We are living in the age of subscriptions. From streaming dramas on Netflix to ordering household goods through e-commerce services like Coupang, subscriptions have become a seamless part of daily life. The subscription economy continues to expand into areas we never previously imagined.
Recognizing this shift, three students at Brigham Young University in Idaho saw strong potential in the subscription model. Nickolas Hepworth, Jae Hyun Kim, and Aoi Kuriki identified a specific need: helping local businesses turn one-time customers into loyal, returning ones. In response, they founded Subitt, a platform that enables small businesses to launch and manage subscription offerings. Their idea won first place at the Idaho Entrepreneur Challenge 2024.
In January 2025, the Subitt team moved their base to Utah and established operations in the state’s emerging tech hub known as Silicon Slopes. The service is currently active in both Idaho and Utah. In a video interview, COO Jae Hyun Kim shared the team’s mission: “There are no subscription management tools that effectively allow local businesses to create and sell subscriptions. This is the problem we’re working to solve.”
Coffee Shops, Gyms, and More: Subitt for Local Business Subscriptions
| Q. What is Subitt? |
Subitt is an online tool designed to help underserved local businesses offer and manage subscription services—especially those that have never had the opportunity to do so. For example, many of the businesses we currently work with include coffee shops, soda shops, pet salons, car detailers, and daycares. However, our platform is relevant for any business with a standardized product or service. We enable these small businesses to create and manage subscriptions in a flexible way that fits their specific needs.
| Q. How is your business model structured? |
We operate under multiple revenue models, from transaction-based fees to flat monthly subscription rates. Each seller can choose a pricing plan that best suits their business.
In the future, we plan to introduce additional revenue streams. One example is allowing businesses to promote their storefronts or product listings on our platform for better visibility, similar to how sponsored ads appear on Google. However, this feature will be introduced once there is sufficient demand from sellers seeking increased exposure.
| Q. Which regions does Subitt currently serve? |
We initially launched in Idaho and later relocated to Utah. At the moment, our operations are concentrated in these two regions but we have plans to expand along the West Coast, including California, Nevada, and the Seattle area in Washington.
Our long-term vision includes national expansion across the United States, and potentially into international markets such as South Korea and Japan. One of our co-founders is Japanese, and I have several friends in Korea who often tell me that our service would be a great fit there. Still, our top priority is to achieve clearly defined metrics in our current regions before branching out.
| Q. Among the industries using Subitt, which categories have shown the strongest customer engagement? |
We’ve seen the most active engagement from coffee shops and soda shops which are particularly big in Utah. These businesses have provided consistent feedback and demonstrated strong interest in working with us.
What we’ve learned is that many of these business owners are entrepreneurial themselves. They resonate with our mission of strengthening local communities and turning one-time customers into loyal, committed customers.
One of the key challenges with subscriptions is that the businesses need to find a way to standardize their product because subscription is a repeat transaction every set period of time. This varies significantly by industry. In coffee shops, for instance, customers always want to try something new, making it hard to define a fixed subscription model. Unlike coffee shops, pet salons charge different prices depending on the dog’s breed, fur length, or grooming needs, making it difficult to standardize the service.
So our task is to strike the right balance between providing each business with enough flexibility to design subscriptions that fit their unique needs and maintaining a product general enough for everyone to use.
Student Startup and the Power of a Visionary CEO
| Q. What motivated your focus on subscription models and small businesses? |
The idea started with our CEO, who initially wanted to sell protein supplements via subscription but couldn’t find a suitable platform. He decided to build one himself and a few of us joined him. As we developed the idea, we realized that many local businesses struggled to build a loyal customer base unlike larger platforms like Amazon that can easily support subscriptions with their vast resources.
We are currently undergoing a pivot. Our original business model was a subscription marketplace where users could browse and buy from a range of local subscription offerings. However, user feedback showed us that businesses were looking for a management solution rather than a marketplace. So, we transitioned to developing a business-facing subscription management tool.
| Q. How have your team members’ diverse backgrounds influenced Subitt’s approach? |
We met while studying at a school in a small town in Idaho. It was a bit of a random coincidence, but we were lucky to form a team where each member brought strong entrepreneurial drive and some experience in their respective fields. I’m more of a generalist with experience in both tech and business, while my co-founders specialize in tech, marketing, and sales.
