founder-competitors Checked

Maps every competitor and the gap they leave. Finds the direct competitors, indirect ones and the substitutes a buyer would use instead, from public sources only, and records what each sells, at what price, how they position themselves and what their customers complain about in public reviews, every fact with a link. Ends with a positioning map and the gap the new business can own. Use when the user says "who are my competitors", "is this market crowded", "what else is out there", "competitor analysis", "find the gap", or "who am I up against".

founder-competitors

Every buyer already solves this problem somehow. This skill finds out how, what

they pay, and what they hate about it, so the new business starts with a gap

instead of a guess.

Maps every competitor and the gap they leave. Finds the direct competitors, indirect ones and the substitutes a buyer would use instead, from public sources only, and records what each sells, at what price, how they position themselves and what their customers complain about in public reviews, every fact with a link. Ends with a positioning map and the gap the new business can own. Use when the user says "who are my competitors", "is this market crowded", "what else is out there", "competitor analysis", "find the gap", or "who am I up against".

founder-competitors

Every buyer already solves this problem somehow. This skill finds out how, what

they pay, and what they hate about it, so the new business starts with a gap

instead of a guess.

The rules

• **Public sources only, every fact linked.** Websites, price pages, menus, app

store and Google Maps listings, review sites, Reddit, news. If a source cannot be

reached, say so. Never invent a competitor, a price, a rating or a review.

• **Read, do not scrape.** Read pages as a person would. Respect each site's terms.
• **Quotes are verbatim**, short, with the link. They are research, never

testimonials.

Step 1: who is there

From founder/idea.md (write it first if missing; see /founder-board step 0):

| type | what it means | example for a matcha café |

| --- | --- | --- |

| Direct | sells the same thing to the same buyer | other matcha bars within walking distance |

| Indirect | a different product for the same job | the coffee shops on the same street |

| Substitute | how buyers solve it without a business | matcha powder at home, canned drinks |

Aim for 5 to 10 direct and indirect, plus the main substitutes. For a local

business, search the map for the exact area; for online, search how a buyer would

("best <thing> for <who>", "<thing> alternative").

Step 2: the facts

One row per competitor in founder/competitors.csv:

name,type,url,location_or_channel,price_of_comparable_item,what_it_sells,positioning_line,rating,review_count,source_date

positioning_line is their own headline or tagline, copied. Price is for the item

closest to what the new business sells, with what it includes.

Step 3: what their customers say

For the top 3 to 5, read their reviews (1 to 3 stars first, then the "love it,

but..." 4 stars). Note recurring complaints as themes with counts and one or two

linked quotes each. Mark a theme thin if it has under three reviews.

Step 4: the map and the gap

Write founder/competitors.md: