different beats better

Doing the same as a competitor but trying to be better will end up being a pure resources game. You may outmanoeuvre someone for a bit through some smart thinking, a sharp eye for an opportunity or sheer luck but in the end, superior resources will do for you.

You need to differentiate.

What I've found is that being smaller or less well resourced isn't a disadvantage unless you make it one. The trick is to embrace this difference, call attention to it and emphasise why it's desirable, why you can do things others can't.

Being too different can be a curse - if you're wildly unfamiliar then you can seem alienating. Virgil Abloh says he aims for 3% different. Recognisable but adjacent. Similar yet remarkable.

Pick somewhere to be different and aim for delight.