I was scrolling through LinkedIn recently and couldn’t help but notice how much of the conversation there revolves around rocket ship growth, massive funding rounds, and billion-dollar valuations.
That’s the narrative a lot of young founders get exposed to, and it can feel like that’s the only way to build something meaningful. But it’s not.
Eighteen years ago, we started Schedulefly with a simple idea: give restaurants easy scheduling software and back it with great service. That’s it. No pitch decks. No investor roadshows. No venture capital.
And here we are, 18 years later, still serving thousands of restaurants, still profitable, and still loving what we do. I’m 51 now, and I run this business from a farm, with a flip phone and a single piece of paper on my desk. It’s not glamorous. But it works.
Just the other day, more Jersey Mike’s locations signed up. Their franchise recommends another provider. One that’s raised hundreds of millions of dollars. But operators keep coming to us because they want something simple. They want a real person to answer the phone. They want software that doesn’t get in the way.
That’s been our north star from day one:
Keep the product simple.
Answer when customers call.
Reply when they email.
It’s not complicated, but it’s rare.
I’m not saying everyone should build a business the way we did. But I do want you young folks who follow our story to know that you don’t have to raise millions or chase flashy valuations to build something you’re proud of and that is both profitable and sustainable.
There are plenty of businesses out there that don’t make headlines but make their customers, and their founders, really happy. Schedulefly is one of them. And that’s a win for everybody.
- Wil
