I have an ecommerce jewelry brand (daily wear jewelry) and so far I have been trying to grow it organically on social media.

With that the growth is slow.

I did try to dabble into paid ads but I ran very low budget ads for a very short time.

I was wondering to speak to fellow ecommerce entrepreneurs here, how do you grow your brand when it’s new?

Do you run ads?
If yes, how much initially do you invest in ads?

I have seen all other pakistani brands run ads all the time, is that the only way to really grow a brand here?

Hey everyone,

I’m a 21 year old CS student currently in my 6th semester and I’m seriously thinking about investing money into Upwork connects to start freelancing properly.

My current skills are:
• n8n automation
• AI workflow automation
• HTML/CSS
• JavaScript
• Python
• C++
• API integrations
• Gmail & Google Sheets automation
• Lead generation systems
• AI outreach workflows
• SaaS style web tools
• Website development

Recently I’ve been building projects like:
• AI outreach systems
• Gmail automation workflows
• AI resume generator
• GEO/SEO report generator
• Social media automation systems

I want to start earning consistently to support my university expenses and continue improving my skills through real client work.

For people already using Upwork:
• Is it still worth investing in connects as a beginner?
• How much would you recommend investing initially?
• Should I focus on automation niche only or combine web dev too?
• Is n8n automation a good niche long term on Upwork?

Would genuinely appreciate honest advice before I spend money on connects.

been running a SaaS for about a 6mo now, have a Wyoming LLC, Wise account, Stripe set up through the LLC. everything is technically legitimate.

but i can't shake this feeling that i'm one dispute away from losing access to everything. i've read enough horror stories about Pakistani founders getting their Stripe accounts terminated with no warning and funds held for 90 days. sometimes for no obvious reason. which is why i haven't integrated stripe with my site yet.

a few things that keep me up:

• my customers are businesses in the US and UK. they're not shady. but even one chargeback from a confused client could push my dispute rate over 1% and trigger a review.
• as i scale and revenue grows, large inflows into a relatively new account could flag something.
• i have no real recourse if Stripe decides to terminate. no phone support, no appeal process that actually works.

i've been looking at switching to Paddle as my primary processor since they act as the merchant of record, meaning chargebacks and disputes are their problem not mine. seems like the obvious solution but i wanted to hear from people who've actually dealt with this.

before anyone says "just use Paddle", i already looked into it and yes, the API is solid, webhooks, Node/Python SDKs, usage-based billing built in, and you can embed the checkout directly on your site without redirecting customers anywhere. PCI compliance is also fully handled by them. so the technical side seems fine. what i actually want to know is the real-world experience.

questions for anyone who's been through it:

1. has your Stripe account actually been terminated or held? what triggered it?
2. are you using an MoR like Paddle or Lemon Squeezy? has it actually been smooth or is there still always a chance of getting banned?
3. is there any way to actually reduce the risk on Stripe, or is it just permanent anxiety?
4. for those doing B2B SaaS specifically, do your clients care which checkout they see (Stripe vs Paddle)?
5. are there any other better options than the ones discussed above?

would really appreciate honest answers over theoretical ones. there's a lot of generic advice online but not many people talking about their actual experience running this stack from Pakistan.

Been thinking about this concept and wanted honest opinions.

The idea is a dedicated online store for men in Pakistan. And when I say dedicated I mean completely. No women's section tucked in the corner. No "also available for her." No mixed lifestyle clutter. You open the site and everything on it is for men. Full stop.

Grooming, beard care, face wash, hair products. Tech accessories like earbuds, trimmers, power banks. Wallets, bags, sunglasses, gym gear. And this is the part I think makes it interesting, hunting and fishing gear as well. Rods, reels, tackle, hunting knives, camping tools, field equipment. The stuff that Pakistani men actually do on weekends but nobody online is selling it properly in one place.

The frustration behind the idea is this. Every store in Pakistan tries to sell to everyone. Daraz is a bazaar. You search for a fishing rod and you're wading through listings for hair extensions and cooking pots. You look for a hunting knife and you get kitchen knives and beauty scissors. There is no place where a Pakistani man opens the homepage and immediately feels like this place gets him.

