Jonathan Gillon, the founder of Roost. His unique business costs almost nothing to run, and is taking over the nation. Though he has experienced failures along with success in his business endeavors, Jon is a self-proclaimed optimist. He sees the potential growth of his business and wants to be the one to take it to its full potential.
Famous 5:
Favorite Book? – The Hard Thing about Hard Things
What CEO do you follow? — Andy Dunn
Favorite online tool? — Geckoboard
Do you get 8 hours of sleep?—Yes
If you could let your 20-year-old self know one thing, what would it be? — Don’t get kicked out of college. Stop getting in trouble.
Time Stamped Show Notes:
01:10 – Nathan’s introduction
01:25 – Jonathan explains Roost
01:45 – Profits come from a percentage of transaction fees
02:55 – They focus on storage and parking spaces
03:15 – Mostly garages
03:45 – His first-year revenue was zero
04:10 – He found an opportunity with a storage unit that was closing
05:45 – Numbers of buyers and sellers
06:55 – He has a team of 17 people in San Francisco
07:30 – His rent in San Francisco
08:25 – $4.9 million in capital
09:35 – Roost uses a “targeted approach” working with car-share companies
10:55 – Total revenue 2015 - $80000
11:25 – Revenue is now 25k/month
12:10 – Reasoning behind the company’s evaluation
12:50 – Potential of the company
13:30 – Jonathan sees great value in Roost
14:00 – They are still in “beta mode”
15:00 – They have virtually no competitors
16:10 – Jonathan prefers to “build something big and fail” than build something small
17:05 – His experience with Droperty Tax
17:40 – He lost everything he earned from that company
18:30 – He wants to grow revenue and get Roost to its potential
19:25 –Jon’s blog about his experiences as an entrepreneur
21:20 – Average revenue per buyer – about $41
22:20 – “We’ve got almost no churn.”
23:10 – Cost to find a new space is almost nothing
23:30 – Money is spent on marketing
24:35 – He pays himself $64k
25:30 – The Famous Five
3 Key Points:
Look for a business opportunity that requires low upfront costs.
Don’t be afraid to stand behind your business and be optimistic about its potential.
If your company gets bought, don’t go on a spending spree.
Resources Mentioned:
Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible.
Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts.
Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+
Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books.
Geckoboard – Jonathan’s favorite online tool
Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives