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Sep 7, 2022 · 17m · startup-acquisition-stories

Startup Acquisition Stories with Chris Achard, Founder of AcornChat

Chris Achard · 8m spoken Andrew Gazdecki · 7m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

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

In this episode of SaaS Acquisition Stories, host Andrew Gazdecki interviews software developer Chris Achard about building, growing, and successfully selling his micro-SaaS product MeetingPlace on MicroAcquire. Chris shares practical insights on evaluating buyer offers, navigating due diligence and technical asset handovers, and launching his new Slack-integrated venture, AcornChat.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Andrew holds 44.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Andrew as informed peer 4.2 Guest teaching 1.2 Guest disagreement 0.0 Andrew pushing back 0.2
05100:0010:000:24–2:50 · Andrew as informed peer 3/10 Welcoming Chris Achard and Background Overview The conversation is entirely collaborative. Gazdecki enthusiastically praises Achard's product origin and validates the struggle of event tech companies during COVID.2:50–6:27 · Andrew as informed peer 5/10 Listing MeetingPlace on the MicroAcquire Marketplace Gazdecki validates Achard's decision to accept an all-cash offer over seller financing by sharing his own recent acquisition experience and strategic reasoning.6:28–9:46 · Andrew as informed peer 4/10 Due Diligence and Cross-Border Wire Transfers Achard describes conducting an informal staggered wire transfer instead of standard escrow, prompting Gazdecki to gently reiterate best practices while acknowledging it worked out.9:46–12:17 · Andrew as informed peer 5/10 Founder Advice and Highlighting Growth Opportunities Gazdecki elaborates on Achard's advice by providing a deep breakdown of why leaving unexecuted growth levers creates attractive upside for buyers.12:17–15:57 · Andrew as informed peer 4/10 Current Ventures and Launching AcornChat A friendly wrap-up where both host and guest exchange startup literature recommendations and discuss Achard's newly launched tool, AcornChat.0:24–2:50 · Guest teaching 1/10 Welcoming Chris Achard and Background Overview The conversation is entirely collaborative. Gazdecki enthusiastically praises Achard's product origin and validates the struggle of event tech companies during COVID.2:50–6:27 · Guest teaching 1/10 Listing MeetingPlace on the MicroAcquire Marketplace Gazdecki validates Achard's decision to accept an all-cash offer over seller financing by sharing his own recent acquisition experience and strategic reasoning.6:28–9:46 · Guest teaching 2/10 Due Diligence and Cross-Border Wire Transfers Achard describes conducting an informal staggered wire transfer instead of standard escrow, prompting Gazdecki to gently reiterate best practices while acknowledging it worked out.9:46–12:17 · Guest teaching 1/10 Founder Advice and Highlighting Growth Opportunities Gazdecki elaborates on Achard's advice by providing a deep breakdown of why leaving unexecuted growth levers creates attractive upside for buyers.12:17–15:57 · Guest teaching 1/10 Current Ventures and Launching AcornChat A friendly wrap-up where both host and guest exchange startup literature recommendations and discuss Achard's newly launched tool, AcornChat.0:24–2:50 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Welcoming Chris Achard and Background Overview The conversation is entirely collaborative. Gazdecki enthusiastically praises Achard's product origin and validates the struggle of event tech companies during COVID.2:50–6:27 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Listing MeetingPlace on the MicroAcquire Marketplace Gazdecki validates Achard's decision to accept an all-cash offer over seller financing by sharing his own recent acquisition experience and strategic reasoning.6:28–9:46 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Due Diligence and Cross-Border Wire Transfers Achard describes conducting an informal staggered wire transfer instead of standard escrow, prompting Gazdecki to gently reiterate best practices while acknowledging it worked out.9:46–12:17 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Founder Advice and Highlighting Growth Opportunities Gazdecki elaborates on Achard's advice by providing a deep breakdown of why leaving unexecuted growth levers creates attractive upside for buyers.12:17–15:57 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Current Ventures and Launching AcornChat A friendly wrap-up where both host and guest exchange startup literature recommendations and discuss Achard's newly launched tool, AcornChat.0:24–2:50 · Andrew pushing back 0/10 Welcoming Chris Achard and Background Overview The conversation is entirely collaborative. Gazdecki enthusiastically praises Achard's product origin and validates the struggle of event tech companies during COVID.2:50–6:27 · Andrew pushing back 0/10 Listing MeetingPlace on the MicroAcquire Marketplace Gazdecki validates Achard's decision to accept an all-cash offer over seller financing by sharing his own recent acquisition experience and strategic reasoning.6:28–9:46 · Andrew pushing back 1/10 Due Diligence and Cross-Border Wire Transfers Achard describes conducting an informal staggered wire transfer instead of standard escrow, prompting Gazdecki to gently reiterate best practices while acknowledging it worked out.9:46–12:17 · Andrew pushing back 0/10 Founder Advice and Highlighting Growth Opportunities Gazdecki elaborates on Achard's advice by providing a deep breakdown of why leaving unexecuted growth levers creates attractive upside for buyers.12:17–15:57 · Andrew pushing back 0/10 Current Ventures and Launching AcornChat A friendly wrap-up where both host and guest exchange startup literature recommendations and discuss Achard's newly launched tool, AcornChat.

