How Fincome Is Winning Its First 100 Customers at €100 Per Month (Interview with CEO Martin Courau)

Intro and Company Overview

Nathan Latka

00:00Guys, fincome.co, they launched their MVP back in June. They raised a million dollar pre seed round, including 250 k of nondilutive capital from the French government at a, call it, 2% cost of capital. They've used that to be scrappy. They've now got 23 oh, sorry. They've got under a 100 paying customers, but more than one paying customer. These customers paying on average, call it, $130 to $150 per month. Couple thousand bucks in monthly recurring revenue

00:21as they look to keep scaling and extending their runway. Hey, folks. My guest today is Martin Courau. He's a former private equity investor turned SaaS entrepreneur. He's an HEC Paris graduate and started at Goldman Sachs in London and Morgan Stanley in London before moving to PE after a stint in strategy consulting. Today, he's the co founder of fincome. That's with an e on the end. Fincome.co, which is a real time financial data platform for SaaS. Martin,

00:45you ready to take us to the top?

What Fincome Does and Who It Serves

Martin Courau

00:47>> Absolutely. Let's go.

Nathan Latka

00:48Alright. What kind of real time data?

Martin Courau

00:51>> Well, so right now, we update it every day, but we're moving to closer to real time with updates coming in around every twenty minutes. That's three times an hour. And depending on the system, we're pushing that limit because we want our clients to have the freshest data possible.

Nathan Latka

01:07Mhmm. Okay. But what what so it's mainly the SaaS companies. But is it is it data that the CFO uses, data that the tech people use? I assume it's finance, fincome. Right?

Martin Courau

01:15>> It is. So we're a financial data platform. So, basically, we provide either the CFO and the finance team or the founder with the live financial data and KPIs that they need to understand what's going on in their business on a day to day basis or even on a on an hour per hour basis and to make the right decisions based on that. Mhmm.

Nathan Latka

01:34And are companies paying you already for the product, are you prelaunch?

Martin Courau

01:38>> You know, we launched a few months ago, and we're scaling up our user base right now, mainly through direct acquisitions and partnerships.

Nathan Latka

01:46That's great. Okay. So so walk me through. So what's an average customer pay pay for the platform?

Pricing Model and ARPU

Martin Courau

01:51>> So right now, we're pricing it at around a €100 per month. We have a small discount for the annual plan. Else, it's a basic month month to month plan. And we're gonna push that price point up to probably a 150, almost 200, depending on the features because we have a big feature roadmap that we're delivering with a lot of features being pushed in the coming weeks. And that's gonna allow us to go for higher price points

02:17>> because we're delivering more value in our product.

Nathan Latka

02:20Mhmm. And what's the I'm trying to go to. It's not working for some reason. What's the correct URL, the website?

Martin Courau

02:25>> I'll send it to you right now. It's fincome.co, with an e at the end.

Nathan Latka

02:31Ah, fincome. I got it. Got it. Fincome.co. That's weird. I'm for some reason, I don't know. Maybe you're in Paris. Right?

Martin Courau

02:40>> Yeah. We might have some some issues with US connections. We've had that before. We're we're looking to that.

Nathan Latka

02:46I think that's what it is. But let me I'll try and open it in an incognito window so I can ask better questions. But, like, what what is the homepage of like, the big bold text across your homepage say?

Martin Courau

02:55>> Oh, it's in French. It's not translated yet, but the the tagline is a 360 vision of the performance of your SaaS in real time.

Homepage and Product Positioning

Nathan Latka

03:04Very cool. Okay. So so folks are paying on average a $130 a month. And are you pricing based off number of seats, or is it amount of data in the platform, or how do you price?

Martin Courau

03:14>> So we're pricing it by the feature. So basically, you're gonna have a plan with a limited limited access to our feature. That's mainly gonna serve smaller clients that don't necessarily need to have the more advanced analytics feature that we offer. And then we're gonna have a pro plan for larger companies with bigger teams that need access to analytics, that need access to cost analysis, that need access to wider data sources that we can plug into our

03:39>> system. That's how we're pressing it right now.

