From Bootstrapped Startup to a $200 Million Exit With Patrick Campbell [The Opportunity Ep.114]

Dec 20, 2022

Ask episode

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

The goal of many entrepreneurs is to build a business that will one day give them true financial freedom.

In theory, it’s a simple three-step process. Create it. Scale it. Sell it.

But in reality, achieving a life-changing exit is a pipedream that only a handful of entrepreneurs actually accomplish. So, what does it take to beat the odds and achieve a multi-million dollar exit?

In this episode, we’re joined by an entrepreneur who knows the answer to this question first-hand. Patrick Campbell is the founder of ProfitWell, a SaaS platform that helps businesses grow their recurring revenue through subscription analytics, retention, and pricing solutions. Patrick’s business was recently acquired by Paddle for $200 million!

Patrick joins us to discuss the details behind the acquisition, how he successfully grew Profitwell, and how his life has changed since his 9-figure exit.

Patrick explains how he set Profitwell apart from its competitors by thinking long-term, being strategic with pricing, and always keeping the bigger picture in mind. Patrick also used competitive analysis to better understand what consumers were looking for and identify where Profitwell’s competitive advantage lay.

We also dive into the challenges Partick faced while scaling the business, and how he overcame these setbacks. According to Patrick,

“Did we have “Oh my word, everything is terrible moments?” 100%, yes. But the nature of what we do as entrepreneurs is to get back up and keep going. Every time there’s a hardship that you get through, your brain as an entrepreneur goes “Well, it must not have been that bad because I figured it out.” And that helps you to keep moving forward.”

If you’re hoping to make a life-changing exit of your own one day, don’t miss a second of this candid, behind-the-scenes look at the ins and outs of a multi-million dollar acquisition!

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

Patrick introduces himself and shares insight into his entrepreneurial journey (01:27)
The inspiration behind Profitwell (07:42)
The secret sauce behind the growth of Profitwell (11:04)
How Patrick outpaced competitors and differentiated Profitwell from competitors (21:41)
Profitwell’s unique organizational structure (26:01)
Patrick’s darkest moment building Profitwell (32:45)
Why Patrick said the word “churn”100K times (38:36)
How Paddle’s acquisition of Profitwell came about (46:10)
How Patrick’s life has changed since exiting Profitwell (51:24)

Mentions:

Sit back, grab a coffee, and discover what it’s like to make a 9-figure exit from an online business.