I paused for a second.
I then shared how we’ve moved significantly well from a -15% EBITDA last March to ~-4%, and are on track to turn profitable in the next few months.
Still, the response stayed the same.
Now here's the irony:
In India, a lot of founders are now consciously building towards EBITDA.
It’s new for the startup world to move from growth hat to Profitability hat, not just for us, but also for VCs who’ve been wired to chase 4-5x top line at all costs.
In the next few years, we're all going to unlock the IPO story together...founders and investors alike. But for that, we all need to shift perspectives.
Profitable high growth businesses typically grow at 20-30% YoY as they switch gears from startup mode to becoming scalable, sustainable growth-stage companies.
That transition isn’t slow, it’s strategic.
Look at the first few years of IPO stage companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google...the Steller IPO legacy companies also grew 20-40% annually post IPO.
Maybe it’s time we start appreciating and backing companies that are growing at 40-100% annually, but with profitability in sight.
These are the kinds of companies that will build strong fundamentals, weather tough markets, and eventually become North Star return businesses on public exchanges.
The truth is:
What shoots up too fast also crashes hard. We’ve seen many such stories in Indian startup world too. Hence, it’s time to change the investing game too.
4-5x High growth comes at a cost and that can be done, but not profitably. So, we all need to know what we’re rightfully chasing & hence guide the future IPO entrepreneurs right.
I’m no one to preach.
Just a founder trying to figure things out like everyone else.
But if I’m wrong, tell me.
The comment box is open.
We’re all learning :)
This post was originally shared by on Linkedin.