Stakk

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO and co-founder of an HR tech platform. We use short video clips to optimize recruitment processes.

What challenge were you trying to address with Stakk?

We hired Stakk to develop our native application.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We didn’t have enough in-house bandwidth technology. It was a significant area that we needed to focus on to grow our business. Stakk helped us address this by creating the MVP that we used to take our business to the next level. They developed a native app that was iOS and Android-enabled. Additionally, their team provided backend support to ensure a successful product launch.

What is the team composition?

Jack (Co-Founder) was our main point of contact. We also worked with their developers.

How did you come to work with Stakk?

We met Stakk in Google Campus during Google’s Incubator Program in London. We had other options, but we happily went with their team to combine cost-efficient and reliable work.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about £50,000–£55,000 (approximately $69,000-$75,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

The project ran from August to September 2019. We plan to hire their team again for another project that we’re having soon.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Stakk helped us secure 27,500 app users. We also got more than 50 companies to sign up for our trial services, and we talked with major global organizations regarding our product. Apart from those, we also raised £1 million (approximately $1.4 million USD). We had all these quantitative analytics to measure Stakk’s success.

Stakk implemented everything that we wanted them to implement, even when we constantly changed that. We wouldn’t plan on hiring their team again if they didn’t do a good job — that could also be a good metric.

How did Stakk perform from a project management standpoint?

We used Jira to manage our workflow. Everything was done in a timely manner, and I didn’t find the need to chase them for anything. We were just lucky and there were no issues in terms of project management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Stakk understood our business. They didn’t feel like an outsourced development team, but an extension of our bandwidth in technology. I recommended their work to three other companies based on their proposition and performance during our project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We were more than happy with our working experience with Stakk. If anything, I hope they consider expanding their team in the future.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Just be very open and honest. The more direct you are, the more they’ll understand your needs. In our case, we communicated that we needed them to move fast and pivot the realities — and Stakk delivered those.

Please describe your company and your position there.

PLAZA Fashion Store a multi-brand fashion store based in Riga, Latvia, specialising in providing our niche clientele with the most up-to-date selections in high fashion alongside superior personal shopping experience.

Primarily within brick-and-mortar, we are looking to venture into the online world to create a unique personal shopping experience for our customers. My position is Head of Buying and Business Development, which involves attending showrooms for buying appointments, creating relationships with partners, and now overlooking the development of our web application.

For what projects/services did your company hire STAKK, and what were your goals?

We are an up-and-coming fashion brand which started within brick-and-mortar, and wanted to explore growing the online presence to reach a wider audience. We hired STAKK to design and build a website that would present users with a unique and personalised shopping experience.

Our near-term goal would be to present our current customers with a better online experience, increase brand awareness in targeting new markets, and eventually enabling fashion brands around the world to leverage the platform to increase sales.

How did you select STAKK and what were the deciding factors?

We initially shortlisted a few companies and freelancers who were mainly referred to us - Stakk being one of them. After two to three calls with each company, we personally felt that Stakk had a really qualified team, great communication, were able to have a strong understanding of the concept and of our vision, and had previously worked within this sector.

Stakk also had a more open culture and flexible working environment, which enabled them to understand our culture.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

We had our initial requirements which we provided to Stakk, which involved creating a clean, user- friendly website which customers can access, browse and shop from both web and mobile devices. We need to have both brands and products to be listed onto the home page, along with search and filters to be displayed in a minimal layout.

Stakk was able to take our requirements and break them down into sections, providing us with a clear insight of when to expect delivery on milestones, timelines for review and the method it was being built in. The project was divided into 3 main sections: Design, Development and Testing.

Each section was then divided into two-week sprints, which consisted of the tasks and subtasks within the section. Each sprint was then followed by a feedback loop, which allowed us to review the work and provide any necessary adjustments.

Stakk recommended using React Js and Node js, as they suggested it would allow the system to be lighter, provide faster rendering of products and would easily be able to scale to future development.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked with four people from Stakk, which included both project managers, designers and developers. Girish was my primary contact, serving as the project lead and coordinating our overall project description and breaking it down into smaller tasks. He was particular in his attention to detail, providing clear milestones upon which I would then review. Vikas was the technical lead who coordinated the tasks with the two developers assigned to the project. He was really helpful in advising our team on the certain use cases and how we should solve them. Yash and Vishal were the two developers on the team who provided all tasks according to dates mentioned.

