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Apr 17, 2022 · 24m · top-founders

Bootstrapped Maropost Hits $60m Revenue, 52% Profits, Doing $1.7b Secondary Right Now

Ross Paquette · 11m spoken Nathan Latka · 9m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

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Maropost founder and CEO Ross Paquette joins Nathan Latka to discuss how his bootstrapped SaaS company achieved $60 million in revenue with 52% EBITDA margins, executed key strategic acquisitions, and managed equity buybacks leading up to a $1.7 billion valuation secondary round.

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 46.4% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 6.0 Guest teaching 2.3 Guest disagreement 1.7 Nathan pushing back 3.3
05100:0010:0020:000:45–3:14 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Maropost's Platform Overview and Rapid Revenue Growth Latka rapidly performs back-of-the-envelope SaaS calculations based on customer count and ARPU to estimate monthly and annual run rates. The exchange is highly cooperative, with the guest only gently correcting the founding year.3:14–7:31 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Navigating Outside Capital and Buying Back Investor Equity Latka presses Paquette on the exact mechanics of buying back outside investors, bluntly refusing to let him off the hook with vague phrasing. Paquette details why secondary structures allowed him to repurchase the shares cleanly.7:31–11:40 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Strategic Australian Acquisitions of Neto and Retail Express Latka investigates the economics behind the Neto and Retail Express acquisitions, probing valuation multiples and cash structures. Paquette corrects Latka's revenue multiple conversion from Australian dollars to USD.11:40–17:15 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Simplifying Customer Data Onboarding with Flatfile Latka provocatively suggests Paquette would make a terrible public company CEO due to his bootstrap personality. Paquette pushes back firmly, clarifying that going public remains the explicit goal but that he plans to hire a specialized operator to lead.17:15–21:41 · Nathan as informed peer 7/10 The $1.7B Secondary Deal and World-Class SaaS Metrics Latka drills into Maropost's $1.7B secondary valuation and benchmarks company metrics against public SaaS averages. Paquette explains how cross-selling three disparate clouds enables a rare 150% net retention rate in the mid-market.21:41–24:18 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 The Famous Five Questions and Final Retrospective The rapid-fire Famous Five round transitions smoothly into Latka's comprehensive concluding recap summarizing Maropost's key bootstrap metrics and secondary deal terms.0:45–3:14 · Guest teaching 1/10 Maropost's Platform Overview and Rapid Revenue Growth Latka rapidly performs back-of-the-envelope SaaS calculations based on customer count and ARPU to estimate monthly and annual run rates. The exchange is highly cooperative, with the guest only gently correcting the founding year.3:14–7:31 · Guest teaching 3/10 Navigating Outside Capital and Buying Back Investor Equity Latka presses Paquette on the exact mechanics of buying back outside investors, bluntly refusing to let him off the hook with vague phrasing. Paquette details why secondary structures allowed him to repurchase the shares cleanly.7:31–11:40 · Guest teaching 3/10 Strategic Australian Acquisitions of Neto and Retail Express Latka investigates the economics behind the Neto and Retail Express acquisitions, probing valuation multiples and cash structures. Paquette corrects Latka's revenue multiple conversion from Australian dollars to USD.11:40–17:15 · Guest teaching 4/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Simplifying Customer Data Onboarding with Flatfile Latka provocatively suggests Paquette would make a terrible public company CEO due to his bootstrap personality. Paquette pushes back firmly, clarifying that going public remains the explicit goal but that he plans to hire a specialized operator to lead.17:15–21:41 · Guest teaching 3/10 The $1.7B Secondary Deal and World-Class SaaS Metrics Latka drills into Maropost's $1.7B secondary valuation and benchmarks company metrics against public SaaS averages. Paquette explains how cross-selling three disparate clouds enables a rare 150% net retention rate in the mid-market.21:41–24:18 · Guest teaching 0/10 The Famous Five Questions and Final Retrospective The rapid-fire Famous Five round transitions smoothly into Latka's comprehensive concluding recap summarizing Maropost's key bootstrap metrics and secondary deal terms.0:45–3:14 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Maropost's Platform Overview and Rapid Revenue Growth Latka rapidly performs back-of-the-envelope SaaS calculations based on customer count and ARPU to estimate monthly and annual run rates. The exchange is highly cooperative, with the guest only gently correcting the founding year.3:14–7:31 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Navigating Outside Capital and Buying Back Investor Equity Latka presses Paquette on the exact mechanics of buying back outside investors, bluntly refusing to let him off the hook with vague phrasing. Paquette details why secondary structures allowed him to repurchase the shares cleanly.7:31–11:40 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Strategic Australian Acquisitions of Neto and Retail Express Latka investigates the economics behind the Neto and Retail Express acquisitions, probing valuation multiples and cash structures. Paquette corrects Latka's revenue multiple conversion from Australian dollars to USD.11:40–17:15 · Guest disagreement 4/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Simplifying Customer Data Onboarding with Flatfile Latka provocatively suggests Paquette would make a terrible public company CEO due to his bootstrap personality. Paquette pushes back firmly, clarifying that going public remains the explicit goal but that he plans to hire a specialized operator to lead.17:15–21:41 · Guest disagreement 2/10 The $1.7B Secondary Deal and World-Class SaaS Metrics Latka drills into Maropost's $1.7B secondary valuation and benchmarks company metrics against public SaaS averages. Paquette explains how cross-selling three disparate clouds enables a rare 150% net retention rate in the mid-market.21:41–24:18 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Famous Five Questions and Final Retrospective The rapid-fire Famous Five round transitions smoothly into Latka's comprehensive concluding recap summarizing Maropost's key bootstrap metrics and secondary deal terms.0:45–3:14 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Maropost's Platform Overview and Rapid Revenue Growth Latka rapidly performs back-of-the-envelope SaaS calculations based on customer count and ARPU to estimate monthly and annual run rates. The exchange is highly cooperative, with the guest only gently correcting the founding year.3:14–7:31 · Nathan pushing back 6/10 Navigating Outside Capital and Buying Back Investor Equity Latka presses Paquette on the exact mechanics of buying back outside investors, bluntly refusing to let him off the hook with vague phrasing. Paquette details why secondary structures allowed him to repurchase the shares cleanly.7:31–11:40 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Strategic Australian Acquisitions of Neto and Retail Express Latka investigates the economics behind the Neto and Retail Express acquisitions, probing valuation multiples and cash structures. Paquette corrects Latka's revenue multiple conversion from Australian dollars to USD.11:40–17:15 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Simplifying Customer Data Onboarding with Flatfile Latka provocatively suggests Paquette would make a terrible public company CEO due to his bootstrap personality. Paquette pushes back firmly, clarifying that going public remains the explicit goal but that he plans to hire a specialized operator to lead.17:15–21:41 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 The $1.7B Secondary Deal and World-Class SaaS Metrics Latka drills into Maropost's $1.7B secondary valuation and benchmarks company metrics against public SaaS averages. Paquette explains how cross-selling three disparate clouds enables a rare 150% net retention rate in the mid-market.21:41–24:18 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 The Famous Five Questions and Final Retrospective The rapid-fire Famous Five round transitions smoothly into Latka's comprehensive concluding recap summarizing Maropost's key bootstrap metrics and secondary deal terms.

