Playbooks

Sell an app that fixes a chore in your hobby

Pick a painful routine in a small hobby or sport you know well, such as cutting weight before a wrestling match, and build a paid phone app that solves it. Then market it to that community through small, targeted posts and small creators.

The hard part: choosing a problem painful enough that people pay, then reaching a small community without a big marketing budget.

Setup 2 weeksRuns $30/moYour time Most daysReadiness Readiness 59 out of 100Some detailHow we score thisNeeds ClaudeSupabase

Who pays

People in the hobby pay for the app through an in-app paywall, because the problem costs them more than the app does. starter_story reports that a weight-cut app for combat sport athletes made $60K+ in its first 6 months and $20K in a single month. These are the founder's own figures.

How to build it

  1. Pick a pain in your hobby

    List the routines in your hobby or sport that people hate or get wrong. Choose one where getting it wrong costs them real money, time, or a result.

  2. Brainstorm app ideas with AI

    Ask Claude or ChatGPT to brainstorm app ideas for that one problem, then pick the simplest one people would pay for.

  3. Copy layouts from bigger apps

    Sketch your screens in Figma, borrowing layout patterns from popular apps like Duolingo so the app feels familiar.

  4. Build the app with Cursor

    Build the screens first with Cursor or Claude Code, then the back end. Store user data in Supabase and add a subscription paywall with RevenueCat or Superwall.

  5. Post where your community gathers

    Post short, specific content for your niche on TikTok and Reels. Fewer views from the right people beats lots of views from everyone.

  6. Partner with small creators

    Message small creators in the niche who get 1K-10K views per video about partnering. Turn the videos that bring in sales into paid ads.

Sources on X

  • starter_story · Oct 12, 2026

    starter_story reports that Ethan Cajigas, a national wrestling champion, built CutCoach, a weight-cut app for combat sport athletes, with Cursor and ChatGPT. According to the post, the app made $60K+ total revenue in 6 months, had 39,000+ downloads, and made $20K in a single month, which are the founder's own figures. Organic posts got only 200-500 views but converted at 5-10%, and small creators with 1K-10K views mostly said yes to partnerships.

Ideas are curated from public posts and untested by us. Read the full note.