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The website is now within the final stages of development and testing. We have made some great progress in finalising all the pages, optimising the custom built admin portal, and preparing our customers for the site launch.

All of the tasks were delivered in a very presentable way, starting with a team call where a demo was provided, then handed over to our team for a review. We would then consolidate our feedback and provide it back to Stakk.

What I can say here is that going from a small brand based in Latvia, we will soon have a marketplace available to shoppers around the world.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timelines.

Their project management style was such that allowed our team to continue focusing on business while they handled the development of the website. We had weekly meetings through Google Meet, where Girish and the team were able to provide recent updates, product demos, potential questions from both sides, etc.

We mainly used Slack for day-to-day communication and updates, and Jira for managing tasks and timelines.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

I was really impressed by their flexible working style, which enabled us to constantly improve the website while it was being developed. They have an ability to understand our evolving concepts and are able to turn them into beautiful designs. I was also impressed with the trust they had for each other, providing me with direct access to the developers without the bottleneck approach.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Overall, we were really impressed with their approach, development quality, communication and delivery. There was a slight delay towards the final stages of development, however, it was understandable due to our team changing a few pages on the website. Although we were hoping for this, we also understood that it is better to use the time to release a better product.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and director of Cody’s Comforts Ltd, which produces a dry wash conditioning shampoo for dogs.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

We’re a very small, family-run business. We relied on STAKK to replace our outdated e-commerce site.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built a new e-commerce website from scratch. We used our old site to point out the things we liked and didn’t like. They focused on improving our platform’s UX/UI.

What is the team composition?

I worked directly with 2–3 teammates. This team included Jack (Co-Founder) and another developer.

How did you come to work with STAKK?

I found them online. I found three different companies and vetted them to see if they met my requirements. I really wanted somebody whom I could bounce ideas off of. I was impressed with how Mr. Tyson treated me as a customer, despite the project at hand being a relatively small one. I felt that they would put their effort and attention into it.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent somewhere close to $6,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in June 2019, and it’s an ongoing partnership. We’re looking to go live before Christmastime.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

I’ve had a brilliant experience working with them. They treat me like an important customer, even though I’m not one of their bigger accounts. If I had a problem, they’d deal with it quickly, as they’re happy to accommodate my whims and needs. They’ve also been amazing to bounce ideas off of, so I appreciate that they’ve served as a consultant of sorts.

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

We’d share Google Docs documents together and communicate over email. Communication was collaborative and smooth.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their customer service is phenomenal.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I honestly can’t think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be as involved as you can. They’ll be very accommodating for any changes you want to implement.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder & CEO of VW Impex. We import and export supplies, providing hard to find bearings in the industry.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

We needed an e-commerce platform built so we could do online business.

What was the scope of their involvement?

STAKK built us an e-commerce portal. It’s a web platform that’s supported on all devices, web and mobile. They did the development and design. 

The server is hosted by Linux and Cloud. They used PHP, MBC, and Laravel, and there is a MySQL database. 

The platform allows people to order products, and we ship them. It is open to everyone. 

What is the team composition?

Initially, I spoke with Jack (Relationship Director). During development, Girish (Project Director) was my main contact as project manager, but I also interacted with the three developers. 

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost was between $20,000 - $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from February – August 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

The design is very good, and the platform functions on all devices. They had good business logic. I learned how to convert to online business. It was a good experience, and I’m satisfied with what STAKK delivered. 

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

They worked in 15-day sprints, providing updates at the end of each one. They delivered what they promised, on time. We communicated via Skype and email. They were available and responsive. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were very professional with excellent communication. I was also very pleased with their business logic and design. STAKK exceeded my expectations.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear about the requirements and expectations. Share all your data with them so they can analyze it properly, it will save time.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a UK-based technology company that focuses on international payments and foreign exchange services. I’m the director of the company.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

We needed a development partner to help us with some of our projects.

What was the scope of their involvement? 

STAKK has worked with us on a number of web development projects, including a new website for our end-to-end rebrand and a site for a remittance product.

What is the team composition? 

I spoke with Girish (Project Manager) on a day-to-day basis. My team also worked with some of his developers directly. 

How did you come to work with STAKK?

Our head of IT found STAKK and brought them in for a technical assessment. Based on that test, their ability to deliver, and our project roadmap, we hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $10,000–$50,000. It’s an hourly rate.