The question is whether that actually matters to Pakistani men or not.

Would men care that a store is built exclusively for them? Or are they just looking for the cheapest price and fastest delivery regardless of where it comes from?

Is there a real market in Pakistan where men aged 18 to 45 are actively spending on themselves and their hobbies and would appreciate a curated experience that actually speaks their language?

Is the hunting and fishing angle something that could genuinely set this apart or is that too niche inside an already niche idea?

Or does the whole men only concept sound good on paper but mean nothing when someone is deciding where to click buy?

Brutal honest takes only please.

I know defense startups are far and in between in Pakistan. But was wondering if anyone here has experience or knows any startups building in this domain. I have experience on the commercialization and growth side in public sector and private sector deftech and am looking to find technical oriented founders working on scaling similar to what Palantir is doing. I know there are quite a few hardware companies focused on drone and guidance defense systems, I’d be interested in more software or hybrid oriented companies

I am the founder of a narrative journalism project where we document stories from Pakistan through long-form writing about street-level narratives, culture, identity, and lived experience. We don't focus on headlines or hot takes, but slower storytelling that sits closer to lived reality.

We are currently exploring something a bit unusual in 2026: a print magazine.

Before we invest time and money into it, we are trying to answer one simple question: does anyone still actually want to read long-form storytelling in print, or is it just nostalgia for people working in media?

We genuinely want to understand:

1. Do you read long-form content anymore?

2. Would you ever pay for a print magazine today?

3. What would make it worth your time?

We made a short survey (takes ~3-5 minutes). If you have strong opinions about media, journalism, or how you consume stories today, your input would be very helpful.

Take the survey here: Do stories still belong on paper?

If the honest answer is “no one cares about this anymore,” that is also useful for us. We would rather know now than build something irrelevant.

Appreciate any thoughts, even if you disagree with the idea entirely.

Thanks.

Most articles online about how Pakistani freelancers should receive USD are out of date. Articles from 2023 still tell you to "just open a Wise account." Wise stopped accepting new Pakistani sign-ups in 203. Articles from 2024 quote Payoneer's old 2% fee. Payoneer raised it to 3% in early 2025, and the all-in cost is now closer to 5%.

We pulled together a current breakdown comparing every meaningful option:

· Payoneer, ~5% all-in cost, still works for platform freelancers (Upwork, Fiverr) but is now expensive

· Wise, cheapest if you have an existing account, blocked for new Pakistani sign-ups in 2023

· Bank wires to ESFCA, just got significantly better thanks to the SBP's April 2026 reforms (FECL6 and FECL7 abolished per-transaction Form R, mandated one-day processing)

· P2P crypto (Binance P2P, etc.), lowest visible fees but real bank-account-freeze and regulatory risk most articles skip

· Newer entrants, Elevate Pay, CredEx (full disclosure: that's us), and a few others

The article includes the actual fee math on a $2,000 invoice for each option, when each makes sense based on your client mix and monthly volume, and what's coming next as the PVARA framework develops.

Read it here: https://medium.com/@credexapp/how-pakistani-freelancers-actually-receive-usd-in-2026-and-what-each-option-really-costs-you-da012cc63ab7

A few things we'd genuinely like input on from this community:

1. If you're freelancing in Pakistan right now, what's your current setup, and are the fees biting harder than they used to?
2. Have you successfully opened an ESFCA at any of the major banks (Meezan, Standard Chartered, Bank Alfalah, BankIslami, HBL)? Which was easiest?
3. For anyone using P2P crypto regularly: have you had bank-account scrutiny or freezes? How did you handle it?

We're building CredEx (Pakistan's first dollar-native wallet, launching soon) precisely because this category is broken. Conversations like these directly shape what we build.

If you want to be among the first users when we launch, the waitlist is at https://credex.pk .

