How I'm Going to Build a Billion $ Company (Episode #1)

Two years ago, I dropped out of Stanford Business School to pursue my dreams of building a startup. And now, I have a team of 15 and a $25M valuation.
My goal? Take you along for the journey to show you that YOU CAN DO THIS TOO.
In this series. I will be documenting the full process of what it's like running a startup, and you'll get to watch live as I figure out how to get us from $25 Million to $1 Billion.
In this first episode, I talk about:
- Who I am
- What my company (Stan) is
- Our Current Financial Situation
- Meeting the Team
- How I'm going to get us to $1 Billion
-
Want to start monetizing your content? Check out my company, Stan Store:
stan.store/
-
Follow me on social media!
Connect with me on LinkedIn:
/ johnghu
Need advice or have a question? DM me anytime on Instagram!
/ jayhoovy
For my funnier videos:
/ jayhoovy

[@TheSandBoxNow]

as a fellow founder who raised a $2.5m pre-seed, I def appreciate the amount of transparency in your videos! hits home.

[@matthewymi082]

This was great, the value in this is crazy. Can't wait to see how you all scale throughout this series!

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you Matthew! If you're open to sharing the video with any friends who might find it valuable to I'd so appreciate it! Would help so much on growing the channel!

[@wealthyeternal]

@@jayhoovy congrats. would you like to sell the business and take a break to go on other ideas?

[@Galbra1th]

Let’s goo!! So thrilled to follow along on this journey. And wow, so happy to see some of your past videos BLOWING UP! Told you it was only a matter of time!

[@jayhoovy]

Cameron you truly were the OG haha! I appreciate the support man, and I'm excited to see us both grow!

[@NicoHolloman]

Yo Jay, your passion for this mission is so palpable. Seeing you laughing with the team and expressing your vision so clearly, it’s clear to me that you have a kind heart and you’re gunna go super far. Loved this insight into your biz and thought process. Subbed!

[@jayhoovy]

Awwww thank you so much Nico ❤️ the mission is truly what drives me forward at this point and imma keep going for us!

[@davidmputu]

Love this! As a fellow founder it’s nice to see someone showing the early beginnings of their success story and actually giving actionable tips. Please post as much as you can! 🙏🏿

[@jayhoovy]

Will do, David! Any specific topics you’d find it helpful if I covered?

[@davidmputu]

@@jayhoovy it would be nice to see a couple day in the life videos, maybe once a month where you show the growing pains + successes of your company as time goes along.

[@jons_RoadtoCode]

@@jayhoovy Hey jay, can you make videos about gaining your first customers ( maybe first 50 or 100?). Videos about mistakes made early in the business? I have tons of ideas I'd like to see from you. Keep up the good work!

[@Cocorodri118]

This video was super inspiring as someone who’s dream is to have a startup. Just seeing the passion you have for your brand ignited a deeper fire in me to continue to push towards my business dream. I’m excited to see your journey!

[@jayhoovy]

I believe in you CoCo. You WILL have your own business one day :)

[@griffincopp5294]

Super excited to watch this company grow, love the optimism!

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much for the support Griffin! With half of my team in Toronto you’ll see a bunch of Canada content soon!

[@JacobBrand2000]

Jay, based on Revenue per creator it looks like $30 per user. I’d recommend increasing the price closer to $50 per customer. If you have confidence in your product quality, you shouldn’t see any issues with customer growth.

[@davidondrejek8947]

I agree

[@3DPrinterAcademy]

They would just need multiple pricing tiers, same as shopify

[@Pharoah2]

They just need to contract out a pricing specialist. Multiple tiers to take advantage of psychological effects, looking at it from an customer value model rather than cost + profit margin model as well. The issue is, with competitors out there you can’t afford to price too aggressively without having a sustainable edge over the competition. The million dollar question is… what is your moat ?

[@imlukaszelechowski]

I'm in the process in growing my business as well. It's always great to see people having the same aspirations as me. Keep it up and I know for a fact I'm going to be tuning in to every episode you make!

[@jayhoovy]

Excited to root you on Lukas! Let’s grow our businesses together. See you in the next video!

[@imlukaszelechowski]

@@jayhoovy I can’t wait!

