A spontaneous idea in a shared apartment in Frankfurt turned into a fast-growing e-commerce business within just a few years, complete with all its highs and lows. On one side stood a unique dart configurator, rising demand, a pandemic-driven boom, and winter months where the warehouse could barely keep up. On the other side was a highly seasonal business, growing order volumes, long pre-financing periods, and a model that required managing physical inventory and software development at the same time. Inventory had to be paid for in September, arrived in November, and often wasn’t fully sold until February.

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Traditional lenders struggled to understand this business model, marketing costs were rising, and consumers became more cautious after the pandemic and the energy crisis. For Lukas and Timm, this meant trying to grow while facing significant capital needs and very limited access to suitable financing options.