Build a sense of culture from day 1

GrowthStep is a one-stop solution for growing or turning your startup idea into a reality

How did you get the idea of GrowthStep?

My co-founder, Connor, and I had been working in startups for many years and during this time we worked with a ton of different agencies and firms in areas such as Marketing, PR and engineering. Although many of these firms were great to work with, it was difficult to manage all of them and even harder to coordinate all of them into working with each other. We also felt that the firms we worked with were not always startup focussed and the traditional agency model was not startup-friendly. 

Why did you decide to start with GrowthStep?

The fact that the traditional agency model isn’t always conducive to startups is exactly why we decided to start GrowthStep – we saw a gap in the market to provide a one-stop solution for startups specifically that could offer them the services they need, but often lack due to budget or resource constraints, to get up and running, scale and grow successfully. We decided to start GrowthStep to be the startup for startups and to change the way in which founders can leverage elastic growth because we felt we had the right people and experience to change the way these founders can get the right support relevant to their needs at various stages of the business. 

What is the vision behind GrowthStep?

To make GrowthStep the go-to trusted partner for founders by functioning as an extended, in-house team to help grow their startups providing the services that are directly relevant to their business.

How difficult was the start and which challenges you had to overcome?

GrowthStep was launched just as COVID-19 hit so we were presented with an almost immediate roadblock. Fortunately, we were still able to acquire our first few customers and as the weeks went on, it became clear to us that startup founders were looking for a lower risk option to traditional full-time hiring and demand for our services spiked. How hard was it to start? Well if it wasn’t hard, it would be no fun. The hardest thing about launching the business was definitely trying to acquire enough customers on our shoestring budget to prove our model before raising capital. 

Who is your target audience?

Our target audience is any startup in the UK, USA or Singapore between the formation and Series A stage. 

What is the USP of your startup?

Without a doubt, the biggest USP of GrowthStep is our people. We have an amazing team of startup veterans who are very respected in their areas. This makes a huge difference as startup founders want to work with people who have lived and breathed what they are experiencing now. Another USP is that because we offer all the core startup services, startups only have to work with one firm rather than many and we integrate into their teams as if we were a part of their core team. 

Can you describe your typical workday?

My typical workday starts with a morning team meeting to find out what everyone is working on and gives the team a chance to get feedback and offer help on projects people are working on. After that, we start our customer calls which are either to discuss strategy or explore results. During the day I have lots of internal meetings as well to explore new ideas and collaborate on projects. COVID-19 has meant we have not been able to meet up a lot but under different circumstances, we would usually go out for a drink after work on a Thursday.

Where do you see yourself and your startup GrowthStep in five years?

In 5 years I would love to see GrowthStep recognised as the go-to people for startup growth. We have a fantastic team and we have big growth plans, so I would expect that we would have a large team and be working with startups big and small both in the UK and abroad. International expansion is always something I think of and in 5 years I would love to have another GrowthStep office in the US or Asia. 

What 3 tips would you give to founders?

1. Don’t try to be an expert in everything. I have seen it all too often when founders hire exceptional people but don’t give them the freedom to do what they do best which results in them not doing the best work and ultimately the company not achieving what it could do. 
2. Build a sense of culture from day 1. Many people assume that only larger companies have the time to think about and build culture, but this is far from true. Building a strong culture will help you first identify who is right for your business and secondly make sure they are happy and productive at work. 
3. Don’t underestimate the power of partnerships. When starting a business, partnerships can really accelerate your growth and lead to a much easier route to success. People are often worried that they are too small to be an interesting partner for other businesses but more often than not I have found that businesses of all sizes are always interested in at least exploring the idea of a partnership. 

More information you will find here

Thank you Jay Singh for the Interview

Statements of the author and the interviewee do not necessarily represent the editors and the publisher opinion again.