9. Assumptions and Open Inputs
Date: 30 Sept 2026
The idea came as one catalog row (../../_research/2026-09-30-micro-saas-idea-catalog.md, E4). Team, location, hours, budget and traction were not supplied. Here's what I assumed, and how the verdict changes if each assumption is wrong.
9.1 Assumptions made
| Input | Assumption used | If actually different… |
|---|---|---|
| Target customer | Licensed dog home boarders and small day cares in England | Kennels and catteries first: higher ticket, but you meet Revelation Pets and KennelBooker head-on. Lower odds below $5k, similar above. |
| Geography | England | Scotland: boarding is under the 1963 Act, a different spec. US: the as-described odds apply. |
| Pricing | £19 / £39 / £69, blended | If boarders pay £29+ for Solo, customer counts drop by a third, and every rung above $3k gains a few points. If they won't pay £15, stop. |
| Exchange rate | ~$1.35 per £ | A weaker pound lowers the dollar ladder by the same proportion. Check the rate. |
| Stage | Idea. No code, no users, no revenue | Any paying licence holders change the conversation from idea to evidence. |
| Team | One developer, no licence-holder background | A founder or co-founder who holds a licence is the biggest single improvement (the ×0.6 penalty goes away). |
| Location | Unknown | Outside the UK: condition 2 applies (≥5 weekly hours in UK business hours), and association events are harder. |
| Hours per week available | Two plans: ~15 hrs/week, and full-time | Under 10 hrs/week: treat the ~15 hrs/week column as roughly halved above $3k. |
| Market size | 8,000–15,000 licence holders in reach (unverified) | If the real count is ~4,000, the $10k rung needs 6% of the market and the odds roughly halve. If 20,000+, they rise modestly. |
| Churn | ≤2.5% monthly after month 6, with annual plans and an archive plan | At 4–5%, the $5k+ rungs are out of reach at ~15 hrs/week. |
| Competitor depth | Incumbents don't yet produce a register-exact inspection pack for home boarders | If the day-45 test shows they do, stop or become an add-on. |
| Funding | None, bootstrapped | Money doesn't change the advice. It changes how long you can afford to be wrong. |
9.2 Inputs that would change the verdict most (please supply)
- Hours per week available, and whether you can work in UK business hours.
- Your location, and whether you've ever lived or worked in the UK.
- Access to a licence holder: a home boarder, day-care owner or kennel owner who would advise.
- Any existing relationship with the Association of Dog Boarders, a council licensing team, or a pet-industry body.
- Budget and runway, for hosting, a UK company or address if needed, and advisor fees.
- Why this idea: any personal link to dog boarding predicts whether you'll stick with a small-ticket, patient business.
9.3 Definitions used throughout
- Licence holder: a business holding an animal activity licence in England for boarding cats or dogs (kennels, home boarding, day care) under the 2018 Regulations.
- Home boarder: a licence holder boarding dogs in their own home.
- Blended price: average monthly revenue per paying account after annual-plan discounts.
- Churn: monthly logo churn among paying accounts.
- Tier A / Tier B / MRR ladder: as defined in 01.