De la Nuez: European founders are more resourceful due to scarcer capital
Alfonso de la Nuez · 10 Lessons Learned Along the Path to $100M ARR | UserZoom's CEO and CMO | SaaStr Software Community · Sep 13, 2022 · at 35:35
Alfonso de la Nuez, CEO of UserZoom, compares European and Silicon Valley startup mentalities around capital availability and ambition.
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“I think that if we're going to have more EU Based unicorns and references, we have to be bold, we have to think big, and by the way, I think we are much more resourceful in general. I feel like we're much more resourceful, again, because we have less access to capital and we figure things out, but let's not be guilty of not, you know thinking big enough.”
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De la Nuez: B2B SaaS can support 25% professional services revenue
“Sometimes services, depending on where you are, especially if you're in B to B, like we were, or like we are, sometimes services can really add a lot of value, as long as you have this 75% rule, more or less, you know, if you can demonstrate that you have, you…”
De la Nuez: Invest in UX design before sales and marketing
“I would actually invest in product user experience, design, and, ah, and delivering a great user experience even before I invest in sales, before I invest in marketing.”
De la Nuez: UserZoom reached $800M valuation via Thoma Bravo deal
“We raised a thirty four million dollar round in 2015. Then we raised a hundred million dollar round in 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic. And then about a month ago, we closed a deal, a strategic investment a strategic growth investment with Toma Bravo…”
De la Nuez: UserZoom should have raised capital after three years
“Honestly, I think that if I could go back and do it again, the lesson I learned is that I, we could have raised maybe three to four years in, rather than seven years in. Because the problem with not raising is that you potentially miss opportunities, right?”
De la Nuez: UserZoom never picked the highest valuation across funding rounds
“We didn't worry about valuation in all three rounds, to be honest with you. You know, we didn't pick the partner or the, in this case, the private equity that gave us the highest valuation.”
UserZoom reached $10M in revenue on just $1.5M in funding
“In our case, we waited for seven years, guys, and I can tell you know, honestly, you know, we were past the ten million dollar mark, And we had only raised, I think 1,000,001 and a half million, more or less, between, again, friends, family, and fools, bank lo…”