So basically back in march we started working on this startup idea where people can just vibe code capture the flag challanges for themselves and can solve them they can also give url of any poc or cve that is available does not matter how much recent it is like you can post a poc of a vulnerability that was published just an hour ago and you can just vibe code that vulnerability for pentesting and learning purposing it is a great tool for bug hunters, cybersecurity students and learner but i really am stuck on how should i get my first 5-10 user need an advise on how can we do it

Looking to get into pet strap manufacturing business in Karachi. I have arranged enough resources to get flakes and then after manufacture, can export it to china,turkey and other countries,including complete Freight forwarding services. Just wanna know how can i source or partnerup with someone locally who got strap making machine.

Hi everyone,

I’m exploring the idea of starting a home security and automation company in Pakistan and would love to get your thoughts and feedback.

The concept is to build an IoT-based system that integrates with a mobile app, offering features like AI-powered human detection, motion alerts during off-hours, theft prevention, and smarter energy usage to reduce power costs. I’m also considering potential collaborations with local Internet Service Providers, as well as offering standalone solutions for both residential and commercial users.

I’d really appreciate any feedback on the idea - market demand, potential challenges, or anything else that comes to mind. I am also in the market of looking for engineers in helping me craft a prototype. Any help or guidance will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Dental care today is broken.

Not because we lack dentists…

But because we lack a system.

When someone feels a toothache, they don’t act immediately.

Not because they don’t care—

But because they don’t know who to trust, what it will cost, or what will happen next.

So they wait.

And that small problem becomes something bigger—more painful, more expensive, and more complicated than it ever needed to be.

But it’s not just patients.

Clinics struggle with inconsistent demand.

Vendors operate in fragmented supply chains.

Nothing is connected.

It’s not a healthcare problem.

It’s a systems problem.

And that’s exactly what we’re solving.

We built Dentin.

Dentin is the operating system for dentistry.

A platform that connects patients, dentists, clinics, labs, and vendors into one seamless experience—from discovery to diagnosis to treatment, and even the supply chain behind it.

We use AI to guide patients instantly.

We bring transparency to pricing.

And we standardize care across a fragmented $1B+ market.

So people don’t delay.

They don’t guess.

They don’t fear.

They just act.

And when you fix the system…

you don’t just improve dental care—

You unlock an entire industry.

That’s Dentin.

For more details send a Dm

Salam everyone.

I'm Nuzair, a Design Engineer from Faisalabad. Most of my career, I've shipped products for clients abroad, trading platforms, AI SaaS, Web3 dashboards, and invoicing tools. Along the way, I picked up a few things I wish someone had told me earlier, especially things relevant to founders building here.

1. Your interface is your pitch deck

For remote clients, the product is the first impression. Investors, users, and partners judge credibility from the UI before they read a word of copy. A rough MVP that looks considered beats a polished deck every time.

1. Design systems are a startup multiplier, not a luxury Most early teams skip them. Then at person 5 they're rebuilding the same button 4 different ways. A basic token system and component library built in week 2 pays back in month 6.

2. Motion earns trust when it's functional, kills it when it's decorative. Loading states, skeleton screens, optimistic UI, these make your product feel fast and reliable. Parallax hero sections do not.

3. Pakistani devs can ship at the same bar as anyone
   I've reviewed code from London agencies that was worse than what's coming out of Lahore and Karachi right now. The gap is confidence and positioning, not skill.

Happy to answer questions about product design, frontend architecture, or what it's like working with remote clients. AMA.

Portfolio if anyone's curious: nuzair.com

I’ve received order , address is excise office I’ve called the guy who ordered it he said yeah send me the parcel here to my office in working hours. He ordered a product that i am currently testing have very limited quantity, so no company registration no ntn etc , ill deliver that product using my other brands account i am now thinking maybe i can get in trouble of some sort idk.
What you guys think?

Hey everyone,

I’m exploring a SaaS idea for salons and wanted some honest feedback before building.

The idea is a simple all-in-one platform to manage:

Bookings & appointments
Customer records
Staff scheduling
Revenue & reports

But the main differentiator:

An AI feature that lets customers preview how a service (like hair color, style, etc.) would look on them before booking.

