Founder's Journal Early days building a decacorn
Jun 4, 2025
Josh Reeves, co-founder and CEO of Gusto, shares insights from his journey of building a multibillion-dollar people platform. He discusses the challenges of launching Gusto, particularly in payroll processing and understanding customer needs. Reeves emphasizes the importance of organic growth strategies over paid marketing, sharing a humorous anecdote about unique advertising tactics. The conversation also highlights milestones in creating a scalable payroll system tailored for small businesses, providing valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs.
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Founders' Firsthand Payroll Frustration
- Josh Reeves and co-founders felt payroll pain firsthand from running prior businesses.
- They validated this pain with research and interviews showing 40% companies made payroll fines annually.
Build MVP and Self-Use First
- Start with a minimal viable product that solves a critical pain point.
- Prove value by paying yourselves with your own product before customers.
Closet Living for Productivity
- To build payroll software, Eddie lived in a closet for 5 months.
- The team focused fiercely on product building routine like coding, salads, and gym.