S4E8 - Learnings from a Second-Time SaaS Founder With Joe Lewin

Jun 18, 2024

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In the latest episode of the Grow Your B2B SaaS Podcast, host Joran engages in a candid conversation with Joe Lewin, founder of Foundy, an acquisition fundraising portal. Joe shares his entrepreneurial journey, offering valuable insights and experiences. His background includes the successful founding and subsequent sale of Swings, a tech company, providing him with a wealth of knowledge on building a successful business from the ground up.

Joe emphasizes the importance of validating business ideas early on. He advises aspiring entrepreneurs to ensure their market model and customer base are supported by real potential customers, not just friends and family. This validation can save time and resources by steering efforts toward viable opportunities.

Key Timecodes

(0:44) Introduction to Joe Lewin and Foundy
(1:21) Joe's Background and the Inception of Foundy
(1:27) Motivation Behind Starting Foundy
(1:59) Foundy's Start Date and Current ARR
(2:08) Business Model Pivot and Revenue Breakdown
(3:07) Current Team Size and Use of AI Assistants
(4:15) End Goal for Foundy
(4:48) What Keeps Joe Motivated?
(6:04) Early Stages of Foundy and Getting the Idea Validated
(6:54) Initial Uncertainties and Risks Faced
(7:29) Experiencing Rock Bottom and Overcoming Challenges
(8:43) Fundraising Challenges and Pivots
(11:08) Advice for First-Time Founders
(12:27) Key Growth Strategies for Foundy
(12:27) Importance of Referrals and Organic Content
(17:16) Processes and Frameworks Used in Foundy
(17:29) Deep Dive into Automation and Efficiency Tools
(19:02) Biggest Failures and Lessons Learned
(19:15) Importance of Pivoting and Refining the Business Model
(20:40) Foundy’s SaaS Model and Subscription Approach
(23:00) Optimizing for Profitability While Raising Funds
(23:12) Importance of Healthy, Sustainable Growth
(25:46) Advice for Growing from 0 to 10K MRR
(26:55) Importance of Domain Expertise and Problem Validation
(28:18) Advice for Scaling to 10 Million ARR