[@elonfc]

Jay loved your video. I remember first finding your channel when you posted a interview with Ryan. I just wanted to say you that i can't wait to see more videos like this. Just think if you hit $1bn valuation (which you will) while documenting whole process here, how inspiring would it be for anyone else who wants to do the same. Keep these types of videos coming, as an audience we are interested in seeing more of your office hours video, like how and what you are doing currently to scale your company and what problems a startup faces along the way etc etc.

[@jayhoovy]

Will keep these videos up for you! Really appreciate your kind and supportive words

[@ryanclarkin6890]

Going strong on KZbin Jay! So pumped to be a member of Stan, it's been a game changer!!! Grateful for you & your team!

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate all your support Ryan! Please reach out anytime I can be helpful on your journey!

[@ryanclarkin6890]

@@jayhoovy Hey Jay, what's the best way to reach you? I've recently had pretty decent success with my Stan Store, coming up on $10k in the last 30 days and I see a HUGE opportunity to scale as a creator, but Stan doesn't currently support this functionality (having affiliates for funnels). I don't think this would be too difficult to implement as you already have affiliates for products but I'm making all of my money on Stan through my funnels so I'm sure you can see how this is limiting my ability to scale (I'll be able to get to 20k, 30k & beyond EASY with affiliates to my funnel, I already have the strategy mapped out). I see this addition creating unprecedented success for Stan Creators and significantly increasing your CLV & customer base as a result. I know you have a lot of things you want to add, but just wanted to share this with you as asked how you could be helpful and this wouldn't just be helpful, it would be life changing. I appreciate you & am super grateful for how Stan has been able to support me as a creator in getting to this point!

[@yotsubv]

i envy the way you speak and treat your employees. this is inspiring stuff as a recent computer science graduate. 1bn valuation incoming. 🚀

[@dac8939]

Hope it works out for you guys. Immigrant kids with humble backgrounds tend to be the hardest working. Better than many lazy kids who grew up with silver spoon

[@jayhoovy]

appreciate you Da C! I'm here to show any immigrant kid that they can make it no matter the circumstances

[@shameerpatel7846]

This video is only 6 days old. feels like Im about to witness an epic journey. All the best! Will be watching!

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much for the kind words Sameer! Excited to take you along the journey. We will have an epic one indeed :)

[@youshaei]

Dude this is awesome. Love when creator economy founders create content themselves 👏

[@sivihk]

This vlog series is going to be great! I'm looking forward to following along on the growth journey of your business

[@jayhoovy]

Thanks for the kind words Simon! Appreciate you supporting the journey - I'll see ya in the next video!

[@Alphfirm]

Interesting break down at the end! As a solo founder who never really hired long-term full time employees, hearing you say that your solution to marketing, product and support is hiring people to find the solutions for you, instead of you trying to solve them all by yourself, was eye opening for me.

[@Pharoah2]

Depending on how much money is up for grabs, it makes sense to hire outsiders because let’s face it… someone with 5 years in the field day to day will be better than someone who took a course or two online and is just winging it. That being said, if your TAM isn’t big enough to sustain multiple salaries, then solo founding is the way to go

[@honestabe_9207]

Glad to be a pre-OG, I’ll be praying for y’all’s successes mannnn

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate your early support Abe! Praying for your success as well homie

[@aidenmann6190]

I’m currently a highschooler, and this is my dream! Thank you so much for making this video, and I can’t wait to watch all the rest!

[@jayhoovy]

Heck ya Aiden - excited to see what you go off and build! See ya in the next video!

[@pog9238]

Your story telling is great! You know what you are doing and I wish you good luck!

[@jayhoovy]

Awww thank you so much pog! Hope you’ll stay along for the journey! See ya in the next video

[@brandonnguyenlam]

Glad to be here at the start, hope you succeed in this journey!

[@samomokan]

Great video! I love the authenticity and honesty “I don’t know how we’ll do it”… As you said you work hard and trust your gut, Stan’s going to have even more impact ❤🚀

[@jayhoovy]

So true - thanks Sam! Appreciate the kind words and so glad you're here along for the journey!

