20VC: Klaviyo’s Andrew Bialecki on Going Public in an IPO Winter, Is Klaviyo Under-Priced in Public Markets and Why, Why Every VC Turned Klaviyo Down in the Early Days & How Shopify’s Partnership Changed the Game
20VC
Jun 25, 2024
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Andrew Bialecki is the Co-Founder and CEO of Klaviyo, the platform that powers smarter digital relationships for businesses and their data. To date, Klaviyo has raised over $778M from the likes of Accel, Summit Partners, Sands Capital, and Shopify, and raised an additional $700M after its IPO in September 2023.
In Today’s Episode with Andrew Bialecki We Discuss:
1. Founding Klaviyo: The Aha Moment
What was the aha moment for Klaviyo?
How important does Andrew think it is for founders to stick with their initial vision vs when is the right time to pivot?
Does a great product sell itself? If you build it, will they come?
2. Bootstrapping Klaviyo to $1M ARR
Why did Andrew decide to bootstrap & not take VC money with Klaviyo?
Does Andrew think Klaviyo would have been successful if they raised a seed round? What would they have done differently?
Why does Andrew believe companies should take their time to find product-market fit? What are the most common mistakes founders make?
What is Andrew’s advice to founders on fundraising?
When did Andrew decide to raise a seed round when he did?
3. The IPO: Advice & Lessons
Why did Andrew decide to take Klaviyo public in a bad public market?
How was the IPO roadshow process? What were Andrew’s lessons from it?
How has Andrew’s role as CEO changed after taking Klaviyo public?
Does Andrew think Klaviyo is undervalued today?
What is Andrew’s advice to founders on secondaries?
4. Behind the Shopify Partnership
How did Klaviyo’s partnership with Shopify happen? What were Andrew’s lessons working with Tobi Lütke & Harley Finklestein?
How does Andrew define a win-win partnership?
What does Andrew mean by “Partnerships are like a tug of war?”
What does Andrew think are the most common reasons partnerships go sideways?
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