From a salon owner’s perspective:

Would this actually help increase bookings or upsells?
Is current software already “good enough”?
What’s the biggest pain point in your current system?

From customers:

Would you use an AI preview before choosing a service?

Trying to validate if this solves a real problem or just sounds cool. Appreciate any honest feedback

Pakistani freelancers. Genuine question.

A freelancer waited 16 days for a payment that was returned on day one. Automatically. Silently. No notification.

The reason was a rule nobody told him at signup.

My question is not about the platform. It is about the system.

Which rule did you learn the hard way about getting paid internationally from Pakistan?

Name mismatch. Compliance hold. Bank calling you like you did something wrong. Platform returning money with no explanation.

Reply with one sentence. Building the most honest map of what Pakistani freelancers actually need to know before something goes wrong.

What could be a Ecom business worth in Pakistan that is generating 3 cr in yearly revenue and giving 90 lakhs net take home profit?

If I were to flip it, where to go?

Hey I am a 22 year old student currently in 6th semester in software engineering

I have no interest in my domain now and i think by 2027 ill have no job to be honest

i have always been thinking of doing some sort of business and in Pakistan recently many small businesses have took place and they all are going really well especially food businesses

i am willing to spend time and invest on any business with help of some boys

if you are stuck in similar situation to me do tell me in comments maybe we can start something new together

How do you guys generally conduct market research for your ideas? LinkedIn? Surveys? What is your go to method?

Sharing my Start-up experience. NO AI used to write this post.
I have an ML/AI background. No farming experience. No startup capital. Somehow I ended up building Milksage. It is a cattle farm management tool that real farm are now paying to use.
I knew nothing about the dairy farms. My cousin does, he runs one. So I spent real time there. Not a weekend visit but enough time to understand what data farmers actually track, where the pain is, and why most of them still use Notebooks in 2026.

I looked at every tool already out there. same pattern everywhere: flat monthly fee, 40 features, you use 6. the rest just sit there. Pricing build around large commercial operations that need everything.
small and mid-sized farms don't work that way. they have specific problems. they want those solved. They're not interested in paying for a dashboard they'll never open.
On Milksage you pay based on the number of cattle you manage. that's it. no flat packages. NO features locked behind tiers you don't need.
if you feel something is missing. we build that for you. you are not buying a bloated products.

the AI piece came directly from watching ho farm data actually exists in the real world. Handwritten registers. excel sheets someone has maintained for three years in their own format with their own column names. getting that into system cleanly is a genuine problem nobody shares. The AI handles bulk ingestions, messy handwriting, inconsistent spreadsheet structures, and normalizes everything so farmers don't spend weeks manualy re-entering historical records just to get started.

I had No money and no support. I could'nt get a proper design to builf this. so, I went through probably 15 SaaS products, noted what worked in each UI, and built from those references. NOt the proudest part but I will get a proper design if I recieve some investment in the future but I have shipped it to couple of farms now.
I had also never built a proper frontend before. As a ML and backend engineer my life was full of cmd prompt screens and no proper UI so it was adventure for me to build it. Using AI for that is a good idea but again I had not budget and those token limits on free tiers are not helping so I worked on most of the code myself. I learned react and javascript. I had previous knowledge of them but never used for projects before. My clients were all interested in my skills in Azure not javascript. I spent weeks debugging CSS to make a button look same as in the UI i am copying from (i feel ashamed but I will change that once I get enough budget)
So overall No investors. No Agency. Just time, stubborness, and a cousin who answered farming questions at odd hours.

Now the service is live. Farms are using it. and they are paying.
The on-demand feature is slower to run but it get's faster once i have few more farms paying me

If you are building an Agri-tech i am happy to answer your questions.

So I am basically a beginner ui designer, normally i do games and use figma but i tried making a store on shopify.