Nathan Latka

03:41Very cool. And then take me back here. So you launched a couple months ago, but when did you write the first line of code for the platform? Was it 2022 or 2021?

MVP Timeline and First Lines of Code

Martin Courau

03:48>> It was early twenty twenty two. Yeah. Okay. Spent 2021 sitting in, getting the team together. We started coding early twenty twenty two. We pushed the first version in June. We pushed the updated version in September, and we've been working on this one ever since.

Nathan Latka

04:03How much money did you personally spend on the MVP before launching it?

Personal Spend and Agency Partnership

Martin Courau

04:07>> Honestly, not that much. I mean, we have I mean, we raised fun, but fundamentally, we have this bootstrapping culture that we try to uphold. Honestly, below $50,000.

Nathan Latka

04:12Who did the framework?

Martin Courau

04:14>> At the start, we got our start with an agency and for the that was for the front end, for the the back end, and the algorithm, which is where the real value lays. That was our third associate, Lucas, who's who's our CTO.

Nathan Latka

04:35Very cool. Which agency did you use? And are you would you recommend them? Are you still using them today?

Martin Courau

04:40>> No. We're not using them because we've kind of outgrown their purpose. It's a French based agency called Blue Square. We really recommend these guys. They're great if you're trying to launch an MVP in France. They're very agile. They know the ropes. They'll provide you with a ton of useful inputs. They certainly saved us a lot of time and helped us avoid a lot of mistakes.

Nathan Latka

05:01So you came to one hundred fifty ks to help you get the MVP live in addition with your third, your CTO who did the backend work.

Martin Courau

05:07>> Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah.

Nathan Latka

05:09Oh, what's going on there, YouTube? Good to see you guys. Now imagine this, you love watching these interviews with SaaS founders, but imagine if we all of the valuation data out from over 2,807 interviews I've done manually. Saves you a lot of time. Well, we've done this. We've built it into the beautiful interface inside of Founderpath. Check this out. I'll show you how you can access this in a second, but you log in, you connect your

05:32Stripe account, you see your valuation real time. You can see what it changed over the past eighty eight days and even set goals for valuation this year. Now the secret evaluation is there's many different ways to value a SaaS business. So the reason you're gonna see three or four different valuations inside of your Founderpath dashboard, this is all free by the way, is because depending on who's doing the buying of your SaaS company, you're gonna get

05:57a different valuation. A VC is gonna pay a different valuation, Private equity firm is different. If you're gonna do a minority sale, that's different. And if you sell the whole business, that's a different valuation. You can see all those when I hover over here, right? So the teal is what a VC would pay. Yellow is what private equity And red is if you sold the whole thing outright. Now what's cool about this is this is not

06:19built off random data. Again, you guys hear these interviews on YouTube. All these datas are built from real time valuation data points founder share with us on the show. So traction 1,200,000 seed round 3.7 raise. They sold 22% of their business. Go in here and filter by the event. Maybe you only wanna see companies that have sold the whole business. Well, here are a bunch that have been acquired the valuation and the multiple. Maybe you're going

06:44out right now and you're raising your seed round. We'll go in here and look at all this recent seed deals that went down, what they raised, what valuation they raised at and what percent that they sold. There's never been a larger dataset of SaaS valuations than what you can get now inside of Founderpath. And we're thrilled to bring it to you. All right. We're gonna go back to the YouTube video here in a second, but if

07:06you wanna check this tool out, if you wanna jump in and sign up, you can check it out for free to get your valuation at this link. This link, founderpath.com/products/valuations. Or if you go to founderpath.com and hover over products, click on get your valuation here, and go ahead and sign up to give it a whirl. Again, all that valuation data live right inside the platform. I hope to see you there. Alright. Let's jump back into the

07:32interview. Okay. Very cool. Now how did you guys I mean, it sounds like you've raised, but how'd you pay your bills all last year when you were pre revenue?

Martin Courau

07:40>> Our own assets, basically.