[@katiexu1559]

Great video John! Rooting for you always, can’t wait to see Stan thrive🙌🏻

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Katie! Glad you’re here along for the ride! Proud of u

[@minolee5995]

Love this video and series! Excited to see where you take it in the future! I think this is a genius growth strategy too, definitely don't see enough Startup founders creating content and building content communities around them

[@jayhoovy]

Thanks Mino! Excited for your take on the next video coming soon (our Q1 board meeting) - just heard you booked a time with my cofounder :)

[@HyuKawabe]

Hi Jay, I quit my 125k job to make content and I’m going to start using Stan. Can’t wait. Appreciate you for creating this 🙏❤️

[@jayhoovy]

HECK YA! Proud of you. Make sure to schedule your complimentary 1:1 strategy sesh with the team

[@sereyvathanakkhorn760]

Jumping into this video and didn't think to much of it; but this is great. Thank for sharing your journey and I hope to see how you would scale your business forward. This is definitely a great inspiration for many and myself included.

[@jayhoovy]

Glad to hear! Excited to inspire you with my journey - see ya in the next video!

[@chaejeong5820]

The true value of Jay's videos is that a) he shows the growth journey and trajectory of a new creator (though he does have the advantage of being an established TikToker) b) can utilise his own content and growth to market Stan and c) gives the viewer a front seat on his progress to scaling Stan to unicorn status

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much Chae for the thoughtful words! I hope my growth journey can help inspire you to do the same! See ya in my next video!

[@ak47968]

Good luck man! Excited to see how you'll scale this for creators and the lessons learnt along the way! Best wishes :)

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Adithya! Excited for you to join in the journey! See you in the next video!

[@nowayjosuew]

Got this recommended, enjoyed it, seen the great value on both sides, and now Im fired up for some reason 😅. Great video! I'll get to see you on the journey!

[@naufal-yahaya]

This is really inspirational, 1 billion dollars valuation. Let's go!!

[@CrizzyConnor]

Love to see teams building in public. I'm looking forward to following your journey!

[@jayhoovy]

Looking fwd to having you along for the journey Chris! See ya in the next video!

[@afeinhandler]

Feel like creating real time content around a budding start up has been lingering thought on my mind for a while -- and Im sure many people have had the idea. Kinda like uber..im sure thousands of people came up with the idea for uber before they did it, but it took great execution to pull it off. Really like your execution on the idea. I will follow your journey, best of luck :-) !

[@anthonykouch8958]

I am loving this content man! super motivational and super excited to see whats next for you guys! love from New Zealand

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Anthony! Planning to make a trip to visit down under sometime! You’ve got beautiful nature around you

[@ShaikMoAbdullah]

Thanks for that Jay. That really made a positive influence and an impact. Will be starting a company soon

[@jayhoovy]

Excited for you sir! Glad to have you along for the journey! And wishing you best of luck on your company

[@accountingmaster2023]

Hi Jay, this video was very informative.. can't wait for EP 2!

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much for the kind words! See ya in the next episode :)

[@JakeHonig1]

Been following you on TikTok for awhile now, super excited to see the progress of Stan!

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate the support and kind words all this time Jake!

[@HarryScott673]

I really like how happy you are all the time it’s a real skill!

[@jayhoovy]

It masks the deep existential depression 🙃🙃🙃

[@srisaisushangumadavalli4049]

Also, I feel like phenomenal brand building and awesome marketing will differentiate you, especially given this super competitive content creator space.

[@ishimorasakib3089]

okay, I am waiting and following you on ur journey

[@gyuioppoiuyg]

Wonderful content and personality, here hoping your company success, it’s really inspiring witnessing this growth in process

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much for the kind words! It's really inspiring having you here for the journey :)

[@BuildWealthWithDoctorGlo]

Good luck. I’ll be watching as I build my own business

[@kevins9243]

I have a feeling that this kid is going somewhere, cheering and following you!

[@tonnie_mungai]

The Best Startup Video I have watched so far.

[@BF-eb4xs]

getting good vibes... looking forward to seeing the journey.

[@HeyDanHay]

Super interesting! Loving the growth story and behind the scenes. Makes sense and keep on sharing your journey!

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you for the support Dan!! Appreciate you being a part of the journey!

