Apple Podcasts, Spotify , & YouTube.

Want to know when I share a new post or resource?

I'm known for sharing about marketplaces. This is usually in the Everything Marketplaces community, but I occasionally send out a newsletter. Subscribe below if you'd like to receive it directly in your inbox.

Want To Chat, Pick My Brain, Or Dive Into Marketplaces?

You can schedule a 1:1 call with me to talk about marketplaces and all of the nuances with them. These calls are not for pitches, but for 1:1 discussions, feedback, and helping answer specific questions. They're also not for bootstrap or early stage founders looking for ongoing support, advice, or feedback. If you're looking for that, you can join the Everything Marketplaces community and our weekly office hours that I'm usually on.Note that these calls are for founders, teams, or investors looking for the most marketplace insights per minute. I've had 10+ years of experience as a marketplace founder, worked with hundreds of other marketplace founders, and easily spent 10,000+ hours talking with & helping marketplace founders across various stages. These 1:1 meetings are priced accordingly at a 45 minute call or Google Hangout being $575. If this is out of your budget, you've already referenced resources that I've shared before, and still have questions, you can ask me on social and I'll try answering you there.To book a call, you can do the following:1. Pay using the "Book a call" button below, which takes you to a secure Stripe checkout link page.
2. When your payment is successfully completed, I will send you a link with a few times and dates for availability within 24 hours.
3. Once confirmed, I will be available via email to answer also answer any specific questions you might have in advance of our call.

Book a call by clicking "Book a call" below

Want to know when I share a new post or resource?

I'm known for sharing about marketplaces. This is usually in the Everything Marketplaces community, but I occasionally send out a newsletter. Subscribe below if you'd like to receive it directly in your inbox.

You might have seen marketplaces I've started featured in:

Sometimes I host events for marketplace founders & leaders