Bootstrapped : The Lighter Side - The Podcast For B2B SaaS Founders

In this part two of a two part series of Bootstrapped: The Lighter Side, Patrick Philley, Lighter Capital’s Head of Underwriting, and Tanner Kovacevich, Lighter’s VP of Sales, discuss the hidden costs and hidden risks they frequently see founders miss when taking on debt. Learn how to navigate the intricacies and potential pitfalls of funding a startup with debt from two seasoned experts who have been helping entrepreneurs grow on their terms for nearly a decade.

Tony and Jordan Berry, the father-and-son founders of Interloop Data, share their origin story and the rules of the road for managing a startup with a family member. They share insights on how they scaled their startup, found product market fit, built a sales team, and maintained ownership with non-dilutive funding.

Galaxy Semiconductor isn't a new company, but it is a startup. Founded in 1998, Galaxy was bootstrapped for many years before it was acquired by Siemens in 2016. Four years later, Siemens divested the company in a management buyout. Wes Smith (employee #7) was running the small business within Siemens before it became independent again — he naturally took on the role of CEO and led Galaxy into its next phase. In this episode of Bootstrapped, Wes talks about moving upstream into chip manufacturing, funding a new technology stack and getting it to market, the value of a consistent sales process, Rolodexes, and more.

Rupert Mayer founded his first product company, IPfolio, in 2012. Before making a successful exit and launching a new chapter of his career as an angel investor nearly a decade later, Rupert experienced many ups and downs. As the "Chief of Everything" at IPfolio, he was always hustling. Rupert meticulously managed cash flow, got creative with non-dilutive funding, and learned voraciously from his customers and other SaaS founders. When he pivoted up-market at precisely the right time, the startup's growth took off. Rupert went on to raise his Series A, but the capital didn't quite produce the results he expected. Listen and learn from Rupert Mayer's entrepreneurial journey.

We all have knowledge gaps and blindspots; getting different perspectives often unlocks needed insights. Chris Fellows and Melissa dive into why having a good co-founder and CEO group can uncover insights and help founders succeed. Chris also shares his journey from running a services company to launching Bold Street, a product company. He shares insights on how they found product market fit and the process they used to fund their startup.

Melissa and the CEO/Co-founder of StoreAutomator, Gokhan Erkavun, have a lively discussion on Gokhan’s experience of getting StoreAutomator off the ground. Gokhan shares where the inspiration came from, his challenges, and the time required to find a market fit. He emphasizes the importance of persistence, curiosity, and a passion for solving customers’ needs. Plus, he touches on essential topics like managing outsourced teams, building trust, raising funds, and building market fit.

Melissa and Align's CEO, Doug Walner, dive into a compelling conversation on the significance of fostering a company culture that champions the importance of processes and how to track and streamline them. During their discussion, Doug sheds light on the value of business coaching, distinguishing it from CEO coaching and why CEOs and their executive teams should wholeheartedly embrace this approach. Moreover, Doug provides insights into the construction of Align Technology's growth capital structure, sharing why they blended equity and non-dilutive funding.