Fully Vested podcast

Fully Vested

D2

Most media outlets focus on startups with skyrocketing valuations, massive series ABC raise figures, and frightening cap tables, giving future founders the impression that the only way to build a business is to raise money from VC's every 12-18 months until you sell. We’ve created Fully Vested to celebrate the founders who follow a different path, and the investors that back them.

14 Episodes

From $1M in funding to $80M in revenue - Josh Payne
9/6/2024
46:42
Josh founded product discovery platform StackCommerce, growing it to $80M in revenue off only $1M in investment. These days he’s at it again, with his new company Onward - tripling to $6M in ARR this year already. We caught up with Josh today to discuss bootstrapping, life as a founder, and angel investing.
The $1B AUM Fund Backing Bootstrapped Businesses - with Hillel Zidel
4/9/2024
44:54
Hillel Zidel is the co-managing partner of Kennet Partners - a growth equity fund founded in 1997, that exclusively focuses on backing bootstrapped software businesses at the growth stage. Kennet is an absolute juggernaut in their space, with $1B AUM and 5 deployed fund vintages under their belt. We caught up with Hillel to find out more about Kennet's outlook on venture investing, the lessons they've learned over the years, and put to rest many of the common misconceptions around bootstrap investing.
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The pivot that led to a reported $300M exit - with Alex Macdonald
2/20/2024
58:25
Many know Alex Macdonald as a successful investor and exited founder. What you might not know, is that these successes were the compounding result of lessons learnt during his early career in the turnarounds space - where he was responsible for rescuing distressed companies and returning them to profitability. Applications of these lessons are visible across his career - notably in his decision to pivot his venture-backed business, Velocity Black, in pursuit of building something self-sustaining and cashflow positive. That decision proved to be a good one, resulting in their acquisition in 2023 for a reported $300M. Alex joined us to talk through his impressive career and the maxims that shape his thinking. He also shares a trove of advice for founders building right now.
Buying SaaS Businesses with Dirk Sahlmer
11/7/2023
45:17
Dirk Sahlmer is the Head of Origination at SaaS Group - a holding company which acquires Bootstrapped SaaS businesses between $1-10M ARR, giving founders the opportunity to exit. They currently have 17 portfolio companies with a combined $50M in ARR. Dirk took the time to share some of his insights on the SaaS market and what it takes to sell your business.
Anna Talerico on Bootstrapping, Venture Capital, and Acquisitions
8/21/2023
54:06
Its a rare opportunity to speak with someone who has seen the business world through so many different frames. Anna Talerico has acted as a bootstrapped founder, partner at a venture capital firm, a professional executive, and has overseen multiple acquisitions along the way. We learnt a ton from Anna, and we’re sure you will to.
Bootstrapping ButcherBox to $600m/y with Mike Salguero
7/12/2023
49:44
Most venture-backed startups never crack $1M/y in revenue. A few manage to get past $10M, and only a small handful hit $100M. Beyond that, we're talking about a tiny group of world-class founders. Mike Salguero is firmly in that group. ButcherBox generates $600m/y in revenue - the crazy part is, he's done it without raising a cent of venture capital. We caught up with Mike to chat about the early days of ButcherBox, growth strategies, and many of his personal philosophies when it comes to company building.
Disrupting the elevator industry with Augustin Celier - SHP #8
3/6/2023
48:06
Augustin is a serial entrepreneur who has built companies within e-commerce, search, and SaaS. His most recent company was a predictive maintenance platform with a mission of disrupting a massive industry you might not have thought about before - elevators. Uptime raised over €9m, and had set Augustin and his team on a journey filled with ups, downs, and a particularly interesting end, which any founder out there building should listen to and learn from.
Adriane Schwager on bootstrapping GrowthAssistant to $6m ARR in under 2 years - SHP #7
1/11/2023
33:38
Adrian Schwager is the cofounder and CEO of Growth Assistant. She and her Co-founder, Jesse Pujji, have bootstrapped the business to $6m ARR within 21 months. We caught up with Adrian to discuss her background, the origins of the business, and some of the lessons she’s learnt along the way.
Jordan Kong on company building at Atomic VC, Crypto, and more - SHP #6
12/2/2022
30:29
Jordan is a principal at Atomic VC, a US-based venture studio, where she heads up the studios Web3 initiatives. She’s also helped start and launch multiple companies at Atomic across Healthcare, Real Estate, Financial Services, consumer marketplaces, and co-created Atomic’s Future Founders program to expand access to entrepreneurship.
Conor Sheahan on advising on over $500m of startup transactions - SHP #5
10/26/2022
32:09
Conor is the founder of CKS - an advisory firm focused on fundraising and M&A. Since 2020 alone, CKS has advised on over half a billion dollars in trade sales, and helped raise over $125m for their clients. Conor is also an active angel investor. He took the time to share some of his insights with us in this episode!

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