What is the status of this engagement?

The two main projects started in June 2019, but we’ve been working with them on and off ever since. They’re currently one of our suppliers.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

From my perspective, I gauge them based on their ability to deliver on brief and within budget. They’ve developed two websites that looked great while mostly staying within our costs. There is some back-and-forth on bugs, but no more than what we’ve seen from other developers. 

The team is also flexible. If we want to make an iteration during the process, they always work to accommodate those changes, which leads to a positive experience. 

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Google Docs to track their progress. They generally stick to our deadlines, though there are some occasional delays. All in all, they deliver within a reasonable margin of error.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a positive attitude and really want to deliver good results for their clients. Even if things don’t go quite as planned, they’re able to take the hit on the chin and get back to the task. We’ve never had any sort of confrontation because of their client-oriented perspective.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes Girish’s own technical understanding is limited because he’s not a developer himself. That means there are cases when things have been lost in translation. Our team has found it effective to communicate certain things to their developers directly. 

This situation was also a positive because Girish was willing to let us talk to his team, even though there would be more communication points. He understood that this was necessary at certain times.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of Headspend. It’s a platform where I can track employee expenditure. It can be used to monitor what is being spent on a daily basis, and where and how it is being spent.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

They’re helping me build the platform and the app for the business.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’re helping us build a web app, as well as a mobile app in React Native which has a parent account. It’s going to be a management account with a real-time spending platform. As soon as someone within a company uses the card, the platform will show the details of that purchase. The app will be for iOS and Android and we’re expecting to launch around December 2020. 

What is the team composition?

I’ve been working with two people. Jack (Co-Founder) and Girish (Co-Founder & Product Lead) are my points of contact. 

How did you come to work with STAKK?

I found them on LinkedIn. I messaged a few companies, but I really liked how quickly they responded, how they interacted with potential clients, and the knowledge they had behind the work.

How much have you invested with them?

The overall cost will be $68,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since May 2020. 

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

So far, they’ve developed well above all of my expectations and meet all of the deadlines. 

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

The communication has been excellent between both of our points of contact. They always deliver ahead of deadlines — which I value in them. The fact that they let me know they’re done ahead of schedule is something I really appreciate about them. If there are any questions, they take the time to listen to me and explain everything in detail. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’ve become part of the team. I didn’t think I’d find a development partner that would feel so much like part of my own team, but our communication has been second to none. They love what they do and are keen to engage with their clients. They have great attention to detail, are strong communicators, and really nice people to work with. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there’s nothing at all for them to improve. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Give them as much information as possible so they get an understanding of what you want. They will take everything you say and give you new ideas, so communicate as much as possible and basically overload them with information. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a flooring contractor, and I’m the manager.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

We were rebranding, and they built our website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had an existing site at the time we hired them. With them, we decided to completely scrap the original site and build a new one from scratch. The took charge of the entire process.  

What is the team composition?

I worked directly with Jack (Co-Founder).

How did you come to work with STAKK?

Someone in my network recommended their service to me after having a positive engagement with them. I trusted their word, and didn’t bother looking elsewhere after talking to them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $1,500 on the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January–June 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

I highly recommend their services because they dealt with this project very well. We didn’t run into any problems.  

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

They never let me down, often delivering a day or two before necessary. We communicated mostly through phone calls. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their attention to detail really made a difference. They were always willing to pick up the phone to talk through a problem.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. Their service was very strong.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder and CTO at Nivoda, a B2B marketplace for the diamond and jewelry industry.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

We had our in-house development team building our platform for desktop and mobile, but we got a clear request from customers and suppliers to build a mobile app. Since we didn’t have those resources in-house to build it in the timeframe we wanted we engaged STAKK.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Compared to other projects our requirements were very clear. We were aiming for feature parody with the online platform so the way everything looked and worked was based on the web platform. The API to connect everything was already done so STAKK created the frontend and did the implementation. The app is cross-platform and built on React Native.

We provided them with a few mock-up designs in Figma, as well as updates as we went on. There was also a full API specification ready for them. They built the React Native application from scratch.

What is the team composition?

We had one project manager and three developers. One was full-time and the other two were on and off. We had an hourly agreement.

How did you come to work with STAKK?