[@qm9086]

If you are interested in growing up business in Japan, hire me as a CEO of Japan a desk. I will promise you that will bring huge benefits.

[@ATIFunnyGuys9596]

I really like these vlog video styles! Keep them coming

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much for the kind words! Will keep ‘em coming for ya!

[@Evtorsports]

Hoho im glad to watch this journey, cant wait for the next videos😃😃

[@Mj-ct8yo]

Your gonna win, I just followed you Wanna see all this come to fruition 🤝

[@jayhoovy]

Will do it just for you Mj! Appreciate the support

[@stevenphung]

Excited to follow the journey!

[@jayhoovy]

Thanks so much for the support Steven! I’ll see you in the next video!

[@riddafinance9200]

He's so casual, let's do it LOL,. GOOD LUCK

[@chipekowasa6571]

Stan all the way. Thank you for sharing

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Chipeko! Cheers!

[@perpetuallearner8257]

Inspiring, all the best man 🔥

[@alexakten]

super inspiring man! stoked to follow this journey! subscribed! 🔥

[@jayhoovy]

Thanks for the support Alex! Here to inspire you to do the same for yourself one day! See ya in the next video!

[@alexakten]

@@jayhoovy Working on my digital disposable camera app right now! thanks for the motivation bro!

[@josipherceg9938]

Great job man! Good luck!

[@TEK0018]

thats a W man keep it up, following your plans as well

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you TK!!! Let me know if there's any specific topics about the startup journey you want me to cover!

[@YungSpitta615]

like the chillness

[@Tsusei_]

Been following stan on your tiktok for awhile now, def invested in to the future of the product too

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Tsusei! Thank you for being a day one! And I can’t wait to do this journey with you

[@TC0901]

I'm usually a certified hater, but I actually genuinely wish you good luck, I hope your company does really well.

[@jayhoovy]

Thanks TC

[@Youthemoneyguy]

this is super simmilar to my story! Good luck man!

[@itsaithomas]

Just got this recommended. I am a new creator on KZbin and I have been actually looking for something that does not charge fees based on how much you make (I hate the fact that other companies charge you like that because the more money out make, the more you pay in fees) but based on a monthly set up subscription and covers everything in one place. I am really considering Stan now. Just a feedback for you from a smaller creator! :)

[@jayhoovy]

Love to hear it! If you have any questions ever please reach out! Excited to watch your creator journey blossom!

[@trediaz4012]

Im watching and supporting❤

[@jayhoovy]

appreciate you Tre!!!

[@khvtri]

This is insanely inspiring. I'm beyond impressed.

[@jayhoovy]

Cheers Khvitri!

[@DrWAS101]

This is a very fun video and look forward to following along!

[@user-wd5vh2je5s]

Awesome!

[@nishensemble]

Kudos to you man. Go for it.

[@jayhoovy]

Kudos to YOU for supporting the journey ;)

[@luffyff6179]

Good luck man!!!

[@muddassirbari]

Nice share Jay!

[@quickflow3799]

Your good vibes are contagious! If Stan can help creators market their content or products to reach a bigger audience, it is an ample opportunity. Essentially creating 'micro-economies' for all the creators. Discovering creators can be another cool product feature and readily marketable. Would love to discuss further :)

[@KyurinDiary]

Wooohooo🎉🎉love this journey

[@RoryBland]

Let's go dude! I'm here for the ride...

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate the support Rory! Excited to have you along for the ride - see you in the next video!

[@TheLastCodebender]

Man I used to work in that office with my previous startup!! Makes me nostalgic 😁

[@jayhoovy]

Love me some One Culver haha! Thanks for supporting Zaurbek!

[@_kontact]

So glad I found this channel while its this small.

[@jayhoovy]

Glad we get to start the journey together George! See ya in the next video!

[@martvainu4802]

Loved the video! You're a great speaker, the editing was smooth, and the bg music was chill. 1 topic to cover in future videos: how you got to PMF. Most founders aren't ready to scale yet, so that'd be relevant. :)

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate the kind words Mart! Stay tuned for a video in a few weeks where I walk through exactly how I got to PMF :)

[@bradwatton5385]

best advertisement i have seen in a while

[@Bibirallie]

This is so inspiring.

