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Jul 10, 2022 · 15m · top-founders

He sold his bakery to launch software for Restaurants, $36k in revenue already

Nathan Latka · 6m spoken Aaron DeCruz · 5m 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 interview, host Nathan Latka speaks with Maynu founder Aaron DeCruz about bootstrapping a digital restaurant ordering platform to $3,000 in monthly revenue across Malaysia and Singapore following his transition from a 15-year culinary career.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 51.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.0 Guest teaching 1.6 Guest disagreement 0.4 Nathan pushing back 3.2
05100:0010:000:51–5:47 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Founder Background and Maynu's Digital Menu Platform Nathan interrogates the guest's business metrics, expressing disbelief when Aaron cannot state total transaction volume and calculating the implied ARPU on the fly.5:47–8:22 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Consulting Expenses, SaaS Accelerator, and Team Composition Nathan evaluates Aaron's spending decisions, noting that paying $500 monthly for an accelerator represents a significant share of a $3,000 monthly top line.8:26–11:01 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Founderpath SaaS Valuation Tool Mid-Roll Promotion Following a sponsor read, Nathan challenges Aaron's 50-50 equity split and questions the realistic viability of conflict resolution without formal tie-breaking mechanisms.11:02–13:13 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 Sales Tactics, Engineering, and Founder Financial Runway The conversation shifts to sales channels, local tech ecosystem dynamics in Malaysia, and how Aaron sustains his personal runway via freelance work.13:13–14:53 · Nathan as informed peer 2/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Interview Questions Standard rapid-fire closing segment where Aaron provides brief answers about habits, tools, and background before Nathan's rapid recap.0:51–5:47 · Guest teaching 3/10 Founder Background and Maynu's Digital Menu Platform Nathan interrogates the guest's business metrics, expressing disbelief when Aaron cannot state total transaction volume and calculating the implied ARPU on the fly.5:47–8:22 · Guest teaching 1/10 Consulting Expenses, SaaS Accelerator, and Team Composition Nathan evaluates Aaron's spending decisions, noting that paying $500 monthly for an accelerator represents a significant share of a $3,000 monthly top line.8:26–11:01 · Guest teaching 1/10 Founderpath SaaS Valuation Tool Mid-Roll Promotion Following a sponsor read, Nathan challenges Aaron's 50-50 equity split and questions the realistic viability of conflict resolution without formal tie-breaking mechanisms.11:02–13:13 · Guest teaching 2/10 Sales Tactics, Engineering, and Founder Financial Runway The conversation shifts to sales channels, local tech ecosystem dynamics in Malaysia, and how Aaron sustains his personal runway via freelance work.13:13–14:53 · Guest teaching 1/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Interview Questions Standard rapid-fire closing segment where Aaron provides brief answers about habits, tools, and background before Nathan's rapid recap.0:51–5:47 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Founder Background and Maynu's Digital Menu Platform Nathan interrogates the guest's business metrics, expressing disbelief when Aaron cannot state total transaction volume and calculating the implied ARPU on the fly.5:47–8:22 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Consulting Expenses, SaaS Accelerator, and Team Composition Nathan evaluates Aaron's spending decisions, noting that paying $500 monthly for an accelerator represents a significant share of a $3,000 monthly top line.8:26–11:01 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Founderpath SaaS Valuation Tool Mid-Roll Promotion Following a sponsor read, Nathan challenges Aaron's 50-50 equity split and questions the realistic viability of conflict resolution without formal tie-breaking mechanisms.11:02–13:13 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Sales Tactics, Engineering, and Founder Financial Runway The conversation shifts to sales channels, local tech ecosystem dynamics in Malaysia, and how Aaron sustains his personal runway via freelance work.13:13–14:53 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Interview Questions Standard rapid-fire closing segment where Aaron provides brief answers about habits, tools, and background before Nathan's rapid recap.0:51–5:47 · Nathan pushing back 6/10 Founder Background and Maynu's Digital Menu Platform Nathan interrogates the guest's business metrics, expressing disbelief when Aaron cannot state total transaction volume and calculating the implied ARPU on the fly.5:47–8:22 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Consulting Expenses, SaaS Accelerator, and Team Composition Nathan evaluates Aaron's spending decisions, noting that paying $500 monthly for an accelerator represents a significant share of a $3,000 monthly top line.8:26–11:01 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Founderpath SaaS Valuation Tool Mid-Roll Promotion Following a sponsor read, Nathan challenges Aaron's 50-50 equity split and questions the realistic viability of conflict resolution without formal tie-breaking mechanisms.11:02–13:13 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Sales Tactics, Engineering, and Founder Financial Runway The conversation shifts to sales channels, local tech ecosystem dynamics in Malaysia, and how Aaron sustains his personal runway via freelance work.13:13–14:53 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Interview Questions Standard rapid-fire closing segment where Aaron provides brief answers about habits, tools, and background before Nathan's rapid recap.

