If you read my last post, Solving the Shelf, you know exactly the physical limitation that birthed crAte. A vinyl record can only sit in one physical space on your shelf.
As collectors, we all have our preferred, rigid sorting systems, do you group by release year, cluster by label, or just go strict alphabetical by artist. But the second you need to prep for a mix at home or pack a bag for a gig, that physical system becomes a massive barrier. You have to physically pull records from across your collection, effectively destroying your organizational logic just to build a cohesive setlist.
I built crAte to bridge that gap between the physical filing of records and the digital setlist. The app lets you leave your records exactly where you want them filed on the shelf. But curate the lists or records that go together in a setlist. You digitally tag them into specific “bags.” You can build multiple setlists, note exactly which specific track you want to play, and export the entire list as a CSV. You only have to physically pull the records once… when you are actually packing the bag to go play the gig record the set, or have a mix. It completely streamlines the physical routing problem. and allows you to manage your shelves, however you want.
I am still a long way off from completing the grand vision for this app. But you cannot build a great product in a vacuum. The immediate hurdle is just crossing the starting line: taking a functional, bare-bones tool off my local workbench and wrestling it into a live, testable environment on the Google Play Store.
Here is what building in the open looks like when you are trying to force your V1 into the world.
The Sunk Cost Pivot: Knowing When to Start Fresh
For the past few days, my local development environment was fighting me. Dependencies were clashing, folders were cluttered, and compiling the app felt like trying to mix a track with a broken pitch fader.
It is easy to fall into the sunk cost fallacy here, spending hours hacking away at a broken setup just because you’ve already invested time into it. Instead, I made an executive, strategic pivot. I nuked the local constraints, migrated the entire codebase to a clean directory (crate-app-fresh), and offloaded the heavy lifting to cloud servers.
The lesson? Do not let a broken hammer stop you from building the house. The moment we switched to a pristine environment, the Expo cloud compiler delivered a flawless production bundle (.aab) ready for the Play Store’s closed testing track.
The Two-Lane Highway: Protecting the Core Loop
Right now, my singular objective is clearing Google’s mandatory 14-day closed testing gauntlet. That means getting a core group of 12+ opted-in testers to use the app daily without interruption.
At the same time, I am looking ahead to Phase 3: integrating RevenueCat to build out a 100-record cap and a one-time £4.99 unlimited tier. The entrepreneurial itch is to build the monetisation engine immediately. But throwing untested payment gateways into a fragile beta environment is a massive strategic risk. If the app breaks on Day 11, the 14-day clock resets.
The solution is the “Two-Lane Highway” approach. The live beta track remains a pristine, untouched sandbox focused entirely on validating the core utility: tagging records and packing digital bags. Meanwhile, I set up an isolated Git branch (feature/monetization) to tinker with the paywall code securely behind the scenes. Validate the MVP first. Monetise second.
I am then going to develop the Pro Tier for crAte – this will bring digital curation of physical records into reality. After building your collection, Pro users will be able to view the youTube clips of their collection (and possibly Spotify previews) to preview tracks within crAte when creating a bAg and building their set.
Kickstarter
I am excited to say that an official Kickstarter campaign for crAte is currently in the works! Built specifically for the house and techno vinyl community, crAte completely streamlines the physical routing problem. Instead of pulling stacks of records across your room to trial-and-error a mix, the app lets you leave your record exactly where it belongs on the shelf while you curate digital “bags,” pull track previews directly via Discogs, and export your perfect setlist plan.
I also need to spend some time and money to develop the OCR scan function to read the label for searching the details and adding to the catalogue, which requires some server-side processing and possibly LLM integration.
I am setting a lean, community-driven funding target of £900 to cover my initial database costs and finalise the build. Backing the campaign will be a chance to score lifetime, zero-subscription access to the app at a massive discount before it hits the Play Store, alongside A Good 12 Inches tees, and exclusive custom slipmats.