REGINA - An app that combines people, businesses, and investors all in one was co-created by Regina resident Christian Okpor.
Okpor, the CEO of Launchpine, wanted to create an app where a community of entrepreneurs and creative people come together and share their stories and help each other.
He felt "many creative people didn't have a platform to express themselves or showcase their stuff" (on apps like TikTok or Facebook).
Okpor knew many businesses had the potential to go far, but they couldn’t find the right support to back them.
Okpor also spoke about high schoolers creating these amazing ideas or designs for science fairs but having no way to self-promote their creations on an app.
He started to brainstorm ideas for the app and reached out to a software company to get a sense of the costs of developing Launchpine.
One software company told him the costs would be $100,000. When he heard about the costs of creating an app, Okpor felt "discouraged."
Luckily, Okpor got in touch with an entrepreneur in Toronto who has made apps and communicated back and forth about Launchpine’s design. Okpor wanted a simple design that anyone from high school students to entrepreneurs could use.
The app has three categories: people, business, and investors. Okpor called the app "a mixture of you know your regular social media [for chatting] then Shark Tank, Dragons' Den [for promoting a business to investors] and a sprinkle of GoFundMe" [where people can raise their own money.]
Okpor pointed out that people on the app can crowdfund money for their business if they want to avoid giving part of their business equity to an investor.
There are also filters on the app to separate businesses, including financial and software businesses. He described Launchpine's design as an "online Shark Tank."
He invested around $12,000 to launch the app and has poured in extra money to keep the app’s website up on the internet.
Okpor has not made a single dollar from the app since it launched around two years ago. Additionally, Launchpine has a 500,000 subscriber limit and is only accessible to people in North America.
The reason for the regional restrictions was to ensure the app didn’t get bombarded with fake profiles from different countries. With the added restrictions and lack of promotion, the app only has around 60 subscribers at this point.
However, Okpor understands Launchpine's growth "will come later" and that the app will need to eventually become accessible around the world. He added, "I would rather go for amplification, spread the word than an investor, because I do not want, you know, [to have an investor do] what investors do [which] is that they invest and try to determine the future of that thing" (referring to an investor taking control of the app and deciding it’s next move).
He also noted how some of the biggest companies in the world didn’t grow overnight. "This [growing a business] is not quick. Amazon was not quick. Facebook was not quick. Especially with the business model, freemium. Amazon is a monster now. For years, there was no return. It was just investing, investing, investing, you know, because of the business model here."
The way Okpor has set up his business, he can "boost draft for 10 years without anything coming in with the way things are now. But at some point, something's going to happen, something's going to give."
While Okpor understands his app will take time to grow, he has been encouraged by the feedback he’s heard regarding Launchpine. Christine Tell, the former MLA of Regina Wascana Plains, told Okpor a few years ago the idea for the app "is very good."
He feels the potential of Launchpine could "help give the next generation of people [a platform] that will change the world," said Okpor. Launchpine is available to download on Apple and Android devices.
