Today we’d like to introduce you to Jordan Metzner.
Hi Jordan, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
Sam Nadler and I have known each other since we were 18 years old. We’ve been working side by side, building businesses together. We’ve built over six start-ups so far and want to build many more!
We previously founded California Burrito Co. and Washio, among others. The former was a popular chain of burrito restaurants that started in Argentina and expanded to six countries across Latin America. The endeavor — modeled in a similar style as Chipotle, where customers could customize their own burritos — ran for five years. We sold our majority share in 2010 to a group of restaurant operators that continue to run the chain today.
Later, we built Washio, which they refer to as “Uber for Laundry,” an on-demand laundry service. Washio shut its doors in 2016, after having raised more than $16 million, according to Crunchbase. Its assets were acquired by Rinse.
Most recently, I spent five years at Amazon and Sam at Lyft before deciding to return to their entrepreneurial roots. My time at Amazon was spent working on initiatives like the Ring Drone and the NFL on Twitch. Sam, who has an MBA from MIT’s Sloan School of Management, oversaw operations, partnerships, and growth for Lyft across six states.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Oh, it’s been anything but smooth – think of it more like a rollercoaster ride. Last year threw us some major curveballs, especially with all the chaos in the tech world. But hey, we managed to turn things around in the second half of the year, so that’s something to cheer about. Looks like this rollercoaster isn’t slowing down anytime soon, with companies still facing challenges as we head into this year. Every day’s a mix, you know? Some wins and some losses, but we’re all about hanging in there and tackling whatever comes our way, day by day.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At its core, RyzLabs is a beacon for startups at various stages of their journey, whether they’re just taking their first steps or are ready to scale up. We specialize in marrying technical and non-technical talent from the vibrant tech landscapes of Argentina, Uruguay, and Colombia with startups looking to grow. Our expertise lies in our unique ability to not only help startups scale but also to incubate and launch new ventures from the ground up.
What truly distinguishes RyzLabs in the competitive landscape is our hybrid startup studio model. This approach allows us to address two critical challenges for startups: refining their strategic vision and assembling a capable team to execute that vision effectively and affordably. Our goal is to enable these startups to accelerate their growth journey, optimizing for both speed and cost-efficiency.
We’re incredibly proud of our track record, with successful launches like HipTrain, a wellness coaching marketplace, and Offsiteio, a comprehensive platform for planning corporate offsites. These ventures underscore our commitment to innovation and our ability to make a tangible impact in the industries we touch.
Our process is both strategic and straightforward, beginning with ideation and progressing to the development of a marketable product or service. Following this, we focus on leadership recruitment and investment preparation, all supported by our “Human Capital” initiative, which aims to source the best talent from Latin America to power these ventures.
Brand-wise, we take great pride in our ability to nurture startups from concept to reality and in assisting existing startups to scale by leveraging high-quality Latin American talent. This has not only allowed us to foster innovation but also to contribute to building communities around our startups.
RyzLabs stands as a testament to the power of collaboration, innovation, and strategic growth. Whether you’re a budding startup looking to make your mark or an established venture seeking to scale, we’re here to support you with a blend of creativity, expertise, and a vast network of talent. Our dedication to fostering success stories is what drives us every day, and we’re excited to be part of the next big breakthrough in the startup world.
We’d love to hear about what you think about risk-taking.
Every new business we start is a big risk start-up in general and about taking risks. There are a lot of unknowns at a high level and also on a day-to-day basis. I think the risk is part of the thrill. That’s probably what drives us every day to continue to build.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ryzlabs.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryzlabs/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ryzlabs/