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

0:00 · Nathan 51.7% · guest 48.3%0:00 · Nathan 51.7% · guest 48.3%3:00 · Nathan 46.8% · guest 53.2%3:00 · Nathan 46.8% · guest 53.2%6:00 · Nathan 53.4% · guest 46.6%6:00 · Nathan 53.4% · guest 46.6%9:00 · Nathan 49.8% · guest 50.2%9:00 · Nathan 49.8% · guest 50.2%12:00 · Nathan 44.3% · guest 55.7%12:00 · Nathan 44.3% · guest 55.7%15:00 · Nathan 93.1% · guest 6.9%15:00 · Nathan 93.1% · guest 6.9%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 4:40 Aaron corrects Nathan's combined revenue calculation

Aaron firmly steps in to untangle Nathan's misinterpretation of Malaysia ringgit conversions versus Singapore revenue figures.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 3:50 Nathan pushes on missing GMV data

Nathan openly challenges Aaron's lack of key metrics, stating he finds it hard to believe a take-rate business founder does not know total GMV.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 4:40 Aaron breaks down regional revenue specifics

Aaron educates Nathan on the distinction between his 10,000 MYR baseline in Malaysia and the separate Singapore dollar income.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 5:31 Nathan deduces unit economics on the fly

Nathan combines active user percentages and reported monthly revenue to immediately calculate Maynu's $17 monthly revenue per restaurant.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Founder Background and Maynu's Digital Menu Platform 6316 Nathan interrogates the guest's business metrics, expressing disbelief when Aaron cannot state total transaction volume and calculating the implied ARPU on the fly.
Consulting Expenses, SaaS Accelerator, and Team Composition 4103 Nathan evaluates Aaron's spending decisions, noting that paying $500 monthly for an accelerator represents a significant share of a $3,000 monthly top line.
Founderpath SaaS Valuation Tool Mid-Roll Promotion 5115 Following a sponsor read, Nathan challenges Aaron's 50-50 equity split and questions the realistic viability of conflict resolution without formal tie-breaking mechanisms.
Sales Tactics, Engineering, and Founder Financial Runway 3201 The conversation shifts to sales channels, local tech ecosystem dynamics in Malaysia, and how Aaron sustains his personal runway via freelance work.
The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Interview Questions 2101 Standard rapid-fire closing segment where Aaron provides brief answers about habits, tools, and background before Nathan's rapid recap.

Statements from this episode (12)

Disclosure
DeCruz: Maynu charges an 8% platform fee on all restaurant transactions
“We take a percentage platform fee. On the, on every transaction. So it's eight percent.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 2:08
Disclosure
DeCruz: About half of Maynu's 8% fee goes to Stripe
“About half of that goes to Stripe. Well, we don't make very much.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 2:21
Disclosure
DeCruz: Maynuu is entirely self-funded
“We're self-funded.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 2:51
Assertion Not checkable as stated
DeCruz: Maynuu has about 1,800 signups across Malaysia and Singapore
“So we've got about 1800 signups across two countries.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 3:02
Assertion Not checkable as stated
DeCruz: Maynuu's average restaurant order ticket is about $80
“So the ticket average is about 80 dollars per restaurant. Yeah, but I don't have a full thing. Yeah. Sorry. Per month. No, per order.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 3:35
Assertion Not checkable as stated
DeCruz: Maynuu makes 10,000 MYR monthly in Malaysia, $500–$800 in Singapore
“So in Malaysia, we're doing a average 10,000 ringgit per month. And in Singapore, we're doing an average of five to 800 dollars a month.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 4:41
Assertion Not checkable as stated
DeCruz: Only about 10% of Maynuu restaurant signups are daily active
“So I think only about 10% are active users, and what we mean by active is they're getting daily sales.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 5:06
Disclosure
Maynu paid an initial Malaysian sales consultant ~15,000 MYR/month
“We paid them a flat fee. We paid them I think about 15,000 ringgit a month.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 6:12
Disclosure
Maynu has a team of five people
“We've got five.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 8:11
Disclosure
DeCruz: No regrets about 50-50 co-founder equity split at Maynu
“No, not at all.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 9:55
Disclosure
DeCruz: Cold Instagram DMs and word-of-mouth drive Maynu's customer acquisition
“So currently the one that works best is cold outreach. I do a lot of cold DMS on Instagram. And but apart from that, it's a lot of word of mouth referrals from people that I know, my friends and people that have signed on, they tell other people as well.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 11:13
Assertion Not checkable as stated
DeCruz: Maynu was doing approximately $1,000 a month in revenue a year ago
“One year ago, I think we were doing a third of that.”
Aaron DeCruz Jul 10, 2022 ▶ 12:33
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