# Laoshi Financial Model Mobile app providing vocabulary and teaching tools for Mandarin Chinese learners and tutors - Canonical: https://finamodel.com/startups/laoshi - Excel download: https://finamodel.com/startup-models/laoshi.xlsx - Category: Marketplace - Model type: Marketplace / GMV - Funding round: Angel - Funding: $570K - Founded: 2023 - Geography: Not explicitly stated; team names suggest Eastern European origin; product targets global Mandarin learners - Customer: B2C ## About the company Laoshi is a mobile learning platform for Mandarin students and tutors. It offers vocabulary tools and teaching workflows today, with a roadmap toward tutor analytics, exercises, and a live lesson marketplace that connects learners and teachers directly. The app had 13,000 monthly active users, more than 290 registered teachers, 3,700-plus students learning Mandarin, and more than 200 paying subscribers. The initial commercial model is a student subscription introduced by tutors, while lesson commission is planned as a later revenue layer. The model uses tutor acquisition as the top of the funnel. Tutors bring students into annual subscriptions, so tutor cohorts, students per tutor, conversion, price, and teacher retention build ARR. Once live lessons launch, lesson GMV and commission are layered in, with tutor acquisition cost and student retention as the key sensitivities. ## What's included - 5-year monthly revenue build with stage-appropriate growth assumptions - Full P&L, headcount plan, and operating-expense schedule - Cash-flow statement, runway, and burn-rate tracking - Valuation via exit multiple with a DCF cross-check - Returns analysis with MOIC and IRR - Unit economics including CAC, LTV, payback, and cohort retention ## Product & value proposition Two-sided platform connecting Mandarin Chinese teachers/tutors with students: - For tutors: lesson preparation tools, vocabulary/flashcard builder, exercise builder, analytics, student acquisition channel - For students: vocabulary learning (SRS-style word tools), tutor matching, reduced prep time - Roadmap phases: - 2021: Tools for learning words (current) - 2022: Community, grammar wiki, beginner course - 2023: Analytics for tutors, exercise builder - 2024: Live teaching marketplace (commission revenue layer) - App available on iOS App Store and Google Play - Prior venture: sold 4,000+ copies of a Mandarin Chinese study book directly to consumers; ran 8 offline schools across multiple cities with 2,000+ students ## Market - 40 million people studying Chinese as a second language globally - 60,000+ Mandarin Chinese language teachers worldwide - Tutors handle 5–10 students; classroom teachers handle 30–200 students - Comparable deal: LingoAce raised $176M from Owl Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global (online live classes, ages 4–15) - No explicit TAM/SAM/SOM breakdown or dollar market-size figure in deck ## Revenue model Two revenue layers: 1. Student subscriptions via tutors: 1-year subscription at >$40/student; tutors each bring at least 5 students → ≥$200 ARR per tutor 2. Live lessons and courses (commission): future marketplace layer targeted for 2024 roadmap phase Target: 10,000 tutors → >$2M ARR from subscriptions alone; live lessons/courses commission to lift total to ≥$10M ARR Tutor acquisition cost: $50 ## Traction & metrics All from summary slide unless noted: - 1,200 DAU, 13K MAU - organic, word of mouth - 13K total users, 6.3K new users (October snapshot) - 3,700+ students learning Mandarin Chinese with Laoshi - 290+ teachers registered - Teacher count growth: ~40 (Oct '21) → ~110 (Apr '22) → ~250 (Sep '22), sharp acceleration Aug–Sep '22 - Teacher retention at 5 months: >40% - Teacher retention curve: 100% Month 0 → ~50% Month 1 → ~40% Month 2–4 (flattening - presented as PMF signal) - 200+ paying subscribers - Active user engagement: all users - 5 days/week; paying users - 6.5 days/week - Average time in app for active users: 6 hours/week - New user daily spikes: 150–375 new users/day in October (organic) - Growth is fully organic / word-of-mouth (no paid acquisition stated) ## Unit economics - Tutor CAC: $50 - Revenue per tutor (Year 1): ≥$200 (5 students × $40 annual subscription) - Payback on tutor CAC: implied <1 