Nathan Latka

07:42Okay. So you just saved up some money before you quit and said, okay, I'll live off

Pre-Revenue Survival and Fundraising

Martin Courau

07:45>> Absolutely. Savings for a Well, private equity, you know, it's a it's a great career. You know, it's it was tough choosing to to leave it, but, you know, the the draw of entrepreneurship was just too strong. But it's a it's a very well paid career. So, yeah, we did have some money saved, and we've been living on that ever since. Well, that's obviously after we raised.

Nathan Latka

08:05Yeah. Now when did you raise? What year?

08:21People are selling, like, fifteen to 20% in their pre seed round. Were you sort of in that same range?

Martin Courau

08:25>> No. Lower than that.

Nathan Latka

08:27Okay. Good. So that you are you you well, then we there's something to learn from here because I'm always trying to help founders avoid dilution. So how were you able to give up less than 15% in your pre seed round?

Pre-Seed Round Structure and Non-Dilutive Debt

Martin Courau

08:36>> So we raised some non dilutive financing in that round. So that's equity plus some debt.

Nathan Latka

08:43France, it's non dilutive financing. How raise how you raise debt, though, when you're pre revenue?

Martin Courau

08:48>> In France, you can have access to loans, even pre revenue. You have

Nathan Latka

08:52this Are these public grants from the government?

Martin Courau

08:53>> BPI? It's not grants. It is a loan. So you do have to pay it back, but it's a loan that's specifically tailored for very early stage companies.

Nathan Latka

09:01Martin, it's like it's like 2%. Right? It's like two or 3% interest rate, something super low.

Martin Courau

09:06>> Well, the cost interestingly, the cost has tripled since we raised. So it's a lot it's more expensive now.

Nathan Latka

09:12Oh, it's a it's a floating rate? Yeah. Oh, interesting. So the

Martin Courau

09:16>> problem is We we we got a fixed rate locked in, but now we're looking to raise some more because obviously now we have revenues, or we're trying to extend our runway and raise a bit more non dilutive in addition to the equity that we already raised.

Nathan Latka

09:28Oh, I see.

Martin Courau

09:29>> And the cost has has gone up quite dramatically.

Nathan Latka

09:32So what is it now? Just like curious, six, seven, 9%?

Martin Courau

09:34>> Yeah, is. I think it's six now. It used to be two.

Nathan Latka

09:37Interesting. Okay. But, again, I I heard this before. It's it's it's it's basically subsidized by the government to help encourage startups.

Martin Courau

09:43>> Absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah.

Nathan Latka

09:45So how much of the million that you raised was that program versus pure equity?

First Customer Story

Martin Courau

09:49>> It was pretty much 75% pure equity, 25% on dilutive.

Nathan Latka

09:54Oh, okay. So two fifty and seven fifty split. That's not that's not terrible. That's fine. Yeah. And then I guess fast forward to your first customer. Tell us that story. How'd you land them?

Martin Courau

10:04>> So it's it's a it's a great SaaS. They have this wonderful growth trajectory, and we've been talking to them for about a year and a half. I mean, they've been in our ecosystem ever since we we started the company. Actually, it was the agency that we worked with that introduced us to these guys. And we basically built the MVP

10:25>> not entirely based on their needs, but we definitely kept their needs in mind. And they were a big inspiration for us. They were pretty much the starting point of, okay, so we know there's a pain point. We're trying to address it. How do

Nathan Latka

10:38we Did you provide an ask them to say, hey, we're gonna build this for you. Can you pay us a thousand bucks to No, we did not.

Martin Courau

10:44>> We tried looking into that. I mean, we we probably tried that. It's not something that's very deeply rooted in French culture. They're more of a see, then I get the checkbook out.

Nathan Latka

10:56That's fair. That's fair.

10:57>> So yeah.

10:57Okay. Then fast forward to today, how many paying customers?

Martin Courau

11:01>> So we don't disclose that number because we'll only disclose it when we reach a certain milestone, but we are scaling up our acquisition quite rapidly, especially through partnerships and direct acquisition. And

Nathan Latka

11:13What milestone are you waiting for? Like, a 100 customers, 50 customers?

