Entrepreneurship is a risky but potentially rewarding endeavor. According to the online course Entrepreneurship Essentials, 50% of startups survive for just five years, and only 25% make it to the 15-year mark. For every global success story like Amazon or Uber, there are countless companies that few can remember.

So, what separates the winners from the losers? What makes certain ventures succeed where others fail? According to Harvard Business School Professor William Sahlman in Entrepreneurship Essentials, successful companies have learned how to create and capture customer value.

If you’re exploring entrepreneurship or are in the early stages of launching a business, it’s important to learn from those who’ve walked the path before you. Their experiences can offer insights on what decisions, actions, and moves made the difference in their journey. Here are four inspiring stories of successful entrepreneurs that can serve as valuable lessons for your own business journey.

1. Adi Dassler of Adidas: The Importance of Listening to Customers

Some of today’s biggest brands began from humble beginnings. One such story is that of Adolf “Adi” Dassler, the founder of Adidas. Dassler’s journey to success started in his mother’s washroom in a small town in Bavaria, Germany, where he began designing shoes. With an unwavering commitment to improving sports footwear, Dassler realized that creating the best shoe meant listening to the athletes who used them.

Dassler actively sought feedback from athletes, asking them about their needs and pain points. His willingness to make continuous improvements based on customer feedback led to the creation of the iconic Adidas three-stripe shoes, which debuted in 1949. Adidas gained international recognition after the German national football team won the 1954 World Cup wearing the brand’s cleats.

Dassler’s story teaches us the importance of customer-centric innovation and active listening to create a product that meets the needs of your target market. When you connect with your customers, listen to them, and continuously improve based on their feedback, success becomes far more attainable.

2. Whitney Wolfe Herd of Bumble: Turning Personal Struggles into a Business Idea

In 2014, after leaving the popular dating app Tinder and ending an abusive relationship, Whitney Wolfe Herd was inspired to create a dating platform that flipped traditional gender dynamics. Bumble, launched in 2014, requires women to make the first move in heterosexual matches, empowering them to take control of their dating experience.

Wolfe Herd’s story highlights the power of personal experience as a source of entrepreneurial inspiration. After all, it’s the problems you face and the pain points you experience that could be the spark for your business idea. Bumble quickly became popular, particularly among college students, and the app reached 100,000 downloads in its first month.

Wolfe Herd also remains a strong advocate for gender equality, creating in-app features that protect users from sexual harassment and hate speech. Her ability to turn her personal pain into a profitable and meaningful business underscores the importance of using your values and causes as differentiators in a competitive market.

3. Melanie Perkins of Canva: Resilience and Communication are Key

In 2007, Melanie Perkins was a part-time student working in Perth, Australia. While teaching fellow students how to use desktop design software, she realized the software was too complicated and expensive. Perkins asked, “Why not create a simpler, more affordable design tool?”

Thus, the idea for Canva was born, but it wasn’t smooth sailing. Perkins pitched her idea to over 100 investors, all of whom turned her down. It wasn’t until three years later that she secured her first investment, thanks in part to a shift in how she communicated the value of Canva. She learned to lead her pitch with the problem Canva solved: providing an easy-to-use, cost-effective design tool that anyone could use.

Today, Canva has over 60 million users in 190 countries, transforming the design industry. Perkins’ story is a powerful reminder that resilience, tenacity, and the ability to clearly communicate your value proposition are essential to entrepreneurial success.

4. Neil Blumenthal, Dave Gilboa, Andy Hunt, and Jeff Raider of Warby Parker: Disrupting an Industry

In 2008, Neil Blumenthal lost his prescription glasses. When he looked for replacements, he was discouraged by the high prices of eyeglasses. This sparked an idea: Why not create an online eyewear business that sold high-quality glasses at an affordable price? Blumenthal reached out to his friends, Dave Gilboa, Andy Hunt, and Jeff Raider, and together they launched Warby Parker in 2010.

The timing was perfect—GQ magazine published an article on Warby Parker the same day the site launched, calling the company “the Netflix of eyewear.” This press helped propel Warby Parker to success, but not without challenges. A glitch in their website allowed 20,000 customers to sign up for a waitlist. Instead of seeing this as a failure, the team used it as an opportunity to focus on exceptional customer service, personally apologizing to each customer.

Warby Parker disrupted the traditional eyewear market by offering affordable prices, an online model, and a home try-on program that allowed customers to try on glasses at home before purchasing. Their commitment to corporate social responsibility—for every pair of glasses sold, Warby Parker donated one to someone in need—further solidified their brand.

Warby Parker’s success demonstrates the importance of innovation, customer-centricity, and doing good while doing business. The ability to disrupt an established industry by offering a unique solution to a common problem can lead to massive success.

Why Learning from Entrepreneurial Case Studies is Essential

Reading about successful entrepreneurs can give you a valuable insight into what it takes to succeed in business. By analyzing the decisions they made, the mistakes they learned from, and the values they prioritized, you can build a more informed approach to your own entrepreneurial journey.

What do these four stories have in common? They all identify a problem and create a solution that resonates with customers. They all persisted through adversity and learned how to communicate the value of their products effectively. Lastly, they each leveraged their passion and unique perspectives to bring something new and valuable to the market.

So, as you embark on your entrepreneurial journey, draw inspiration from these success stories. Remember: It’s not just about the idea—it’s about the execution, the resilience, and the ability to adapt along the way.