year at the stated subscription rate - Student subscription price: >$40/year ## Competition / moat Competitors shown in feature matrix: Duolingo, Skritter, Quizlet, LingoAce Feature dimensions compared: words, handwriting, SRS, textbooks, community, tools for tutors, focus on Chinese Laoshi's claimed advantages: only platform combining Mandarin-specific focus + SRS vocabulary + tutor-facing tools + community. Competitors either lack tutor tools (Duolingo, Quizlet) or lack broader student-facing learning features (LingoAce = live classes only). Moat: tutor network effects (tutors bring students); proprietary Mandarin-specific content/tooling; prior community from 8 offline schools and book sales. ## Team & funding ask / use of funds Team: - Sergei Kondrashov - CEO; Mandarin Chinese domain expert, teacher, author, school network - Danil Khasanshin - BDM; business development, team building, fundraising, prior exit - Natalia Sinitsyna - Content Director; content creation, tutoring, school management - Kostya Zakharenko - Product Designer; design system, visual style - Zaur Sundukov - CTO; AI/ML, patents, articles, Code Jam, Science Olympiad background Funding ask: $600k Goal: release stable version, become profitable, be ready to grow Use of funds: - Product Development: 60% ($360k) - Marketing and Sales: 20% ($120k) - Localizations: 10% ($60k) - SaaS and other: 10% ($60k) --- ## Recommended financial model - **Archetype + why:** Two-sided marketplace SaaS with a tutor-led GTM funnel. Primary metric is tutor count driving student subscriptions (ARR). Secondary layer is live-lesson marketplace GMV/commission (2024+). Best modelled as a **SaaS ARR model** with a tutor-cohort acquisition funnel in Phase 1, transitioning to a **marketplace GMV + take-rate** layer in Phase 2. Not a 3-statement model - the deck does not disclose cost structure beyond use-of-funds allocation; a full P&L would be largely fabricated. - **Forecast horizon & granularity:** Monthly for Year 1–2 (seed deployment + path to profitability is the stated goal); quarterly for Year 3–4 (marketplace ramp). 4-year horizon covers the full product roadmap through live marketplace launch. - **Key drivers & assumptions:** *Tutor acquisition* - Starting tutor base: 290 - Monthly new tutor adds: ~25–30/month - Tutor CAC: $50 - Monthly tutor churn: ~10% *Student monetisation* - Students per active tutor: 5 - Annual subscription price per student: $40 - Student attach rate (% of tutor's students who subscribe): - ARR per active tutor: $200 *Marketplace (Phase 2, 2024+)* - Commission rate on live lessons: - Average lesson price: - Lessons per tutor per month: *Cost structure* - $600k raised; burn allocation: 60% product ($360k), 20% marketing ($120k), 10% localisation ($60k), 10% SaaS/other ($60k) - Monthly burn rate: - Headcount: 5 co-founders identified; additional hires assumed with product development budget *Target milestones (stated)* - 10,000 tutors → $2M ARR from subscriptions - Live lessons/courses → $10M ARR total - **Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear):** - **Bear:** Tutor growth stalls at current organic rate (~20/month); student attach rate stays low (5–10%); marketplace delayed to 2025 - **Base:** Marketing spend accelerates tutor adds to 100–150/month post-raise; attach rate improves to 30–40%; marketplace launches on 2024 schedule - **Bull:** Viral teacher network effect (slide 13 organic spikes become norm); tutor adds 300+/month; marketplace take-rate monetises premium content - **Required sheets / outputs:** 1. Assumptions dashboard (all toggleable inputs) 2. Tutor cohort model (monthly adds, retention curve, active tutor count) 3. Student & subscriber model (students per tutor, attach rate, ARR waterfall) 4. Marketplace GMV model (Phase 2, 2024+) 5. Burn & runway model (use-of-funds budget vs revenue ramp) 6. Summary P&L (revenue, gross profit at assumed margin, EBITDA) 7. KPI summary: MAU, DAU, tutor count, paying subscribers, ARR, CAC, LTV, payback period ## Frequently asked questions ### Is the Laoshi financial model free? Yes. The Laoshi model is a free Excel download with live formulas. ### Can I change the assumptions? Yes. The workbook is editable and its live formulas recalculate when assumptions change.