StarZero All shows Try the podcast clipper →

Apr 1, 2024 · 41m · product-market-fit

He raised $275M in the last 3 years. His 'boring' B2B startup is now a $1B unicorn. | Andrew Butt... · PMF Show

Andrew Butt · 29m spoken Pablo Srugo · 9m spoken
0:00 / 0:00
▶ Watch on YouTube →

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this episode of The Product Market Fit Show, Enable co-founder Andrew Butt explains how he built a $1B rebate management SaaS platform from a UK software consultancy, overcoming early technical crises and scaling to raise nearly $300M in venture capital.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Pablo holds 25.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Pablo as informed peer 3.5 Guest teaching 3.4 Guest disagreement 0.3 Pablo pushing back 1.1
05100:0015:0030:000:46–4:44 · Pablo as informed peer 3/10 Andrew Butt's Early Career and Software Consulting Origins Pablo inquires about Andrew's consulting roots and the classic dilemma of wanting to shift from project-based revenue to recurring software. Andrew explains how building products for other clients inspired them to build their own.4:44–9:38 · Pablo as informed peer 2/10 Understanding Rebates and Supply Chain Inefficiencies Host asks for an elementary explanation of rebates. Andrew gives a comprehensive tutorial on supply chain mechanics, showing how 80% of trade flows through intermediaries and relies on backward-flowing commission structures.9:38–13:55 · Pablo as informed peer 6/10 Silicon Valley Tour and Transitioning to SaaS Host draws heavily on his personal background going through 500 Startups, comparing conservative UK/Canadian valuation mindsets with Silicon Valley's aggressive confidence. Andrew validates this contrast based on his 2013 tour.13:55–23:01 · Pablo as informed peer 4/10 Building Enable V1 and Standardizing the Platform Host challenges Andrew on whether taking three years to split off services was too cautious. Andrew explains the architectural breakthroughs required to standardize custom client demands into a single multi-tenant portal.23:01–26:52 · Pablo as informed peer 4/10 Demonstrating Immediate ROI and Inbound Demand Andrew details how running transaction audits immediately uncovered millions in unpaid supplier rebates for distributors. Host emphasizes the rarity and power of organic enterprise inbound driven by pure ROI.26:52–30:40 · Pablo as informed peer 3/10 Early Cashflow Struggles and Technical Crises Andrew recounts early operational near-misses, from meeting payroll via overdraft covenants to dealing with a massive system crash when a client onboarded a million SKUs at once.30:40–38:17 · Pablo as informed peer 4/10 Raising $17M Series A and Relocating to California Host asks Andrew to break down the move to the Bay Area and fundraising dynamics for their Series A. Andrew discusses investor skepticism around long ERP onboarding times.38:17–40:46 · Pablo as informed peer 2/10 Defining Product-Market Fit and Advice on Focus Andrew provides his two-stage definition of PMF and offers final advice on early-stage focus rather than building broad solutions across multiple verticals.0:46–4:44 · Guest teaching 2/10 Andrew Butt's Early Career and Software Consulting Origins Pablo inquires about Andrew's consulting roots and the classic dilemma of wanting to shift from project-based revenue to recurring software. Andrew explains how building products for other clients inspired them to build their own.4:44–9:38 · Guest teaching 7/10 Understanding Rebates and Supply Chain Inefficiencies Host asks for an elementary explanation of rebates. Andrew gives a comprehensive tutorial on supply chain mechanics, showing how 80% of trade flows through intermediaries and relies on backward-flowing commission structures.9:38–13:55 · Guest teaching 3/10 Silicon Valley Tour and Transitioning to SaaS Host draws heavily on his personal background going through 500 Startups, comparing conservative UK/Canadian valuation mindsets with Silicon Valley's aggressive confidence. Andrew validates this contrast based on his 2013 tour.13:55–23:01 · Guest teaching 4/10 Building Enable V1 and Standardizing the Platform Host challenges Andrew on whether taking three years to split off services was too cautious. Andrew explains the architectural breakthroughs required to standardize custom client demands into a single multi-tenant portal.23:01–26:52 · Guest teaching 4/10 Demonstrating Immediate ROI and Inbound Demand Andrew details how running transaction audits immediately uncovered millions in unpaid supplier rebates for distributors. Host emphasizes the rarity and power of organic enterprise inbound driven by pure ROI.26:52–30:40 · Guest teaching 2/10 Early Cashflow Struggles and Technical Crises Andrew recounts early operational near-misses, from meeting payroll via overdraft covenants to dealing with a massive system crash when a client onboarded a million SKUs at once.30:40–38:17 · Guest teaching 3/10 Raising $17M Series A and Relocating to California Host asks Andrew to break down the move to the Bay Area and fundraising dynamics for their Series A. Andrew discusses investor skepticism around long ERP onboarding times.38:17–40:46 · Guest teaching 2/10 Defining Product-Market Fit and Advice on Focus Andrew provides his two-stage definition of PMF and offers final advice on early-stage focus rather than building broad solutions across multiple verticals.0:46–4:44 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Andrew Butt's Early Career and Software Consulting Origins Pablo inquires about Andrew's consulting roots and the classic dilemma of wanting to shift from project-based revenue to recurring software. Andrew explains how building products for other clients inspired them to build their own.4:44–9:38 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Understanding Rebates and Supply Chain Inefficiencies Host asks for an elementary explanation of rebates. Andrew gives a comprehensive tutorial on supply chain mechanics, showing how 80% of trade flows through intermediaries and relies on backward-flowing commission structures.9:38–13:55 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Silicon Valley Tour and Transitioning to SaaS Host draws heavily on his personal background going through 500 Startups, comparing conservative UK/Canadian valuation mindsets with Silicon Valley's aggressive confidence. Andrew validates this contrast based on his 2013 tour.13:55–23:01 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Building Enable V1 and Standardizing the Platform Host challenges Andrew on whether taking three years to split off services was too cautious. Andrew explains the architectural breakthroughs required to standardize custom client demands into a single multi-tenant portal.23:01–26:52 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Demonstrating Immediate ROI and Inbound Demand Andrew details how running transaction audits immediately uncovered millions in unpaid supplier rebates for distributors. Host emphasizes the rarity and power of organic enterprise inbound driven by pure ROI.26:52–30:40 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Early Cashflow Struggles and Technical Crises Andrew recounts early operational near-misses, from meeting payroll via overdraft covenants to dealing with a massive system crash when a client onboarded a million SKUs at once.30:40–38:17 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Raising $17M Series A and Relocating to California Host asks Andrew to break down the move to the Bay Area and fundraising dynamics for their Series A. Andrew discusses investor skepticism around long ERP onboarding times.38:17–40:46 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Defining Product-Market Fit and Advice on Focus Andrew provides his two-stage definition of PMF and offers final advice on early-stage focus rather than building broad solutions across multiple verticals.0:46–4:44 · Pablo pushing back 1/10 Andrew Butt's Early Career and Software Consulting Origins Pablo inquires about Andrew's consulting roots and the classic dilemma of wanting to shift from project-based revenue to recurring software. Andrew explains how building products for other clients inspired them to build their own.4:44–9:38 · Pablo pushing back 1/10 Understanding Rebates and Supply Chain Inefficiencies Host asks for an elementary explanation of rebates. Andrew gives a comprehensive tutorial on supply chain mechanics, showing how 80% of trade flows through intermediaries and relies on backward-flowing commission structures.9:38–13:55 · Pablo pushing back 1/10 Silicon Valley Tour and Transitioning to SaaS Host draws heavily on his personal background going through 500 Startups, comparing conservative UK/Canadian valuation mindsets with Silicon Valley's aggressive confidence. Andrew validates this contrast based on his 2013 tour.13:55–23:01 · Pablo pushing back 2/10 Building Enable V1 and Standardizing the Platform Host challenges Andrew on whether taking three years to split off services was too cautious. Andrew explains the architectural breakthroughs required to standardize custom client demands into a single multi-tenant portal.23:01–26:52 · Pablo pushing back 1/10 Demonstrating Immediate ROI and Inbound Demand Andrew details how running transaction audits immediately uncovered millions in unpaid supplier rebates for distributors. Host emphasizes the rarity and power of organic enterprise inbound driven by pure ROI.26:52–30:40 · Pablo pushing back 1/10 Early Cashflow Struggles and Technical Crises Andrew recounts early operational near-misses, from meeting payroll via overdraft covenants to dealing with a massive system crash when a client onboarded a million SKUs at once.30:40–38:17 · Pablo pushing back 2/10 Raising $17M Series A and Relocating to California Host asks Andrew to break down the move to the Bay Area and fundraising dynamics for their Series A. Andrew discusses investor skepticism around long ERP onboarding times.38:17–40:46 · Pablo pushing back 0/10 Defining Product-Market Fit and Advice on Focus Andrew provides his two-stage definition of PMF and offers final advice on early-stage focus rather than building broad solutions across multiple verticals.