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

0:00 · Nathan 57.8% · guest 42.2%0:00 · Nathan 57.8% · guest 42.2%3:00 · Nathan 35.1% · guest 64.9%3:00 · Nathan 35.1% · guest 64.9%6:00 · Nathan 27% · guest 73%6:00 · Nathan 27% · guest 73%9:00 · Nathan 36.3% · guest 63.7%9:00 · Nathan 36.3% · guest 63.7%12:00 · Nathan 73.4% · guest 26.6%12:00 · Nathan 73.4% · guest 26.6%15:00 · Nathan 47.8% · guest 52.2%15:00 · Nathan 47.8% · guest 52.2%18:00 · Nathan 40.6% · guest 59.4%18:00 · Nathan 40.6% · guest 59.4%21:00 · Nathan 47.5% · guest 52.5%21:00 · Nathan 47.5% · guest 52.5%24:00 · Nathan 93.3% · guest 6.7%24:00 · Nathan 93.3% · guest 6.7%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 16:40 Paquette rejects Latka's assumption about IPO plans

Paquette directly rejects Latka's framing that he avoids taking the company public, emphasizing that an IPO is their primary liquidity path.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 6:34 Latka refuses to let Paquette gloss over buyout numbers

Latka explicitly rejects Paquette's vague statement that they 'decided on a figure,' demanding the exact financial formula used to buy out the equity.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 3:56 Paquette clarifies pre vs post secondary valuation mechanics

Paquette educates Latka on secondary transaction mechanics, explaining why traditional pre-money and post-money valuations do not apply when no primary capital enters the balance sheet.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 19:30 Latka demonstrates public market benchmark expertise