[@nemesis465]

6:45 great answer Elise!

[@Myk0hls]

Love the vids. Motivational

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you so much for the kind words! Will look to motivate you in the next video too :)

[@lukasbartels8329]

Bro as a german who works in SaaS aswell, honest opinion, great video!!!! So nice!

[@theraybae]

I was not aware of Stan and was familiar with your TikTok videos a few years ago. I’m excited to try out Stan as I’m going through a similar journey as an ex fang.

[@jayhoovy]

Thanks Ray! Cheers and see ya along the journey!

[@barbarosozturk]

Liking that mix of Alex Hormozi x Building in Public vision. Good luck, John!

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you very much Barbaros! See ya in the next video!

[@abifamuyiwa3936]

Thank you!!!

[@sakibrob9346]

Aye just got a subscriber here, love from Toronto 🙏🏾

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Sakib! Here to support the Toronto economy specifically with Stan :)

[@sakibrob9346]

@@jayhoovy aye if you guys are hiring let me know. Would love to be surrounded with likeminded individuals aiming to improve every day :)

[@andrewmedina3423]

Can’t wait !!

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Andrew! Cheers! Thanks for being along for the journey

[@KARA.LupinHold]

Ok I’m following this journey this seems exited hope it works out 🤟🏾🤟🏾🤟🏾🤟🏾

[@jayhoovy]

Appreciate you Kara!! See ya in the next video!

[@yohanndsouza6620]

awesome vid :) 17 year old incoming college freshman and aspiring entrepreneur; this is super inspiring

[@jayhoovy]

Heck ya Yohann! You’re early to the game. Excited to help you out on your journey

[@peterivanov4524]

Fantastic video! Hoping all goes well, I will be here watching the journey and trying to do the same on my end.

[@jayhoovy]

Heck ya Peter! Excited to see what you build! See ya in the next video

[@emchoe8865]

Rooting for you 👊🏻

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you Em! I appreciate the support! See ya in the next video!

[@operatorshango]

Tbh I believe in you I hope you succeed in life god bless you for attempting to do this

[@jayhoovy]

God bless you too Shango! Wishing you well and sending you love

[@PrimeTimePat1]

Love the video great company. Love to work there

[@mujtahidhasan7473]

You, sir, earned a subscriber today. I want to see how far you can go.

[@jayhoovy]

Hope I can make it far to help inspire your own journey!

[@BLESSINGMARIEE]

Wait YOU created stan?! Love that.

[@Kimjongun999]

Please continue to give us good information

[@jayhoovy]

Of course! Will try my best to keep sharing quality info with you - hope to see you in the next video!

[@zachgolle1802]

I could see this journey go far! Hope to be here for the ride. (:

[@jayhoovy]

Love having you along for the ride Zach! Thanks for joining the journey

[@EZonYT]

Love your idea and channel

[@jayhoovy]

Thank you!! Hopefully the journey will be “EZ” haha

[@trendthis364]

very cool. am a fan, stan. here's a catch phrase.

[@jayhoovy]

HA! I’m your biggest Stan!!!

[@jackpiediscalzi1035]

The bleeped out was definitely beacons ai😂 But super dope video! Inspirational for real

[@jayhoovy]

Haha nah it’s not them at all - they’re homies

[@StevenDoesStuff]

Your ability to speak so precisely for an entire day without any "umms" or "uhhs" is probably a key factor in how you're able to sell the idea of the startup to the big investors. Would you mind telling us how you learned to be so articulate? Best of luck with your journey!

[@jayhoovy]

Ha! I still make tons of stumbles, umms and "likes" - but public speaking is something I got lucky early on because my mom put me in Toastmasters, and then it's really just "trial by fire" - you gotta put in the reps and do more and more public speaking. My KZbin presence is also after 2 years of filming TikToks! So all that being said Steven, it takes time and practice - I've had over two decades of practice!

[@omnipotent9919]

From Vietnam with love ❤

[@jayhoovy]

Sending you love Omnipotent! Thanks for supporting the channel!

[@australianpatriot]

I really like the idea

[@Kimjongun999]

Good information