speaking balance: gold is Pablo, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Pablo 32.9% · guest 67.1%0:00 · Pablo 32.9% · guest 67.1%3:00 · Pablo 22.7% · guest 77.3%3:00 · Pablo 22.7% · guest 77.3%6:00 · Pablo 16.8% · guest 83.2%6:00 · Pablo 16.8% · guest 83.2%9:00 · Pablo 30.2% · guest 69.8%9:00 · Pablo 30.2% · guest 69.8%12:00 · Pablo 45.9% · guest 54.1%12:00 · Pablo 45.9% · guest 54.1%15:00 · Pablo 29.1% · guest 70.9%15:00 · Pablo 29.1% · guest 70.9%18:00 · Pablo 17.8% · guest 82.2%18:00 · Pablo 17.8% · guest 82.2%21:00 · Pablo 16.3% · guest 83.7%21:00 · Pablo 16.3% · guest 83.7%24:00 · Pablo 40.1% · guest 59.9%24:00 · Pablo 40.1% · guest 59.9%27:00 · Pablo 2.8% · guest 97.2%27:00 · Pablo 2.8% · guest 97.2%30:00 · Pablo 19.5% · guest 80.5%30:00 · Pablo 19.5% · guest 80.5%33:00 · Pablo 10.6% · guest 89.4%33:00 · Pablo 10.6% · guest 89.4%36:00 · Pablo 18.2% · guest 81.8%36:00 · Pablo 18.2% · guest 81.8%39:00 · Pablo 52.2% · guest 47.8%39:00 · Pablo 52.2% · guest 47.8%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 18:05 Rejecting bespoke client customization requests

Andrew describes standing firm against demanding enterprise customers who claimed their rebate processes were completely unique and refused standard software models.

