What’s it really like to build a SaaS company from scratch, not just once but twice? In this episode, David talks to Thomas Pedersen, the serial entrepreneur who co-founded OneLogin and now leads Bunny, a bootstrapped billing platform for B2B SaaS.
Thomas also opens up about co-founding two companies with his brother, surviving a major security breach, and how he’s approaching company-building differently this time around.
Takeaways:
- Why Thomas Is Bootstrapping This Time: After raising $175 million for OneLogin, Thomas opted to bootstrap Bunny, focusing on control and long-term product quality. He discusses how this choice affects hiring, spending, and overall company culture.
- Bringing the Band Back Together: Bunny’s small but mighty team includes engineers from OneLogin. Thomas shares why working with trusted colleagues has helped them execute quickly and avoid early hiring pitfalls.
- The Grind Creates the Bond: Reflecting on the early OneLogin years, Thomas explains how hard work and shared struggle helped forge lasting relationships and why people often want to work with him again.
- Building with His Brother, Again: Thomas co-founded both of his startups with his brother. He explains how they complement each other technically, navigate disagreements, and have grown even closer through the experience.
- Remote from Day One: From commuting weekly between LA and San Francisco during OneLogin’s VC-fueled growth to now working from a boat in the Mediterranean, Thomas discusses why Bunny is remote-first and when in-person still matters.
- Lessons from a Security Breach: A major breach at OneLogin could have destroyed the company. Thomas details how transparency and direct communication with customers helped them retain trust and bounce back.
Quote of the Show:
- "It’s really hard to get a design partner… I wish every Saas or every startup could find a customer like that." - Thomas Pedersen
Links:
Ways to Tune In:
#NotAnotherCEO #BusinessSuccess #bunny
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
01:32 Building Bunny: Lessons from OneLogin
02:39 Team Dynamics and Hiring Strategies
05:59 Working with Family: A Brother's Partnership
10:55 Remote Work and Company Culture
16:40 Bootstrapping vs. Venture Capital
23:37 Marketing and Personal Branding
28:46 Passion for Solving Business Problems
31:21 The Importance of Solving Business Problems
31:38 Challenges and Solutions in Billing
33:24 Early Days of OneLogin
33:40 Building SAML Integrations
36:20 Acquiring First Customers for Bunny
37:35 The Role of Design Partners
41:28 Handling Security Breaches
45:04 Transparency and Customer Trust
48:09 Future of Bunny
50:46 Entrepreneurial Journey and Background
54:45 Mentorship
59:13 Advice to His Younger Self
01:03:04 Outro
