StarZero All shows Try the podcast clipper →

Aug 16, 2020 · 20m · top-founders

SnapBar Looses $3m Photobooth Revenue COVID, Pivots in 8 Days, Makes $500k on New Idea, How?

Sam Eitzen · 11m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken Eric Yuan · 4s spoken Vivek Bhaskaran · 2s spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

SnapBar co-founder and CEO Sam Eitzen details how his event photo booth company survived the sudden collapse of live events during COVID-19 through an eight-day pivot into corporate gift boxes and the development of virtual photo booth software.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 35.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 5.6 Guest teaching 3.0 Guest disagreement 1.0 Nathan pushing back 2.6
05100:0010:0020:003:34–7:21 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Navigating Early Cancellations and Launching Keep Your City Smiling Nathan probes the mechanics of the pivot to Keep Your City Smiling and synthesizes an enterprise gifting scenario. Sam clarifies how multi-city corporate packages connect remote employees to local vendors.7:22–10:43 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Repurposing Physical Infrastructure for Box Logistics and Sales Growth Nathan expresses skepticism that photo booth assets could transfer to e-commerce logistics, prompting Sam to reveal their creative reuse of vinyl wrappers and strip printers. Nathan quickly computes the net profit margins on their $500k sales figure.10:43–13:32 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Analyzing February 2020 Cash Reserves, Refunds, and PPP Funding Nathan drills deep into balance sheet specifics, asking for exact cash reserves, cancellation refund totals, and PPP loan amounts. Sam pushes back slightly on Nathan's runway calculation, clarifying that fixed payroll and pipeline evaporation left far less net cash than assumed.13:32–15:33 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Founder Mindset, Team Leadership, and Virtual Software Conception Nathan asks Sam about the leadership messaging and emotional stakes when South by Southwest canceled. Sam candidly describes risking their personal life savings and choosing aggressive reinvention over passive survival.15:33–19:10 · Nathan as informed peer 7/10 Product Architecture and Enterprise Adoption of Virtual Booth Nathan explores the virtual photo booth product in real time, framing it as an enterprise desktop Snapchat. He actively coaches Sam on shifting from one-off transactional event pricing to recurring SaaS models based on UGC storage and reporting.3:34–7:21 · Guest teaching 3/10 Navigating Early Cancellations and Launching Keep Your City Smiling Nathan probes the mechanics of the pivot to Keep Your City Smiling and synthesizes an enterprise gifting scenario. Sam clarifies how multi-city corporate packages connect remote employees to local vendors.7:22–10:43 · Guest teaching 4/10 Repurposing Physical Infrastructure for Box Logistics and Sales Growth Nathan expresses skepticism that photo booth assets could transfer to e-commerce logistics, prompting Sam to reveal their creative reuse of vinyl wrappers and strip printers. Nathan quickly computes the net profit margins on their $500k sales figure.10:43–13:32 · Guest teaching 3/10 Analyzing February 2020 Cash Reserves, Refunds, and PPP Funding Nathan drills deep into balance sheet specifics, asking for exact cash reserves, cancellation refund totals, and PPP loan amounts. Sam pushes back slightly on Nathan's runway calculation, clarifying that fixed payroll and pipeline evaporation left far less net cash than assumed.13:32–15:33 · Guest teaching 2/10 Founder Mindset, Team Leadership, and Virtual Software Conception Nathan asks Sam about the leadership messaging and emotional stakes when South by Southwest canceled. Sam candidly describes risking their personal life savings and choosing aggressive reinvention over passive survival.15:33–19:10 · Guest teaching 3/10 Product Architecture and Enterprise Adoption of Virtual Booth Nathan explores the virtual photo booth product in real time, framing it as an enterprise desktop Snapchat. He actively coaches Sam on shifting from one-off transactional event pricing to recurring SaaS models based on UGC storage