18 year olds quit $30k jobs to launch software, get first $10k customer
Aug 18, 2023
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Founders of DevHeads discuss quitting full-time jobs, landing first paying customer, and coding tools. They also talk about saving money, expanding to every school district in Missouri, and their plans to develop software tools for school districts.
DevHeads aims to expand their reach to every high school in Missouri, building a reputation to provide additional software solutions in the future.
Fortuna and Kobe have taken steps to de-risk quitting their full-time jobs by managing personal expenses and finding affordable solutions for stock images and phone bills.
Deep dives
Building DevHeads to Provide Personalized Software Solutions for Local Businesses
Fortuna and Kobe, founders of DevHeads, are on a mission to offer software and hardware development services to local businesses. Their goal is to provide a personal experience that larger companies often can't deliver. They focus on updating websites, creating personalized apps, and partnering with school districts to connect alumni and students for advice. With their backgrounds in computer science, Kobe handles front-end development using tools like VS Code, while Fortuna specializes in the back-end, primarily using PHP. They landed their first paying customer in July and are currently working on 40 websites this month. They generate recurring revenue through hosting services, charging $40 per month, and are in negotiations with a school district for a big contract. DevHeads aims to expand their reach to every high school in Missouri, building a reputation to provide additional software solutions in the future.
Transitioning from Full-Time Jobs to Focus on DevHeads
Fortuna and Kobe are determined to make DevHeads their full-time pursuit to meet the increasing demand. With their current salaries around $30,000 per year, they plan to leverage the income from their first school district contract, which is almost equivalent to their salaries, as a stepping stone towards their financial independence. They have saved around $15,000 collectively to support DevHeads, and they have also formed connections with other startup founders who have provided valuable resources. Although quitting their full-time jobs may seem risky, they have taken steps to de-risk the process by managing their personal expenses and reducing costs wherever possible, such as minimizing spending on food and finding affordable solutions for stock images and phone bills.
Long-Term Goals and Generating Recurring Revenue
DevHeads' long-term goal is to expand their services not only to school districts but also to every high school in Missouri. They aim to build a reputation and establish a connection system that becomes standard in every high school. They currently have 41 contracts, a combination of website development contracts and hosting services. Hosting services provide recurring revenue, with opportunities for additional revenue from new contracts and services requested by current clients. They are focused on providing a personalized IT experience, emphasizing that unlike hosting providers like GoDaddy or Bluehost, they offer daily checks and optimization to ensure their clients' websites are always running smoothly.