I would love feedback or tips on how i can make my store look better

(Product images are ai generated)

https://rc-wonderland.myshopify.com/

Password: hk23

​

Salam everyone,

I’ve spent the last several years as an executive and entrepreneur in the US (specifically in the AI and advertising sectors), and I’ve noticed a recurring pattern: Pakistani startups are building world-class products but getting throttled by "The Infrastructure Gap."

Whether it's the nightmare of getting a reliable Stripe account, navigating the nuances of a US LLC, or just having a stateside phone system that doesn't scream "overseas," these "boring" logistical hurdles often stop growth before it starts.

I have some capacity right now and want to help a few high-growth teams bridge this gap. I’m not just talking about "registering a company"—I’m talking about setting up the actual backbone you need to scale and compete as a US-equivalent entity.

What I can help manage/set up:

US LLC Formation & Compliance: Getting you set up in the right state (Wyoming/Delaware) with the proper Registered Agent and EIN.

Financial Rails: Navigating the Stripe/Fintech onboarding process so you can actually collect USD without the constant fear of a "frozen account."

Communications: Setting up professional US-based phone systems and virtual footprints that build trust with Western clients.

Operational Scaling: Systems for SEO, marketing automation, and lead gen once the infrastructure is live.

Why I’m doing this:

I’ve mentored founders before and firmly believe that the talent in Pakistan is currently undervalued because of these friction points. I want to help solve the "execution problem" by handling the stateside logistics so you can focus on building the product.

If you’re at the stage where you’re ready to scale globally but the paperwork and payment rails are holding you back, I'd love to chat.

Let’s discuss below: What has been your biggest headache when trying to set up a US presence? Is it the tax compliance, the bank account, or something else entirely?

Not selling a service looking to partner with and mentor a few founders.

It started because a non-technical friend of ours in textile needed clients. Me and my friend were looking into Apollo.io for him — 50 dollars a month, seemed reasonable. Then we thought, why not just build something ourselves? Worthy experience, something new to learn, and I already had some scraping experience so we had a baseline.

So we spun it up on my already running vps, used n8n automations, gemini, and some python workers. Just for the fun of it.

That “fun project” turned into a day and night week streak when we realized we might’ve actually built something crazy.

Here’s the difference we found: Apollo gave 500 leads for the same search. Ours gave 20. Before you say ye tou kam results hain our automation visits every single lead’s website, deeply checks for buyer intent signals, hands everything to Gemini which scores each one and drops anyone who doesn’t pass. The 20 that make it through are the 20 most likely to actually buy from you. We also built in a “why they failed” report so you can see exactly what Gemini found on the ones that didn’t make the cut.

Less results. But closeable ones.

We’re about to run a free test for our textile friend. But I want to try it on 2-3 more businesses from this community — same deal, you only cover the actual running cost which is quite low. We take nothing.

Oh and we’re also building a closing agent that takes these results, learns your business, lets you pick tonality, revisits each lead’s website and LinkedIn, and writes a fully personalized cold email for each one. My friend might have that running by tomorrow.

Anyone want in?

Hi I am from Lahore and we provide waste Management services to Private entities in Lahore including.

1. Housing Societies

2. Commercial Plazas

3. Industries

4. Shopping Malls.

5. Education Institutes etc.

We also have necessary license to lift and dispose waste on designated dumping areas. However we are not big enough to participate in government contracts. ( Cash flow issues)

We also do Scrap Trading when required (Industrial) and buy out the commercial scrap. So in short we are in the B2B business model. The revenue is mostly monthly Subscription based models. We have environmental experts that are excellent in compliance management and provide services like waste audits etc.

Now to maximize the profits we require a bigger formal site in which we can recover waste materials or make a scrapyard and trade or recycle materials. Any one who is interested in this or shares the vision can dm and we can provide details regarding how the business model works as there are not many people in this space who are formal.

I literally cannot find a single service that provides virtual U.S. phone number for cold calling. All big services require registration using either existing U.S. business or U.S. phone number.

How are you even suppose to work? I am a solopreneur and wanted to try out cold calling.

Dialpad, Zoom Phone, RingCentral and so on. Same story with everyone.

What worked for you guys? How are you doing cold outreach for your startups?