and reporting.3:34–7:21 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Navigating Early Cancellations and Launching Keep Your City Smiling Nathan probes the mechanics of the pivot to Keep Your City Smiling and synthesizes an enterprise gifting scenario. Sam clarifies how multi-city corporate packages connect remote employees to local vendors.7:22–10:43 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Repurposing Physical Infrastructure for Box Logistics and Sales Growth Nathan expresses skepticism that photo booth assets could transfer to e-commerce logistics, prompting Sam to reveal their creative reuse of vinyl wrappers and strip printers. Nathan quickly computes the net profit margins on their $500k sales figure.10:43–13:32 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Analyzing February 2020 Cash Reserves, Refunds, and PPP Funding Nathan drills deep into balance sheet specifics, asking for exact cash reserves, cancellation refund totals, and PPP loan amounts. Sam pushes back slightly on Nathan's runway calculation, clarifying that fixed payroll and pipeline evaporation left far less net cash than assumed.13:32–15:33 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Founder Mindset, Team Leadership, and Virtual Software Conception Nathan asks Sam about the leadership messaging and emotional stakes when South by Southwest canceled. Sam candidly describes risking their personal life savings and choosing aggressive reinvention over passive survival.15:33–19:10 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Product Architecture and Enterprise Adoption of Virtual Booth Nathan explores the virtual photo booth product in real time, framing it as an enterprise desktop Snapchat. He actively coaches Sam on shifting from one-off transactional event pricing to recurring SaaS models based on UGC storage and reporting.3:34–7:21 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Navigating Early Cancellations and Launching Keep Your City Smiling Nathan probes the mechanics of the pivot to Keep Your City Smiling and synthesizes an enterprise gifting scenario. Sam clarifies how multi-city corporate packages connect remote employees to local vendors.7:22–10:43 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Repurposing Physical Infrastructure for Box Logistics and Sales Growth Nathan expresses skepticism that photo booth assets could transfer to e-commerce logistics, prompting Sam to reveal their creative reuse of vinyl wrappers and strip printers. Nathan quickly computes the net profit margins on their $500k sales figure.10:43–13:32 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Analyzing February 2020 Cash Reserves, Refunds, and PPP Funding Nathan drills deep into balance sheet specifics, asking for exact cash reserves, cancellation refund totals, and PPP loan amounts. Sam pushes back slightly on Nathan's runway calculation, clarifying that fixed payroll and pipeline evaporation left far less net cash than assumed.13:32–15:33 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Founder Mindset, Team Leadership, and Virtual Software Conception Nathan asks Sam about the leadership messaging and emotional stakes when South by Southwest canceled. Sam candidly describes risking their personal life savings and choosing aggressive reinvention over passive survival.15:33–19:10 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Product Architecture and Enterprise Adoption of Virtual Booth Nathan explores the virtual photo booth product in real time, framing it as an enterprise desktop Snapchat. He actively coaches Sam on shifting from one-off transactional event pricing to recurring SaaS models based on UGC storage and reporting.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 59.7% · guest 40.3%0:00 · Nathan 59.7% · guest 40.3%3:00 · Nathan 25.3% · guest 74.7%3:00 · Nathan 25.3% · guest 74.7%6:00 · Nathan 23% · guest 77%6:00 · Nathan 23% · guest 77%9:00 · Nathan 43% · guest 57%9:00 · Nathan 43% · guest 57%12:00 · Nathan 29.7% · guest 70.3%12:00 · Nathan 29.7% · guest 70.3%15:00 · Nathan 9.2% · guest 90.8%15:00 · Nathan 9.2% · guest 90.8%18:00 · Nathan 58.3% · guest 41.7%18:00 · Nathan 58.3% · guest 41.7%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 12:49 Correction on Remaining Cash Runway

