{"id":2016,"date":"2018-04-02T17:50:09","date_gmt":"2018-04-02T21:50:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/?p=2016"},"modified":"2024-02-13T11:50:52","modified_gmt":"2024-02-13T16:50:52","slug":"spotlight-on-stashii-edmontons-peer-to-peer-storage-solution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/blog\/spotlight-on-stashii-edmontons-peer-to-peer-storage-solution\/","title":{"rendered":"Spotlight on Stashii: Edmonton\u2019s Peer-to-Peer Storage Solution"},"content":{"rendered":"

While it\u2019s possible to work a 9-to-5 job and still flex your entrepreneurial muscles, there\u2019s nothing quite like going out on your own.<\/p>\n

Prior to starting his own business, Ismail Attitalla worked in Sales in Montreal. A self-described \u201cintrapreneur,\u201d he quickly rose through the ranks to eventually manage a team of 32 doing $82 million in revenue.<\/p>\n

Still, despite enjoying the unlimited income potential of working on commission, he knew he wanted more. More specifically, he wanted the freedom that comes from being your own boss.<\/p>\n

\u201cFreedom to do things my way, to go away for as long as I want, to change directions quickly. But more importantly, to solve problems that I want to solve,\u201d says Ismail.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, his sales experience translated well to entrepreneurship and gave him the confidence he needed to make the leap.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince I knew how to execute in business, I wanted to start executing for myself with my own money,\u201d says Ismail. \u201cThe stakes were higher but so were the rewards.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ismail started his first business at 24 and his ventures haven\u2019t stopped growing since. In addition to founding\u00a0Edmonton Brewery Tours<\/a>\u00a0and Startup Menu<\/a>, he\u2019s also the founder of Stashii<\/a>, a peer-to-peer storage marketplace based in Edmonton, Alberta.<\/p>\n

\u201cStashii connects people who have space with people who needs space,\u201d says Ismail. \u201cIt\u2019s cashless, convenient and insured.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Stashii<\/p>\n

Like Uber and Airbnb, Stashii is giving people the opportunity to earn extra money from what they already have. However, just like those apps, Ismail and Stashii struggled at first with building the trust of potential users.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople did not just want to depend on other users being \u2018good people,\u2019 says Ismail. \u201cThey wanted some added protection in case things went wrong. But I was having a really hard time convincing insurance companies to provide coverage to our users since there was no way for them to control the space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finally, after eight months of rejection, he was finally able to strike a deal and get and insurer on board for his app. Today, Stashii is active in five major Canadian cities \u2013 Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto and Montreal.<\/p>\n

From clothes to cars and even trailers, Stashii offers storage options that are secure, convenient and up to 50% cheaper than its competitors.<\/p>\n

Before starting Stashii, Ismail turned to Futurpreneur Canada for its financing, mentoring and resources for young entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy local Futurpreneur contact provided me with some options in terms of mentors that fit my business,\u201d says Ismail about the mentor matching process. \u201cI did some quick research and agreed that he was a great fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

His current mentor is Saher Ghattas of marketing company Flawless Inbound<\/a> and Ismail says he could not have asked for a better mentor.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt does not feel like a mentee\/mentor relationship but rather like two entrepreneurs who are at different stages sharing ideas. I like this a lot because my need for mentorship is not \u201cHow do I do X?\u201d but to bounce ideas and get second opinions,\u201d says Ismail. \u201cMany times, I already know the answers but when you can get some reassurance, you take your steps much more confidently and thus, can move much faster.\u201d<\/p>\n

He continues to stay in contact with his mentor and his local Futurpreneur contact Hussam Tungekar, Business Development Manager in Alberta. Ismail even got the chance to travel across Canada with Futurpreneur was selected as a GEW On The Road Ambassador<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always recommend others to look into the programs!\u201d says Ismail.<\/p>\n

Even though Stashii is well on its way, Ismail is a testament to the continued impact Futurpreneur can have on the entrepreneurs it supports. For aspiring business owners, Ismail leaves us with these parting words of advice:<\/p>\n

\u201cJust start! There\u2019s no time like the present. That perfect time or place will never come and you will only \u2018know what to do\u2019 once you take the first couple steps. No one starts off knowing what to really do, most just start and figure it out as they go. And last, you don\u2019t need to quit your job and go all in or nothing. You can easily start a side hustle and grow that first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Written by: Jasmine Williams, Social Media and Content Specialist, Futurpreneur Canada<\/em><\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ismail Attitalla is the founder of Stashii, a peer-to-peer storage marketplace based in Edmonton, Alberta.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2019,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-futurpreneurs-and-partners"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2019"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}