Our Process

Ten steps from idea to a live app, and what you approve at each one

Every Foundreco engagement runs the same ten steps. You always know which step you are on, what lands at the end of it, and what you have to decide before the next one starts. Nothing about your project should ever be a surprise.

Start at step one Estimate the cost first

Steps 01–04 are the Blueprint·Steps 05–07 are the build·Steps 08–10 are after launch

Last updated: 21 August 2026

The Foundreco process has ten steps in three phases. Steps 01 to 04 validate the idea and lock the scope — that is the App Blueprint, from $800, and its fee is credited in full against the build. Steps 05 to 07 design, build and ship the product on fixed milestones you pay for only once delivered. Steps 08 to 10 test it with real users, keep it healthy, and plan version two.

Most of what goes wrong on software projects is not a coding problem. It is a founder who does not know what state their project is in, and an agency with no obligation to tell them. The ten steps below exist so that the answer to “where are we?” is always a step number, and so that every step ends with something you can look at.

Phase one — validate and scope (steps 01–04)

This phase is the App Blueprint. It exists to answer one question before serious money moves: is this worth building, and if so, what exactly is being built? It runs one to two weeks and costs $800 to $2,500 depending on scope. If you go on to build with Foundreco, the whole fee comes off the build price.

Step	What happens	What you get	What you decide
.01 Idea validation	The idea gets pressure-tested against who it is for, what job it does, and whether anyone would pay for it.	A written verdict: worth building, worth changing, or not worth your money.	Whether to carry on at all.
.02 Market research	Demand, pricing and positioning are checked against data rather than optimism.	A short research note with the sources named.	Who the first customer actually is.
.03 Competitor analysis	What already exists, what of it actually wins, and where the real gap sits.	A competitor map and the one gap worth aiming at.	The angle you are taking.
.04 MVP scope	The leanest version that proves the model is defined feature by feature. Everything else is written down as v2 rather than argued about later.	A costed build plan: fixed price, milestone dates, and a running-cost sheet for after launch.	Sign the scope and the price, or walk away with the document.

A Blueprint that ends in “do not build this” has done its job. It happens, and it is the cheapest possible outcome for you.

Phase two — design, build, ship (steps 05–07)

Nothing in this phase is open-ended. Each milestone has a written date and a written definition of done, and you pay per delivered milestone. If a milestone lands late, that invoice drops 20% automatically — one of the six guarantees in the contract.

Step	What happens	What you get	What you decide
.05 UI design	The full product is designed in Figma, screen by screen, before a line of production code is written.	Every screen, reviewable and commentable, in your own Figma file.	Sign off the screens. Changes here cost nothing.
.06 Development	The build runs on fixed milestones. Code is committed to your repository, under your accounts, from the first commit. A live cockpit shows what is done, what is next and how much budget has burned, plus a recorded demo of working software every week.	Working software you can open, weekly. An MVP is about 14 days; larger builds run 6 to 16 weeks.	Accept each milestone, or stop the engagement and keep everything built so far.
.07 Store launch	Submission and review handling for the App Store and Play Store, including the rejections, which are normal and get resolved rather than passed back to you.	A live product, plus the free launch kit: store assets, listing copy and the launch checklist.	The launch date.

Phase three — prove it and keep it alive (steps 08–10)

Launch is the middle of the project, not the end of it. Thirty days of care after launch is included at no charge, and there is no auto-renewing retainer waiting at the end of it.

Step	What happens	What you get	What you decide
.08 Pilot testing	Real users, real feedback, fast fixes while the launch is still warm.	Bugs found and fixed inside the included 30 days.	Which feedback is signal and which is noise.
.09 Maintenance	The app is kept healthy, compliant and current as the platforms move underneath it.	Quoted against what you actually need. Many clients need nothing.	Whether you want support at all.
.10 Next version	The v2 list from step 04, re-ordered by what the live data actually told you.	A costed plan for version two, or an honest “the numbers do not support it yet”.	Build v2, or stop and keep what you have.

What you can hold Foundreco to

Late milestone = 20% off that invoice Your repo, your accounts, from commit one Live cockpit + weekly demo video Leave at any milestone, keep everything Running costs written down before you sign 30 days of care after launch, included

All six are numbered clauses in the contract, not lines on a page. You can ask for a copy before any money moves. The full text is on the guarantees page.

Who runs each step

Haidar Mustafa runs steps 01 to 04 himself, because the scope decision is the one that determines whether the rest of the project is worth doing. From step 05 a senior pod builds alongside him. There is no hand-off to a junior team after the sales call, because there is no sales call and no sales team. You talk to the person doing the work throughout.

Where the AI actually sits

AI does the first 80% of the writing — scaffolding, boilerplate, migrations, test stubs, the long unglamorous middle of a build. That is why a 14-day MVP is possible at $4,000 rather than $40,000. It does not do the last 20%: authentication, payments, security, deployment, and the judgement about what to build in the first place. Every line that ships is read by a human before it does. There is more on that in the cost guide.

Common questions about the process

Do I have to start at step one?

No. If you already have validation, research and a locked scope, you can start at step 05 and the Blueprint is skipped. What cannot be skipped is having a scope: nothing gets built against a verbal description, because that is how fixed prices turn into arguments.

How long does the whole thing take?

Blueprint one to two weeks. An MVP about 14 days after that. A web app 6 to 10 weeks, a mobile app 8 to 12, a SaaS product 10 to 16. Store review adds a few days that are outside anyone's control. Exact dates are written into the contract at step 04.

What if I want to change something mid-build?

It gets quoted separately before anything is built, so you decide with the number in front of you. Small changes are often absorbed. Large ones move a milestone date, and you see that before you approve it.

What happens if a step slips?

You are told the same week, in the cockpit and in the demo video, not at the end. If the delay is on Foundreco, that milestone's invoice drops 20%. If it is waiting on something from you — content, an account, a decision — the clause does not apply, and that exception is written in the contract rather than buried in it.

Can I stop halfway?

Yes, at any milestone, with no notice period and no exit fee. You keep the code, the designs and a plain-English handover document another developer can pick up in a day. Because you pay per delivered milestone, there is rarely anything to refund and nothing to hold hostage.

How much of my time does this take?

Realistically two to four hours a week: a weekly call or async review, sign-off at steps 04 and 05, and answering questions when they come up. The cockpit and the weekly demo exist so you never have to chase anyone for status.

What if my project is a rescue rather than a new build?

Then it starts with a 72-hour written audit instead of a Blueprint, and rejoins this process at step 06. That path is set out on the Vibe-Code Rescue page.

Is this the process on every project, or just the big ones?

Every project. A $1,500 rescue and an $18,000 SaaS build run the same steps; the small ones just move through them faster. The fifteen case studies all went through it.

Your Turn

Step one is free, and it takes 24 hours

Send your idea in three sentences and get an honest verdict back within 24 hours, including "not worth building" when that is the answer. No call required, no cost.

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