Sam rejects Nathan's 'true or false' assertion that the company had $600k in clean runway, pointing out high fixed payroll burn and vanished receivables.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 7:22 Skepticism on Reusable Logistics Tech

Nathan explicitly challenges the premise that an event photo booth company would have any reusable technology or infrastructure suitable for an e-commerce gift box operation.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 7:40 Repurposing Hardware and Warehouse Assets

Sam educates Nathan on how they repurposed vinyl photo booth wrappers for custom boxes, old photo strip printers for founder bio inserts, and event storage for packing lines.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 18:13 Strategic SaaS Monetization Blueprint

Nathan displays high SaaS domain expertise by outlining how Virtual Booth can monetize post-event UGC hosting, analytics, and lead capture rather than relying solely on one-off event billing.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Navigating Early Cancellations and Launching Keep Your City Smiling 5312 Nathan probes the mechanics of the pivot to Keep Your City Smiling and synthesizes an enterprise gifting scenario. Sam clarifies how multi-city corporate packages connect remote employees to local vendors.
Repurposing Physical Infrastructure for Box Logistics and Sales Growth 6413 Nathan expresses skepticism that photo booth assets could transfer to e-commerce logistics, prompting Sam to reveal their creative reuse of vinyl wrappers and strip printers. Nathan quickly computes the net profit margins on their $500k sales figure.
Analyzing February 2020 Cash Reserves, Refunds, and PPP Funding 6324 Nathan drills deep into balance sheet specifics, asking for exact cash reserves, cancellation refund totals, and PPP loan amounts. Sam pushes back slightly on Nathan's runway calculation, clarifying that fixed payroll and pipeline evaporation left far less net cash than assumed.
Founder Mindset, Team Leadership, and Virtual Software Conception 4201 Nathan asks Sam about the leadership messaging and emotional stakes when South by Southwest canceled. Sam candidly describes risking their personal life savings and choosing aggressive reinvention over passive survival.
Product Architecture and Enterprise Adoption of Virtual Booth 7313 Nathan explores the virtual photo booth product in real time, framing it as an enterprise desktop Snapchat. He actively coaches Sam on shifting from one-off transactional event pricing to recurring SaaS models based on UGC storage and reporting.

Statements from this episode (15)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: SnapBar Generated About $3M in Revenue in 2019
“Yeah, about three million in 2019 on track to do four to five, 20 20.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 2:42
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: 85% of SnapBar's Revenue Came From Corporate Events
“Our events were primarily about 85% of our revenue was corporate. 15% was private events like social events, weddings, et cetera.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 2:54
Disclosure
Eitzen: SnapBar is completely bootstrapped
“We're bootstrapped.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 3:43
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: SnapBar lost 3 to 6 months of revenue overnight
“I think we lost about three to six months of earned or like potentially earned income overnight and sales since then have continued to be just absolutely dead.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 4:13
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: Microsoft and Google bought hundreds of gift boxes in bulk
“What we were surprised by when we pushed to e-commerce was that, again, it was these brands, big companies like Microsoft, Google, that would purchase 203 108 hundred boxes in one go. Brand the boxes and send them to all their, you know, people on various depa…”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 5:00
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: SnapBar Gift Box Pivot Did $500K in First Three Months
“It was about eight days from concept to when we launched the first website. And then we basically took pre-orders for two weeks to buy us extra time as we sourced small vendors from our first box, which was Seattle. And we sold in the first three months, we di…”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 9:33
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: SnapBar Gift Boxes Have 40% Gross and ~5% Net Margins
“So our product margin, gross product margin is about 40%. Net business margins maybe five because we're very new at this, and I'm sure we're relatively inefficient in some ways, whereas when we were running a photo booth company, our product margins were 300%,…”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 10:19
Assertion Not checkable as stated
SnapBar held about $700,000 in cash reserves in February 2020
“About 700,000 dollars.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 10:52
Assertion Not checkable as stated
SnapBar ran at 33% to 40% net profit margins before COVID
“Net business, I think we were at basically 33% to 40% net business.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 11:17
Assertion Not checkable as stated
SnapBar refunded $50k to $70k as COVID cancellations hit
“We refunded maybe 50 to 70,000.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 12:22
Assertion Supported
SnapBar secured a $217k PPP loan during COVID crisis
“A 217,000.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 13:22
Assertion Not checkable as stated
SnapBar's virtual photo booth software generated $140,000 in six weeks
“Is, has been pretty incredible in the past month and a half since we launched it has generated about a 140 K. And the profit margins are much higher on that side again.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 15:24
Assertion Partly supported
Eitzen: TED, Salesforce, and St. Jude's Use SnapBar's Virtual Booth
“Ted used us for their, as they pivoted to a virtual you know, Salesforce is a big client doing events around the world for their teams. We did a really huge event for St. Jude's prom, a virtual prom that they did a few months ago.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 17:42
Disclosure
Eitzen: SnapBar Virtual Booth Charges One-Time Fee Rather Than SaaS
“So right now, it's one time. It's not a piece of SaaS yet, so yeah, we”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 18:49
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eitzen: A Single Developer Built SnapBar's Virtual Booth in Four Months
“Right now we have one developer. One guy on our team has built all of this in the past four months.”
Sam Eitzen Aug 16, 2020 ▶ 19:05
Made with StarZero

Turn any episode into a week of clips.

This entire site, over 2,600 episodes transcribed, diarized, checked and made playable, runs on the StarZero media pipeline. Drop in your own episode and the podcast clipper finds the moments worth sharing, cuts them, captions them, and reframes them for every feed.

Try the podcast clipper Learn more