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

0:00 · Andrew 45.8% · guest 54.2%0:00 · Andrew 45.8% · guest 54.2%3:00 · Andrew 30.9% · guest 69.1%3:00 · Andrew 30.9% · guest 69.1%6:00 · Andrew 44.7% · guest 55.3%6:00 · Andrew 44.7% · guest 55.3%9:00 · Andrew 41.2% · guest 58.8%9:00 · Andrew 41.2% · guest 58.8%12:00 · Andrew 41.7% · guest 58.3%12:00 · Andrew 41.7% · guest 58.3%15:00 · Andrew 65% · guest 35%15:00 · Andrew 65% · guest 35%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 1:50 Achard criticizes Meetup's pricing test

Achard expresses mild disdain toward Meetup's experiment charging free users to RSVP, which spurred him to launch a competitor.

 Hardest push from Andrew ▶ 8:02 Gazdecki warns against skipping escrow

Gazdecki clarifies that while Achard's DIY installment wire worked, he strongly cautions listeners to always use professional escrow.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 9:02 Achard explains technical transfer hurdles

Achard details the specific logistical frictions of transferring AWS assets and 2FA accounts between separate founders.

 Andrew holds their own ▶ 10:58 Gazdecki articulates the value of unexploited growth levers

Gazdecki draws on his extensive marketplace experience to explain why highlighting unfinished optimization levers attracts buyers.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicAndrew as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementAndrew pushing backWhy
Welcoming Chris Achard and Background Overview 3100 The conversation is entirely collaborative. Gazdecki enthusiastically praises Achard's product origin and validates the struggle of event tech companies during COVID.
Listing MeetingPlace on the MicroAcquire Marketplace 5100 Gazdecki validates Achard's decision to accept an all-cash offer over seller financing by sharing his own recent acquisition experience and strategic reasoning.
Due Diligence and Cross-Border Wire Transfers 4201 Achard describes conducting an informal staggered wire transfer instead of standard escrow, prompting Gazdecki to gently reiterate best practices while acknowledging it worked out.
Founder Advice and Highlighting Growth Opportunities 5100 Gazdecki elaborates on Achard's advice by providing a deep breakdown of why leaving unexecuted growth levers creates attractive upside for buyers.
Current Ventures and Launching AcornChat 4100 A friendly wrap-up where both host and guest exchange startup literature recommendations and discuss Achard's newly launched tool, AcornChat.

Statements from this episode (9)

Assertion Not yet assessed · timeframe Sep 2022
Achard: WeWork-owned Meetup tested charging free users $2 to RSVP
“This was when meetup was owned by WeWork, and they were going to do something very strange. They were going to try to charge free users two dollars to RSVP, to free events, They were calling it a pricing test.”
Chris Achard Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 1:07
Opinion
Achard: Freemium apps require dedicated teams or venture funding to scale
“I was trying to do it as a solo dev, but it's the type of business that I think Makes more sense to, like, build a team for or raise money for, because it was a freemium app, and so there was, like, there were a lot of free groups, and to really get the word o…”
Chris Achard Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 3:38
Disclosure
Achard accepted a lower all-cash acquisition offer to avoid seller financing
“So I got maybe 15 requests in, like, under a week and then I got two really serious people talked to them on on Zoom, and they, so I got Offers from both of them. And one of them was more like he was a developer like me. He wanted to pay all cash. He was like …”
Chris Achard Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 4:39
Insight
Gazdecki recommends all-cash offers over seller financing to reduce payment risk
“I always recommend cash upfront because if you do, and seller financing can work out really well in a lot of scenarios, but if you have an all cash offer it just reduces so much risk on your end because you're not chasing the other person down for either month…”
Andrew Gazdecki Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 5:35
Disclosure
Gazdecki bought a Shopify SaaS for $60k and exited for all-cash
“I actually, I haven't announced this yet, but we bought Shopify SaaS for like, 60 K, like a year ago, and we had two offers. One was all cash, and one had seller financing. The all cash offer was a little lower, and I, without a doubt, I was like, let's go wit…”
Andrew Gazdecki Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 5:53
Insight
Achard: Never skip formal escrow services in micro-startup acquisitions
“Like part of it, it's, you know, it's not like a million dollar sale or anything like that, and so we didn't feel like we needed like a real escrow, I guess, which, you know, probably goes right a lot of the time, and I don't recommend it, because if it goes w…”
Chris Achard Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 7:49
Insight
Achard: Founders should build apps on dedicated, standalone AWS accounts
“If I was going to do that again, I would set up a separate, for any app I wanted to sell, I would set up a separate AWS account, an entire account and that would have gone much, much cleaner”
Chris Achard Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 9:22
Insight
Achard: Outlining product flaws helps SaaS buyers find quick post-acquisition wins
“So if you kind of outline the things that you know are wrong with the app, then they can, like, figure out some quick wins as soon as they buy it, and so I think that helped in that case.”
Chris Achard Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 10:39
Insight
Gazdecki: Pitching unexecuted growth opportunities provides buyers a post-acquisition roadmap
“Just having like those growth opportunities on how you would continue growing this startup with a buyer, I think is a huge selling point because you kind of just give them a roadmap.”
Andrew Gazdecki Sep 7, 2022 ▶ 12:06
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