Over the next 30 minutes
“Founder-Led Sales: First 30 B2B Customers”
Founder resourceBuilder <$5m
How we added $1m ARR over the last 12 months during an economic downturn
Founder-led sales for the first 30 B2B customers, scaled automations, and an 84% repeat usage rate behind the 12-month ARR climb
Assel Beglinova · Paperstack
Published September 6, 2023About this resource
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What you’ll learn
Paperstack describes adding $1m ARR over 12 months through founder-led sales, outreach automation, and hiring, then explains how customer fit and repeat usage shaped growth and how the team managed rapid expansion.
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Let’s start with
“hitting $1m in the last 12 months”
Let’s jump into Repeat Usage stats
“Let’s jump into Repeat Usage stats”
What happens when you grow 1659%
“What happens when you grow 1659%”
Over the last 30 minutes
“We know who ISN’T our customer”
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Assel Saasstr slide deck
Assel Beglinova is the co-founder and CEO of Paperstack, a platform that provides working capital for e-commerce sellers. At 18, she moved to Canada from Kazakhstan as an international student without any connections. She went to school to study accounting, and pursued a career in the banking industry. When Assel got laid off during the pandemic, instead of looking for another job, she decided to take everything she learned and launch a company. She met her co-founder, Vadim Lidich, at Tea Club Toronto — a community Assel founded to help other founders with startup challenges. In the first year, the pair closed a pre-seed round of funding, and in the span of a few months, they were accepted into three prestigious tech programs: Google for Startups, Communitech’s Fierce Founders, and Techstars.
- Company revenue
- $1M
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Each slide with a short explanation of what it shows. Open the slide text for its exact wording.
19 passages
Introduction
Slide text
How We Added $1m ARR Over the Last 12 Months During an Economic Downturn Assel Beglinova CEO & Co-Founder, Paperstack
Over the next 30 minutes
Three themes guide the talk
The talk will cover customer acquisition, repeat usage, and the operational strain of rapid growth. The agenda previews founder-led sales, customer fit, and the response to a waitlist surge.
Slide text
Over the next 30 minutes I’m going to show you Founder-Led Sales: First 30 B2B Customers Build automations to reach customers at scale (Legally) Attract best performing employees of our competitors We know who ISN’T our customer We are part of customer’s financial model We make Christmas happen We broke Stripe Waitlist grew (ballooned) 500% Reached out and asked for help Hitting $1m in Last 12 months 84% Repeat Usage We Grew Too Fast
Revenue climbed to $1.08M
Gross volume reaches $1.08M after a gradual start and a sharper rise toward July 2023. The comparison period is shown at $0.00.
Slide text
Our Revenue Growth
Let’s start with
Three levers supported early growth
Paperstack describes onboarding its first 30 B2B customers through founder-led sales, customer outreach automation, and recruiting experienced talent from competitors.
Slide text
Let’s start with hitting $1m in the last 12 months And how Paperstack scaled… How we onboarded our first 30 B2B customers This reaches customers at scale Legally! Best performers from competitors Founder-Led Sales Build Automations Attract Talent
Customer calls filled the CEO calendar
The calendar shows zero investor calls and 30+ onboarding calls with fast-growing ecommerce brands in Q1 2023. The emphasis is on spending founder time with customers.
Slide text
CEO’s Calendar Assel’s calendar Q1 2023 ZERO Investors call, 30+ onboarding calls with fast growing ecommerce brands
Let’s jump into Repeat Usage stats
Repeat use comes from customer fit
The next section connects repeat usage with identifying poor-fit customers, fitting into a customer’s financial model, and helping the customer deliver seasonal outcomes.
Slide text
Let’s jump into Repeat Usage stats I’m going to show you We know who our customer isn’t We fit into their financial model We make Christmas happen 84% Repeat Usage Be a part of customer’s model Perception
Customer visits create shared marketing
An email asks to visit a customer in person and create marketing materials together. It frames customer relationships as a source of both learning and promotion.
Slide text
Add full images using blank template
A team visit at an ecommerce warehouse
Four people pose among shelves of boxed inventory in a warehouse. The photo places the customer relationship in an operating ecommerce environment.
A customer visit among apparel stock
A man stands in an apparel stockroom holding a garment. The photo gives a personal view of the retail operations behind a customer relationship.
A team member with customer apparel
A person holds a pair of bright shorts in a clothing store. The photo connects the talk’s customer focus to a retail product and its brand.
The team together in its office
Three people pose in a bright office beside tiered seating. The photo shifts from customer operations back to the people behind the company.
Three lessons follow rapid growth
This section moves from a Stripe outage and a ballooning waitlist to asking for help. It sets up the operational lessons from growing too quickly.
Slide text
And now onto lessons from growing too fast I’m going to show you Stripe went down Waitlist grew 500% Reaching out and asking for help We broke it Ballooned Solution?
What happens when you grow 1659%
Gross volume grew 1,659.1%
The chart compares gross volume from August 2022 to February 2023 and shows a steep rise against a nearly flat previous period. The reported change is +1,659.1%.
Slide text
What happens when you grow 1659%
A weekly ACH limit blocked payment
A payment screen reports that the weekly ACH volume limit was exceeded. The example shows how a fast-growing company can encounter a payment-processing constraint.
Slide text
We hit our limit
A public post brought Stripe leaders in
In less than 24 hours, 12 people reposted the LinkedIn post and 50+ Stripe leaders were notified directly or tagged. The accompanying thread shows people offering to connect and help.
Slide text
Less than 24 hours 12 people reposted on Linkedin 50+ leaders from Stripe were notified directly or tagged
A direct introduction offered help
A peer recommends contacting Stripe’s cofounder, and the founder replies that the issue was already resolved but still welcomes a connection. The screenshot illustrates how a network can help unblock a problem.
A customer praises support and growth
A five-star customer review describes responsive support and says the service helped the customer’s company grow. The owner responds with thanks and appreciation for the relationship.
Over the last 30 minutes
Three takeaways summarize the talk
The recap groups the lessons into reaching $1m in the last 12 months, achieving 84% repeat usage, and handling the consequences of growing too fast. It also returns to founder-led sales, automation, customer fit, and asking for help.
Slide text
Over the last 30 minutes I showed you We know who ISN’T our customer We are part of customer’s financial model We make Christmas happen We broke Stripe Waitlist grew (ballooned) 500% Reached out and asked for help Hitting $1m in Last 12 months 84% Repeat Usage We Grew Too Fast Founder-Led Sales: First 30 B2B Customers Build automations to reach customers at scale (Legally) Attract best performing employees of our competitors
Thank you from the speaker
Assel Beglinova closes the talk with thanks and identifies herself as Paperstack’s CEO and cofounder.
Slide text
Assel Beglinova CEO & Co-Founder, Paperstack