LU 347: A Look Inside One of the World’s Fastest Growing SaaS Companies (podcast)

Eric

5 years ago

Ismael Wrixen FE International

Hey everyone! Today, I share the mic with Ismael Wrixen, group CEO of FE International, the market leader in the sale of SaaS, e-commerce, and content businesses. Ismael is a returning onto the show to fill us in on recent developments at FE.

Tune in to hear Ismael talk figure jumps in revenue and deals, why the firm prefers using a cash on success pricing strategy over retainers and the quantity ratios and strategy differences between FE’s handing of deals in E-commerce, SaaS, and content spaces respectively.

TIME-STAMPED SHOW NOTES:

[00:41] Before we jump into today’s interview, please rate, review, and subscribe to the Leveling Up Podcast!
[01:06] Updates at FE: SaaS magazine, and figure jumps in revenue and deals.
[02:53] The service FE offers: to complete business acquisitions in the SaaS space.
[05:23] Why FE doesn’t use retainers but rather charges clients upon deal success.
[06:43] Ratios between, and values of, E-commerce, SaaS, and content deals at FE.
[08:09] Multiples in the SaaS space for FE: 6 x STE forward-looking at the bottom end.
[10:40] Which SaaS deals do better for FE: B2B and B2SMB.
[12:50] Details about deal structure and revenue on E-commerce deals FE handles.
[14:38] How FE uses the LTV SaaS fund to get outsider investors into the SaaS space.
[16:43] Investor cheque size and reasons to do with M&A that LTV SaaS is a unique fund.
[18:21] IRR returns fund investors can expect: ones in the 150-300% range.
[19:55] Thought leadership strategies at FE: SaaS Magazine, conferences, and more.
[22:51] Why Ismael loves The Goal and also recommends Traction.
[23:57] Moving from EoS into a framework that is more stable in the long term.
[24:27] Books to read regarding scalability: Traction, Scaling Up, The 3HAG WAY.
[25:05] A recent beneficial software decision at FE: integrating into Microsoft Office.
[26:44] Admiration for Elon Musk’s vision to achieve unreasonable/unbelievable things.
Resources From The Interview:

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