Martin Courau

11:16>> Absolutely. Waiting for a 100.

Nathan Latka

11:18Waiting for a 100. Okay. Cool.

Martin Courau

11:20>> When do you think you can break a 100 customers?

11:23>> Next semester, hopefully.

Nathan Latka

11:25Oh, you think in sometime in the next six months?

Martin Courau

11:27>> Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. That's the plan.

Nathan Latka

11:29Oh, okay. Okay. Cool. Well, I mean, what, a 100 customers at, you know, each paying a $130 a month, that would put your revenues at, $13,000 a month. So maybe you're at, you know, half of that or, you know, 2, 3, 4,000 in MRR today.

Martin Courau

11:40>> Something like that. Yeah.

Nathan Latka

11:42Well, hey, every million dollar a month company has to start with 2,000 a month in MRR. Right? So you're off to the races.

Martin Courau

11:48>> Absolutely. I mean, we're we're pretty satisfied with the trajectory. I mean, of course, we're starting from nothing. And but, yeah, we're looking forward to hitting that milestone and being able to communicate. And Well,

Nathan Latka

11:58so so how are you getting new customers today? Right? The first one, you went really specific on them. I mean, what's the growth channel today?

Growth Channels: Cold Outreach, Content, Webinars

Martin Courau

12:05>> So we're kind of we we have a very trial by error approach. So we're pretty much trying everything, see what sticks. What works really well is pretty much cold calling right now. So more of a sales driven approach right now,

12:20>> giving us time to build a brand and to develop all the inbound leads which we're starting to get with a content strategy. We're just starting to bear fruits, focused on posting blog articles, a lot of LinkedIn posts,

12:35>> a lot of events. We do a lot of co branded webinars with companies that have a bigger notoriety and a bigger following than we do. And that's a great way to attract leads for us. And we're starting to look into partnerships. We've got two lined up. One with a, well, the French QuickBooks, which is called Pennylane. And we're trying to build their analytics platform because that's something they don't necessarily have in their product right now.

13:03>> And we're also looking to internationalize through partnerships, and we have one lined up with a revenue based financing provider, which is based in a neighboring country who could give us access to its client base.

Nathan Latka

13:14Oh, very interesting. Okay. And when you look at look at your own runway today, mentioned you're looking for some more non dilutive capital, your price is now 6% instead of 2%. Right? How are you managing your own burn today? What is your net burn per month?

Runway and Burn Rate Management

Martin Courau

13:27>> So we're keeping it under watch on a close close watch. We don't naturally disclose that number, but it is a top priority for us. We're trying to squeeze as much efficiency out of every euro that we spend, and that makes under?

Nathan Latka

13:41Do you have a limit per month that you wanna stay under in terms of net burn?

Martin Courau

13:44>> 50 grands.

Nathan Latka

13:4550?

Martin Courau

13:47>> Yeah.

13:47Yeah.

13:47>> If we hit 50, that would be bad news. Then again, it depends on how fast we're growing, but

Nathan Latka

13:53It's always a it's always a balancing act. It's always a balancing act. Yeah. So so let's say you're burning $30.40 grand net burn a month today. Does that leave you with more than twelve months of runway?

Martin Courau

14:02>> Oh, yeah. Absolutely.

Nathan Latka

14:04So what's driving the need to raise non dilutive capital right now?

Why Raise More Non-Dilutive Capital Now

Martin Courau

14:08>> We're pretty much conservative, and we're trying to extend it as much as possible because there's so much uncertainty in the ecosystem today. I mean, we're seeing a lot of companies, a lot of companies who are our own clients having delayed series As or canceled series Bs. And that just leaves them in a really, really bad place. So the idea for us, raising additional non diluted capital, is really to secure extra months, basically, to give us the

14:34>> time to roll out our roadmap and to reach our targets. We're just being conservative.

Nathan Latka

14:39Well, Martin, we're rooting for you, man. In the meantime, though, let's wrap up with the famous five. Number one, what's your favorite business book?