 Hardest push from Pablo ▶ 16:25 Challenging the extended dual-track timeline

Host pushes Andrew on whether taking from 2016 to 2019 to finally separate consulting from SaaS was overly slow given they had reached 2.5 million in ARR.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 5:48 Masterclass on supply chain rebate mechanics

Andrew breaks down how 80% of trade moves through indirect channels, clarifying for the host how performance rebates act as retroactive commissions.

 Pablo holds their own ▶ 12:48 Detailed perspective on venture mindset divergence

Host demonstrates firsthand venture experience by comparing the modest bootstrapping expectations of non-US markets with the aggressive confidence taught in Silicon Valley.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicPablo as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementPablo pushing backWhy
Andrew Butt's Early Career and Software Consulting Origins 3201 Pablo inquires about Andrew's consulting roots and the classic dilemma of wanting to shift from project-based revenue to recurring software. Andrew explains how building products for other clients inspired them to build their own.
Understanding Rebates and Supply Chain Inefficiencies 2711 Host asks for an elementary explanation of rebates. Andrew gives a comprehensive tutorial on supply chain mechanics, showing how 80% of trade flows through intermediaries and relies on backward-flowing commission structures.
Silicon Valley Tour and Transitioning to SaaS 6301 Host draws heavily on his personal background going through 500 Startups, comparing conservative UK/Canadian valuation mindsets with Silicon Valley's aggressive confidence. Andrew validates this contrast based on his 2013 tour.
Building Enable V1 and Standardizing the Platform 4412 Host challenges Andrew on whether taking three years to split off services was too cautious. Andrew explains the architectural breakthroughs required to standardize custom client demands into a single multi-tenant portal.
Demonstrating Immediate ROI and Inbound Demand 4401 Andrew details how running transaction audits immediately uncovered millions in unpaid supplier rebates for distributors. Host emphasizes the rarity and power of organic enterprise inbound driven by pure ROI.
Early Cashflow Struggles and Technical Crises 3201 Andrew recounts early operational near-misses, from meeting payroll via overdraft covenants to dealing with a massive system crash when a client onboarded a million SKUs at once.
Raising $17M Series A and Relocating to California 4302 Host asks Andrew to break down the move to the Bay Area and fundraising dynamics for their Series A. Andrew discusses investor skepticism around long ERP onboarding times.
Defining Product-Market Fit and Advice on Focus 2200 Andrew provides his two-stage definition of PMF and offers final advice on early-stage focus rather than building broad solutions across multiple verticals.

Statements from this episode (7)

Assertion Contradicted
Andrew Butt: 80% of global trade flows through supply chain intermediaries
“80% of global trade goes from a manufacturer through middle parties like distributors, buying groups, retailers. Contractors, and then eventually to the end customer. That's 80% of trade. There's very, very little that goes direct from a manufacturer to an end…”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 5:50
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Supply chain companies managed their entire profit margins in spreadsheets
“There was no software that could do that. And all these companies were using spreadsheets to manage what was becoming all of their profit.”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 8:51
Insight
Andrew Butt: Bootstrapping from profits is too slow to build globally
“I think in the UK the approach was you've got to grow out of profits, which always means growth is very slow, because if you make 10 dollars, you can spend nine dollars on the products, and then eventually you might make 20 dollars, and then you can spend, you…”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 11:57
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Enable reached $2.5M ARR with just 20 customers by late 2019
“We got to 20 something customers and 2.5 million of ARR or something on the product. So that took us probably three or four years to do that. So by say the end of [2019] that's where we'd got to.”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 15:45
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Enable routinely identifies millions in missing rebates for single enterprise customers
“Some of our early customers and ongoing as well. We certainly have found multi-millions in a single customer and it's not always that much. It might be a few 100,000, but it does run into the millions as well.”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 24:01
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Andrew Butt sent staff to collect physical checks to make payroll
“I remember I sent someone in the office to go and pick up a check from a customer because I literally couldn't make the payroll, you know, without that, that cash in the bank.”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 27:06
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Enable's Series B, Series C, and Series D were all preempted
“The Series A was the most difficult of all of the rounds, so we were very fortunate that the B, C, and D were kind of all preempted, so really investors came to us, and it was, whereas the Series A was really me, a couple of my team knocking on doors”
Andrew Butt Apr 1, 2024 ▶ 31:31
Made with StarZero

Turn any episode into a week of clips.

This entire site, over 250 episodes transcribed, diarized, checked and made playable, runs on the StarZero media pipeline. Drop in your own episode and the podcast clipper finds the moments worth sharing, cuts them, captions them, and reframes them for every feed.

Try the podcast clipper Learn more