So we had a strong founder group that had really good talent in each of the respective fields that could build a company, and we learned to communicate effectively with one another and collaborate to work on those things.
| Q. Many student teams attempt startups. From your experience, what does it take to turn a student project into a sustainable business? |
In my opinion, the role of the CEO is absolutely critical. The CEO sets the vision and holds the most responsibility for steering the company. It starts from the top.
That said, no one can do it alone. You need a team that is entrepreneurial, but not necessarily full of competing visionaries. Having multiple people with conflicting visions often leads to conflict and eventual collapse. That’s something I’ve seen firsthand and heard echoed by other startup founders in Utah.
The CEO should clearly define the product and business vision. Of course, team input is valuable, and the CEO should be flexible enough to adjust the vision based on constructive feedback. But it can’t just be a free-for-all.
Utah’s Startup Scene and the Value of Local Networks
| Q. Why did you choose Utah over more traditional startup hubs? |
A lot of big companies from San Francisco have moved to Utah. There’s a growing startup community here called Silicon Slope, kind of like a newer version of Silicon Valley. There are a lot of startups, incubators, and organizations that support early-stage companies, like Sandbox and others. Of course, the overall level of resources and support still isn’t quite comparable to San Francisco, but it’s definitely a growing startup scene.
I haven’t spent much time in other startup communities to make a detailed comparison, but from what I’ve seen, it’s easier to gain access and network here. Especially for college students and young entrepreneurs. As a Korean American, there are many Korean American founders here in Utah so I also found it easier to connect with them.
Utah is a really good place for startups, and we want to take full advantage of that. I do see Utah as our long-term base with our company being centered here even if we successfully expand to other regions.
| Q. Are you receiving any support as a startup from Utah? |
We do receive support, though it’s mostly in the form of mentorship rather than hands-on assistance. We’ve had to learn a lot through trial and error ourselves. Luckily, we already had some experience with the business side of things from a young age, so we were fortunate with our co-founder group.
| Q. When building a community-based service in the U.S., what factors need special attention compared to Korea? In Korea, the concept of ‘local community’ often refers to a much smaller scale. |
I will say the same thing. Also the idea of community varies significantly across regions. The U.S. is vast, and each state and city has a different culture. I’ve lived on the West Coast, East Coast, and now in the central region, and all three have felt very different.
For example, in Utah, word of mouth is still incredibly powerful. People tend to learn about services through personal recommendations rather than online platforms. In contrast, California where I grew up is much more online-driven.
| Q. Then how do you approach local customer loyalty? |
We’ve definitely struggled with that question. One key insight we’ve acted on is the importance of securing a few early users and building strong relationships with them. If they love the product and develop a good relationship with us, they’ll naturally tell their friends.
We’re also considering implementing a referral program to encourage that kind of organic growth. Here in Utah, person-to-person referrals remain one of the most effective marketing strategies. That said, if and when we expand to the West Coast, we plan to tailor our approach to match regional behaviors.
| Q. What advice would you give to Korean entrepreneurs looking to enter the U.S. market? |
From what I’ve seen, and from conversations with friends in Korea, networking is crucial anywhere but even more so in the U.S., especially in Utah. People often won’t invest in your company unless they know you personally, maybe through golf or dinner. That might be similar to Korea, but the intensity and scale are different here.
If you look at most of the American entrepreneurs like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, they both received their initial funding from people they already knew, not external investors. Looking back, one thing we could have done better was focusing earlier on building meaningful connections.
| Q. What is Subitt’s biggest current challenge, and what is your long-term vision? |
Currently, there are no subscription management tools that effectively allow local businesses to create and sell subscriptions. We’re trying to help these businesses do that in a quality way without overpriced fees, unnecessary complexity, or hidden features. Subscriptions are sometimes associated with negative perceptions, and that’s something we want to change. This is the problem we’re working to solve right now.
Since we’re in the middle of a pivot, our current goal is to keep developing the product as we receive continuous feedback and iteration from our users on what they want, what they need, and how our product can serve them better. From there, we want to make sure our initial group of users loves the product and our team, and then start moving toward hitting our target metrics in Utah.
We plan to reach that goal organically, by gradually growing our sales and marketing team and expanding across different regions in Utah over the next three to five years. After that, we plan to expand to the West Coast.
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