New application from scratch in 2 months. Project history for the startup

Is a startup able to release its own app from scratch in two months? Of course it is, but only in cooperation with SlickCloud experts. It takes determination, expertise and cleverness to do so. In this case study, we will tell you the story of an ambitious project we completed for a real estate company. What challenge was thrown at us and how did we handle it? Read on and find out how we operate.

Need: scalable infrastructure in a cloud-native approach

A real estate startup approached us because they needed to build a reliable infrastructure, based fully on Google Cloud. Their goal was clear: create a platform that enables rapid scaling and efficient automation of the environment to make the application available to their clients as quickly as possible. The work also involved building a CI/CD and automating the environment.

The startup’s owner entrusted this task to SlickCloud’s experts for a clear reason – they wanted to avoid mistakes that could delay the app’s release. Although the matter was not urgent, it required us to act with precision in a short period of time.

The challenge: small budget, big ambitions

However, it was not the creation of the infrastructure itself that was our main challenge, but the circumstances under which we were to do it. We had to design and deploy a completely new infrastructure from scratch in a very short time and with a limited budget. The task was not made easier by the fact that the client was a startup, and that means limited financial resources and high investor pressure. For this reason, we had to find optimal solutions and use cloud services in such a way that they generate the lowest possible costs, while doing it all in the shortest possible time. Have we managed to deal with it? See below.

The solution: How did we reach our goal?

Before we started our work, we first thoroughly researched our client’s needs in order to get a sense of the intended features of the application we were to create. Based on the information we gathered, we prepared a work plan. Then we were fully ready to launch the project.

Our efforts focused on building a comprehensive platform on Google Cloud, for which we used Terraform for IaC. A key component became Kubernetes, which served as the chassis for most applications. In parts of the system where instant scaling was required, we used serverless services, which, by scaling down to zero, also significantly reduced costs. In turn, the deployment of CI/CD allowed us to reduce application deployment errors and speed up the introduction of new changes, which had a direct impact on the speed of development of the entire platform.

It should be also noted that we additionally worked closely with our client’s developers while building a functional and fault-free platform. From start to finish, we introduced them to the new environment in order for them to get the most out of cloud environments.

The result: infrastructure and application ready in 2 months

It soon became clear that the results of our work exceeded expectations. We completed the project on time and on budget, but that was not the most important achievement. Already within the first three weeks of starting work, we were able to create the first MVP (Minimal Viable Product), and after just two months we had a ready-made platform to share with clients.

How did we accomplish this? The combination of our experience and the use of Google Cloud’s “off-the-shelf building blocks” allowed us to quickly and efficiently build solutions that perfectly matched with the client’s needs. By deploying CI/CD, we have reduced application errors and accelerated the implementation of new changes. This translated into faster development of the app and its earlier release.

The client who contracted us for this task praised not only the results of our work, but also the cooperation process. They appreciated our flexibility and openness to change, which ensured that they could scale the application in the future.

Summary

This case study hows that when working with SlickCloud, even a startup with a limited budget can quickly and efficiently implement high-tech solutions and thus accelerate the growth of its business. If you also want to conquer the market with your own cloud-based application, contact us and let’s get started now.