Martin Courau

14:46>> The Outsiders. I can't remember the author, which is a shame, but it's a great book.

Nathan Latka

14:51You know know, there's some books that I've read that I just love, and some of them, like, very rarely get mentioned by founders.

Martin Courau

14:56>> The Outsiders is one of them.

Nathan Latka

14:58No one ever tell recommends them, but when I hear someone that does it, I know we're the same person because I love that book.

Martin Courau

15:04>> Alright. And, guys, it's a it's a fantastic book.

Nathan Latka

15:06Martin, what is it? Eight is it eight or nine? Nine of the most capital efficient

15:10founders and CEOs ever?

Martin Courau

15:12>> Yeah. It is. It's nine, I think.

Nathan Latka

15:13I think it's nine.

Martin Courau

15:14>> Yeah. I talked about lot of data, you know, a lot of really going into the recipes that he used to to, yeah, to to just achieve this fantastic track record over the years and just so consistent. So fantastic.

15:26>> It's very it's very, very good.

Nathan Latka

15:27Number two, is there a CEO you're currently following or studying?

Martin Courau

15:32>> Well, the the Collison brothers over at Stripe. Love these guys.

15:36>> Very impressive.

Nathan Latka

15:37Number three, what's your favorite online tool for building fincome?

Martin Courau

15:42>> Oh, that's a good question. One that has a particular soft spot in my heart is Shield for tracking my LinkedIn analytics. I mean, it's not central to what we do, but it's just so well made, just so well designed, and it just fits my needs so well that I thought, wow. I got a lot to learn from these guys.

Nathan Latka

16:02What's it called?

Martin Courau

16:03>> She is it she is it shieldapp.ai?

16:06>> Yeah. That's that should be the one. Let me check.

16:09>> That's a good one.

Nathan Latka

16:10Yeah. It is. Alright.

Martin Courau

16:11>> Okay. Number four.

Nathan Latka

16:13How many hours of sleep do get every night?

Martin Courau

16:16>> Oh, that that varies greatly. I try to sleep is massively important to my well-being, so I try to hit a seven hours minimum. Okay. I do build my entire day around my sleep cycle.

Nathan Latka

16:30That's good. And what's your situation? Married, single, kids?

Martin Courau

16:34>> I'm not married, but with a long term partner, which I'm hoping to marry one day. She says yes. And no kids are cool.

Nathan Latka

16:40Okay. No kids. And how old are you?

Martin Courau

16:43>> 33.

Nathan Latka

16:4433. Last question.

Martin Courau

16:45>> Something you wish you knew when you were 20.

Famous Five: Advice and Closing

Martin Courau

16:49>> Grow your network. Get out there. Speak to as many people as you can. You'll always learn something.

Nathan Latka

16:54Guys, fincome.co, they launched their MVP back in June. They raised a million dollar pre seed round, including 250 k of nondilutive capital from the French government at a, call it, 2% cost of capital. They've used that to be scrappy. They've now got 23 oh, sorry. They've got under a 100 paying customers, but more than one paying customer. These customers paying on average, call it $130 to $150 per month, couple thousand bucks in monthly recurring revenue as

17:16they look to keep scaling and extending their runway. We're certainly rooting for him. We'll see what happens next, Martin. Thanks for taking us to the top.

Martin Courau

17:23>> Thank you for having me.

Nathan Latka

17:24One more thing before you go. We have a brand new show every Thursday at 1PM central. It's called Shark Tank for SaaS. We call it deal or bust. One founder comes on, three hungry buyers, they try and do a deal live and the founder shares back end dashboards, their expenses, their revenue, ARPU CAC, LTV, you name it, they share it and the buyers try and make a deal live. It is fun to watch every Thursday 1PM

17:49Central. Additionally, remember these recorded founder interviews go live. We release them here on YouTube every day at 2PM Central. To make sure you don't miss any of that, make sure you click the subscribe button below here on YouTube, the big red button, and then click the little bell notification to make sure you get notifications when we do go live. I wouldn't want you to miss breaking news in the SaaS world, whether it's an acquisition, a big

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