Curate LabsCurate Labs

Research

Market Facets

A better way to reason about differences inside SMB markets.

A small-business market is not only a category. It is a local operating pattern shaped by who owns the business, how customers arrive, what work must happen repeatedly, and where decisions get stuck.

Core Questions

  • Which differences between businesses change the advice they need?

  • How do owner style, local demand, customer motion, and staffing constraints change the operating model?

  • Where do industry labels hide important differences between otherwise similar businesses?

Artifacts

  • Market facet taxonomies.

  • Operator-context interview guides.

  • Segmentation notes for HatTrick workflows.

What It Means

Where It Shows Up

Operator Segmentation

Segment SMB operators by actual operating constraints, not only NAICS codes or generic verticals.

Workflow Design

Tune product workflows around the customer, revenue, staffing, and compliance patterns that repeat inside a market.

Comparable Context

Help advisors and portfolio teams compare companies without flattening local context.

Why It Matters

How This Research Gets Used

Applied

Product direction

Research themes shape product workflows, internal evaluation, and open-source implementation choices.

Evidence

Reviewable decisions

The work emphasizes assumptions, provenance, and feedback loops that humans can inspect.

Browse Research

A better way to reason about differences inside SMB markets.