Who acquired Mailchimp?

Mailchimp was acquired by Intuit for $12B on November 2021. Intuit acquired Mailchimp ~$12B cash+stock announced Sept 2021, closed November 2021. Ben Chestnut and Dan Kurzius each owned 50%.

How long did it take Mailchimp to reach $100k arr?

Ben Chestnut & Dan Kurzius took 8 years to reach $100k arr with Mailchimp.

Was Ben Chestnut & Dan Kurzius a solo founder?

No. Ben Chestnut & Dan Kurzius built Mailchimp with co-founders.

What marketing channel did Mailchimp use to grow?

Mailchimp grew primarily through Mundpropaganda.

What industry is Mailchimp in?

Mailchimp operates in Marketing.

Ben Chestnut & Dan Kurzius: Mailchimp to $100K ARR

Die vollständige Geschichte

TL;DR

Ben Chestnut bootstrapped Mailchimp for 20 years without VC funding, then sold to Intuit for $12 billion - the largest bootstrapped acquisition ever.

We started 18 years ago after my co-founder Dan and I were laid off from a dot-com. I got a severance paycheck and we used that to start the business.

The Side Project Era

We built Mailchimp as a side project while running a web design agency. I would say it was one of the first SaaS point solutions - one of the first cloud companies.

Staying Bootstrapped

Wary of giving up control to outside investors, Dan and I bootstrapped growth from profits and took no outside money. We tripled our revenue overnight by solving for our customers with the freemium model.

The Freemium Pivot

In 2009, we launched a free plan. This was controversial - giving away what we sold. But it unlocked massive growth. Small businesses could start free and upgrade as they grew.

Building in Atlanta

We stayed in Atlanta, not Silicon Valley. This kept our costs lower and gave us a different perspective on what small businesses actually needed.

The Exit

In September 2021, Intuit acquired Mailchimp for $12 billion in cash. We never raised a single dime of outside money. It is the largest bootstrapped outcome in history.

Founded: 2001
Acquisition: 2021 ($12 billion)
Outside funding: $0
Users at acquisition: 13M+
Revenue at exit: $800M+

Wichtigste Erkenntnisse

You don't need VC money to build a billion-dollar company

Freemium can unlock massive growth when timed right

Patience pays - 20 years of bootstrapping led to the biggest exit ever

Staying outside Silicon Valley can keep you grounded and costs lower

Ursprünglich veröffentlicht aufTechCrunch

Die vollständige Geschichte

TL;DR

Ben Chestnut bootstrapped Mailchimp for 20 years without VC funding, then sold to Intuit for $12 billion - the largest bootstrapped acquisition ever.

We started 18 years ago after my co-founder Dan and I were laid off from a dot-com. I got a severance paycheck and we used that to start the business.