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I think the problem these days is that there is a lot of talk, on sites such as this, that VC is the way to go. I don't think that Zoho are unique in being abl
by inovica 17y ago
I think the problem these days is that there is a lot of talk, on sites such as this, that VC is the way to go. I don't think that Zoho are unique in being able to do this - I think with software/web there are a good number of companies that have managed to quietly build their business and get great revenues.
- SamAtt 17y agoI could be wrong but I suspect most small companies in the United States are funded by business loans not VCs. If you have decent credit and real faith in your idea it makes sense not to give the valuable shares away.
- eru 17y agoAnd if you do not need millions of dollars.
- webwright 17y agoZoho quietly did it by getting funding from a source other than VCs. Growth like this generally requires cash.
- ryanwaggoner 17y agoZoho quietly did it by getting funding from a source other than VCs. Source? Or is this just conjecture on your part?
- sridharvembu 17y agoI think he meant funding from already profitable products. If that is what he meant, that is true. Zoho quietly got funding from our own earlier products, which got funding from our even earlier products, and so on, until we reach http://www.webnms.com/snmp/ http://www.webnms.com/snmp/ which was bootstrapped ... :-)
- webwright 17y agoRight-o. Not meant to be derogatory. It's a great story. It's just a helluva lot LONGER story than most people make it out to be. Funding (in times of success) is an accelerant. Zoho had funding, which fueled growth. It wasn't VC funding, but cash is cash. I'd MUCH rather take cash from previous successes (and have in the past) than from VCs, but it's not entirely true to look at Zoho as a bootstrapped business, especially if you're thinking of it as a model. VC funded businesses are a long road. Bootstrapped businesses are a much longer road.