Latka contextualizes Paquette's efficiency numbers by citing the exact $129k average revenue per employee standard across publicly traded SaaS firms.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Maropost's Platform Overview and Rapid Revenue Growth 6112 Latka rapidly performs back-of-the-envelope SaaS calculations based on customer count and ARPU to estimate monthly and annual run rates. The exchange is highly cooperative, with the guest only gently correcting the founding year.
Navigating Outside Capital and Buying Back Investor Equity 6326 Latka presses Paquette on the exact mechanics of buying back outside investors, bluntly refusing to let him off the hook with vague phrasing. Paquette details why secondary structures allowed him to repurchase the shares cleanly.
Strategic Australian Acquisitions of Neto and Retail Express 6313 Latka investigates the economics behind the Neto and Retail Express acquisitions, probing valuation multiples and cash structures. Paquette corrects Latka's revenue multiple conversion from Australian dollars to USD.
Sponsor Spotlight: Simplifying Customer Data Onboarding with Flatfile 6445 Latka provocatively suggests Paquette would make a terrible public company CEO due to his bootstrap personality. Paquette pushes back firmly, clarifying that going public remains the explicit goal but that he plans to hire a specialized operator to lead.
The $1.7B Secondary Deal and World-Class SaaS Metrics 7323 Latka drills into Maropost's $1.7B secondary valuation and benchmarks company metrics against public SaaS averages. Paquette explains how cross-selling three disparate clouds enables a rare 150% net retention rate in the mid-market.
The Famous Five Questions and Final Retrospective 5001 The rapid-fire Famous Five round transitions smoothly into Latka's comprehensive concluding recap summarizing Maropost's key bootstrap metrics and secondary deal terms.

Statements from this episode (17)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost grew revenue from $300k in 2013 to $26M in 2017
“So we very quickly went from 300,000 in revenue in 20, I guess that would have been 2013, actually. And then 2014, 3.3 million. 2016, if I'm not mistaken, was 13.3 million and then twenty six million in 20 17, if I'm not mistaken.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 2:05
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost approaches 5,000 active customer organizations
“Just shy of 5000, actually. We're about to, we should hit 5000 in a couple months.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 2:33
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost average revenue per user is roughly $1,800 monthly
“Probably about 1800 dollars per month.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 2:42
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Maropost will likely finish 2022 just shy of $100M ARR
“Just shy of it actually. Sorry. Yeah, just shy of it most likely.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 3:02
Assertion Supported
Maropost completed a $37M all-secondary funding round in 2016
“That was 2016 and we did an all secondary round for thirty seven million US, fifty million Canadian if it was relevant.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 3:29
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost's growth dropped to single digits after its 2016 secondary round
“The business had gone from triple digit growth to single digit growth.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 5:51
Disclosure
Maropost acquired Neto in 2020 and Retail Express in 2021
“So we acquired a company out of Australia called Neato back at the end of. 20 20. So right in the thick of COVID. And then acquired another coincidentally Australian business as well at the end of 2021. Clearly we have an affinity for Christmas deals. And that…”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 7:43
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Neto generated over $10M ARR when acquired by Maropost
“They were around just over ten million USD.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 9:26
Disclosure
Maropost bought Neto in an all-cash deal to protect its cap table
“No, no, it was all cash. So we, yeah, our cap table is still myself and the employees.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 10:40
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost acquired Neto at roughly a 4x ARR multiple
“Sorry, that was in USD. So it's a little less than that. It was closer to a four X multiple.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 10:55
Disclosure
Paquette takes zero salary, relying entirely on Maropost equity ownership
“So I don't have a salary. I don't have a bonus. I don't have anything. I have my ownership in the business. And if the business does well, I do well.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 13:54
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost generated approximately 52% EBITDA margins last year
“Yeah, about 52, yeah.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 14:42
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Ross Paquette is the sole shareholder of Maropost
“No, we don't have any shareholders except for myself. So we have option holders like everybody else.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 15:18
Disclosure
Paquette plans to retain 80% equity and avoid becoming a public CEO
“I'm not interested in that either. And that's not my goal. That's the difference. My goal is more to retain 80% of the business and be able to operate from a product perspective or a vision perspective and really be supportive to somebody like that. I don't as…”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 16:15
Disclosure
Maropost is executing a secondary round at a $1.7B valuation
“So I'm not even sure if I should share this, but we're doing a secondary round at a 1.7 billion dollar valuation.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 17:20
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Maropost's net dollar retention will exceed 150% this year
“Yeah, well this year will be well above a 150%.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 19:11
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Maropost generates over $200,000 in revenue per employee
“Revenue per employee is just over 200 right now, but it'll be significantly higher.”
Ross Paquette Apr 17, 2022 ▶ 19:20
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