They reached out to us a few months before we started the project with a generic pitch about what they did. When we wanted to do the project we compared a few outsourced companies and STAKK stood out because of their quality of work. The sample projects on their website were really good. We also got a good feeling from speaking with them. They seemed like they would be open and transparent.

How much have you invested with them?

We ended up spending £60,000 ($74,600 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from December 2019 until May 2020. The app is going live in the next week. If we want to add more features in the future we’re definitely going to engage STAKK again.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’ve sent the app out to external beta testers (our most engaged customers) and almost all of them say the app is intuitive and smooth, and that it works like they expected it would. This speaks to the quality of STAKK’s work. I’m a developer myself, so from a developer’s perspective, the code is high quality. There weren’t many bugs; whenever we went we got the best thing. I’ve worked with other external development companies before and sometimes they just don’t understand what the product needs to do. STAKK stepped up, though. They’re the best I’ve encountered so far.

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

I spoke with them twice a week, chatting through Slack or a weekly call. The developers were on both Slack and that call so we could answer any questions about how a feature should look or the API itself. We communicated and worked together like they were a part of our internal team. We also added them to our Jira.

Finally, they met most of our deadlines, and if they didn’t there was a very good reason why that was. Their communication around that was upfront too.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They deliver high-quality stuff and understand our intentions.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The communication with the developers could have been a bit better. The project manager was great, but sometimes I felt a disconnect between the project manager and the developers.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure there’s no ambiguity on deliverables, as you would with any outsourcing company. If they’re clear on the deliverables, then they’ll be able to execute very fast. Also, make sure to add them to your internal Slack. Both sides have to be responsive.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the managing director of Black Square Joinery LTD. We are specialising in building bespoke fitted furniture, such as kitchens, wardrobes and all types of cabinets

For what projects/services did your company hire STAKK?

We hired STAKK to help our company develop the Web Presence. They were responsible for the entire range of our web presence, from the web design to social media to SEO.

What were your goals for this project?

1) To build the responsive website that will allow our clients to get a clear picture of our offering 2) To gain web exposure by the means of social media marketing and to rank higher in search engines 3) creating a prototype of an innovative application based around Augmented Reality to fit the bespoke furniture units in your space.

How did you select this vendor?

STAKK was recommended to us by one of our business partners.

Describe the project in detail.

STAKK was hired to do the following objectives 1) To build the responsive website that will allow our clients to get a clear picture of our offering 2) To gain web exposure by the means of social media marketing and to rank higher in search engines 3) Creating a prototype of an innovative application based around Augmented Reality to fit the bespoke furniture units in your space.

What was the team composition?

We first got assigned to a project manager who took care of all the technical aspects. Throughout the project, we had very fluent communication with the three developers assigned to the project, which helped in the communication and the ongoing development according to specifications.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

After the initial project of launching the website and increasing our social presence, we saw a regular flow of leads from around the web, and accomplished an average conversion rate of 20-25%. This continued to increase after improving the SEO and continuing the development of the website.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Both the project manager and technical lead assisted us in every step of the way, from creating the overall vision to the look and feel to the functionality of the website. Along with the developers assigned to the project, they worked in a very agile way.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Given our lack of experience within web development and optimisation, we were amazed at the knowledge and expertise provided by the guys at STAKK. They were able to adjust and accomplish a great amount of work within a set budget.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Although they delivered on time, they could have delivered the project earlier... ;-)

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a travel planning company.

What challenge were you trying to address with STAKK?

We needed some UI/UX assistance in building a mobile app for Android and iOS.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They do both the design and the development work, but I only contracted them for the UI/UX because I had my own development staff working with me.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Jack (Co-Founder & Relationship Director) and a design lead.

How did you come to work with STAKK?

I met them in a networking company and they were very friendly and got the conversation going from the start.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent 8,000 pounds (approximately $8,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2019, and we wrapped up in February 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

I’m very happy with the format of the file they provided. At the end, everyone seemed very happy with the finished product.

How did STAKK perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a Google drive folder shared between us, but we also communicated via phone and in-person meetings. They were very responsive, even for last-minute changes.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What really sets them apart from other offshore teams was the one point of communication. There was no language barrier between us and they had both a technical and business background, so they were an outstanding element.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I can think of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to sit down and discuss the project before you take a contract with them. They pride themselves as more than just a contractor and like to get very involved. If that link doesn’t happen, you might be better off working with someone else.