Startups For the Rest of Us

Episode 776 | How Bootstrapping Led to a Life-Changing $90M SaaS Exit

Listen Later

What’s it take to bootstrap a niche SaaS to $90M without raising a dime?

In this episode, Kevin Wagstaff joins Rob Walling to share how he and his brother bootstrapped Spectora from a scrappy MVP to a $90M valuation. It’s a masterclass in finding traction in unsexy markets, building with empathy, and making smart bets like embedded payments.

Topics we cover: 
  • (4:39) – The surreal moment Kevin and his brother became multimillionaires
  • (9:14) – Why a mobile-first approach won in an outdated, overlooked niche
  • (17:39) – How adding payments created a second revenue stream and bigger valuation
  • (20:36) – The early hustle: trade shows, 6 AM demos, and Facebook group tactics
    • Links from the Show: 
    • SaaS Launchpad Course
    • MicroConf
    • Kevin Wagstaff | LinkedIn
    • Kevin Wagstaff (@KevinWagstaff3) | X
    • Spectora
    • Kevin’s Built to Sell Radio Episode

      • If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

      Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify

      ...more
      View all episodesView all episodes
      Download on the App Store
      Startups For the Rest of UsBy Rob Walling
      • 4.9
      • 4.9
      • 4.9
      • 4.9
      • 4.9

      4.9

      683 ratings

      More shows like Startups For the Rest of Us

      View all
      This Week in Startups by Jason Calacanis

      This Week in Startups

      1,271 Listeners

      a16z Podcast by Andreessen Horowitz

      a16z Podcast

      1,027 Listeners

      The SaaS Podcast - SaaS, Startups, Growth Hacking & Entrepreneurship by Omer Khan

      The SaaS Podcast - SaaS, Startups, Growth Hacking & Entrepreneurship

      181 Listeners

      The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch by Harry Stebbings

      The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

      518 Listeners

      Built to Sell Radio by John Warrillow

      Built to Sell Radio

      208 Listeners

      The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors by SaaStr

      The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors

      175 Listeners

      Founders by David Senra

      Founders

      1,875 Listeners

      Noah Kagan Presents by Noah Kagan

      Noah Kagan Presents

      907 Listeners

      Masters of Scale by WaitWhat

      Masters of Scale

      3,992 Listeners

      Y Combinator Startup Podcast by Y Combinator

      Y Combinator Startup Podcast

      217 Listeners

      REWORK by 37signals

      REWORK

      211 Listeners

      My First Million by Hubspot Media

      My First Million

      2,617 Listeners

      The Startup Ideas Podcast by Greg Isenberg

      The Startup Ideas Podcast

      185 Listeners

      Marketing Against The Grain by Hubspot Media

      Marketing Against The Grain

      352 Listeners

      Moneywise by Hampton

      Moneywise

      643 Listeners