The inspiration for Pinterest came from a failed idea for an app called Tote. What are the potential effects on an entrepreneur of a failure like this?

Founded in 2010 by Ben Silbermann, Paul Sciarra and Evan Sharp, Pinterest has attracted investments that value the company at $12.3 billion, despite the fact it has only just begun to generate revenue. Pinterest is a visual discovery app that helps people discover and save creative ideas. Users save (or ‘pin’) ideas they fi nd on Pinterest or the web to themed digital boards – for example, fashion, photography, cooking, home or garden improvements etc. The site is highly visual, contrasting with many other text-heavy social networks. These ‘Pinners’ are given recommendations for ‘Pins’ and boards that interest them based on what others with similar interests have saved. There are more than 175 million monthly active users on Pinterest.