Joao Rodrigues | Xhockware: “the startup phenomenon is now better accepted by society”

Xhockware is a company focused on developing innovative retail solutions with the aim of improving the shopping experience. The YouBeep app is your star product. What is your name and what did you do before you became an entrepreneur? Joao Rodrigues. Before Xhockware, I had already created a company in the retail area. Before that, he was a researcher at an Engineering Institute – INESC Porto and a university professor. How will your startup change the world? We aim to help consumers in their purchase process, saving them time, increasing their convenience, maximizing their benefits with personalized promotions. Have you paid your salary yet? Yes. How many hours do you work a day? An average of 10-12h per day. What did you fail to do to be a successful entrepreneur? The dedication of time that an initial company requires has a considerable impact on personal life. The company is forced to give up personal time that we normally allocate to family and friends. What did you do to be a successful entrepreneur? Maintain a constant state of concentration on the various aspects that are involved in running a company. It is difficult to disconnect from the reality of the company. Is having a startup trendy or is the world really changing? There is clearly a change. A few years ago, being part of a startup was often considered irresponsible: Why leave a successful, stable career, which paid better, for a risky reality, poorly paid, and which requires extreme dedication? Everyone today knows realities like Facebook, Uber, or Farfetch, so the “startup” phenomenon is now more “trendy” and better accepted by society. If you were the boss of a big company, what did you tell yourself to convince you to work for that company instead of a startup? “We have a startup culture, not a big company” What is your business or technology idol? I do not have. There are certainly good examples, but I do not highlight any that I consider “idol”. I regularly follow Guy Kawasaki. Are you vegan, do meditation or just watch TV and walk the dog at the end of the day? None of the above. I divide the time available between the family and rest (physical and mental). In a single sentence, what would you say – even – in an elevator to convince someone to invest in your company? We have a patented system that increases customer satisfaction, reduces operating costs, increases sales, and can be installed on any supermarket cashier system in a few hours, without requiring any integration or security requirements. Are you interested? 🙂