Case Study
Creating Autonomy in the Digital Asset Music Space
Rarez, a spin-off of Emanate, started in earlty 2020 with the purpose of leveraging the digital asset movement to create a series of digital collection cards for fans of various artists.
OBJECTIVE
Rarez, a spin-off of Emanate, started in early 2020 with the purpose of leveraging the digital asset movement to create a series of digital collection cards for fans of various artists. Co-founder Trent Shaw explains, “It was very similar to the old basketball card packets. You open up a packet and it comes with various types of rarities, etc.”
The first project was with Deadmau5, followed by a collaboration with Weezer on their 14th studio album “Okay Human.” Rarez, focusing on the music industry, planned to expand by developing more digital asset series and aimed to improve its customer experience while reducing dependency on the third parties. For these developments, Rarez decided to collaborate with the development team at Rewired.one.
ABSTRACT
This case study chronicles Rarez, an Emanate spin-off, and its mission to create digital collection cards for music fans through projects with artists like Deadmau5 and Weezer. Rarez aimed to construct a self-reliant user experience, eliminating heavy reliance on third parties. Faced with challenges, including end-to-end solution development, high public chain deployment costs, and team knowledge continuity, Rarez collaborated with Rewired.one, experts in public blockchains and the music industry. This partnership led to an autonomous onboarding platform, granting Rarez significant control over the entire asset series production process. Benefits included substantial cost savings, strategic knowledge sharing, and flexibility in staffing. Despite sunsetting after its second series, the case highlights the profitability and efficiency an autonomous digital asset platform can offer in the music space.
1
THE PROBLEM
Rarez faced several challenges. Firstly, they wanted to build a new user experience from scratch and reduce outside dependency. They wanted to build a complete solution, from frontend to backend while creating a unique and seamless user experience. Secondly, they aimed to reduce costs of public chain deployments. Lastly, they aimed to ensure knowledge continuity within their development team due to the potential departure of key developers. They needed experienced developers who understood public blockchains and the Music 3.0 space.
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THE SOLUTION
Rewired.one was introduced to provide a solution to these problems. They helped Rarez in building out an onboarding platform and developing a complete end-to-end solution. Shaw explains that Rarez wanted to “build out that front and back end to be able to do the whole process without reliance” on others. In other words, Rarez gained a level of autonomy from reliance on third-party systems and public blockchains. They reduced dependency and ensured the continuity of knowledge within the development team. The new system facilitated more control.
Rewired.one’s expertise and familiarity with public blockchains and the music industry played a crucial role in the development of the new platform. The initial costs of development were justified as a cost-saving measure, as it significantly reduced the portion of sales revenue paid for outsourcing. The autonomy that was created made room for greater revenue
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RESULTS & BENEFITS
The collaboration with Rewired.one brought several benefits to Rarez. It resulted in more control over the processes, from the initiation to the end of each series, which was a crucial factor for Rarez. The new solution was a significant commercial advantage, as it significantly reduced the public chain fees paid.
The partnership with Rewired.one not only resulted in a functional solution but also helped Rarez scale their operations, maintain continuity of knowledge, and work flexibly. Their understanding and transparency have been highly valued, making them a recommended partner for companies looking for a development team familiar with specific industries or chains, such as the music industry within the Web 3.0 space. Shaw explains, “Rewired.one had been working across the music space before we jumped into Rarez.” They had “the familiarity and understanding of the setup of what we were working on in the musical landscape. That’s quite a tricky niche to find.”
The benefits and results of this project are:
- Building a Standalone Platform: Rarez wanted to create a user experience that wasn’t reliant on public chain infrastructure, which required a lot of technical knowledge and work. With the help of Rewired.one, they were able to build their own onboarding platform for series two, providing them more control over the entire process.
- Knowledge Sharing: One of the key benefits was the ability of Rewired.one to share knowledge and provide consistent support to the Rarez team, reducing the company’s reliance on individual key developers. This knowledge sharing helped ensure the smooth running of their operations, even if a developer decided to move on or take a break.
- Cost Savings: Rewired.one helped Rarez build a platform that would have been cost-saving if Rarez had continued to use it for further digital asset launches. Initially, a large percentage of sales (30-40%) was saved. Creating their own platform reduced their cost, making each mint more profitable.
- Understanding of the Public Chain and the Music Space: Rarez appreciated that Rewired.one had a solid understanding of the public chain, which was the underlying technology for their platform. Moreover, the Rewired.one team had experience working in the music space, allowing for a more seamless collaboration.
- Flexible Resourcing: Rarez found that working with Rewired.one allowed for greater flexibility in staffing. This enabled Rarez to pivot as needed, rather than maintaining a full roster of full-time employees.
“Rewired.one has been a fantastic asset to the business. They’ve helped us scale where we’ve needed to scale. They’ve been understanding and transparent. I recommend Rewired.one to anybody who’s considering supporting a team– whether it’s having a full remote team working through Rewired.one, or supporting the team you’ve already built but not ready to take that next step in the hiring process. Commercially, it’s been good for us in a number of ways. Rather than having full-time employees at all times, it allows you to pivot more. I highly recommend anybody who’s looking for overflow, or building out a team, to speak to Rewired.one.”
Trent Shaw
Co-Founder, Rarez
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