90 days. Free. No obligation to do anything after.
Don't sell yet.
Run it better first. Then decide.
We send a pod of operators into your business for 90 days — free. We work with you, not at you. After 90 days: sell to us, sell to someone else, raise capital, or keep doing your thing.
The decision is always yours.
"I had real traction. I just needed someone embedded in the business, not advising from the sidelines."
We took Krokit from near-shutdown to acquisition. Revenue per customer up 17x. →Free for 90 days. We earn when your business wins.
Free for 90 days. A dedicated pod of operators embedded in your business.
We're the only party that shows up before you've decided anything.
Beacon, Constellation, PE firms, search funds — they're all great options. But they show up after you've committed to selling. Their model requires it.
Pre. shows up before. We spend 90 days inside your business and improve it — before any decision is made. At day 90, every option is still on the table: sell to them, sell to us, raise capital, or keep running it stronger than before.
We only make an offer if it's right for you. No obligation. No pressure. Just a clearer position from which to decide.
72%
of founder-led software businesses receive acquisition interest before they feel ready to sell
Axial Deal Flow Report, 2023
3 in 4
founders say they wish they had improved operations before their first serious acquisition conversation
HBR Small Business Exit Survey
2.4×
higher valuation multiples for businesses that optimize operations before entering a sale process
OpenView Exit Benchmarks, 2022
Why this exists
There's a gap between struggling alone and selling your company.
Rich C.
EMS Coordinator · La Grange, KY
First call
2009
16 years later, still a customer.
I trained every person who works here on this system. It's just part of how we run.
Mike K.
Campground Owner · British Columbia
First call
2017
8 years later, still a customer.
I called them when we had three sites. Now we have forty-one. They grew with us.
Tony R.
Youth Soccer Director · Ontario
First call
2019
6 years later, still a customer.
Every kid in this league has been registered through this platform. That's not something you just switch.
Illustrative composites. Real customer tenure data from Pre. portfolio companies.
THE START WITH ONE METHODOLOGY
Every great vertical software business started the same way — with one person who needed something and trusted someone enough to try.
Read the Start With One playbook →You've built something real.
Customers rely on you. Revenue is stable or growing. The product works.
But growth is inconsistent. Margins could be stronger. Product decisions pile up. Hiring is reactive. You are still the bottleneck.
You could keep grinding. Or you could sell.
Most founders don't want either.
Here's what most people miss about businesses like yours: the software was never the moat. The relationship was.
Building software is becoming a commodity. Anyone can build a scheduling tool or a campground platform in a weekend. But nobody can replicate the 309 fire departments that have trusted you for 5.8 years. Nobody can copy the fact that your customers call you directly, that they've built their entire operation around your product, that they stay not because switching is hard but because they genuinely don't want to leave.
You started with one customer. Then another. Then another. That intimacy is the business. And it gets stronger as software gets cheaper — not weaker.
Pre. exists because we believe these businesses deserve to be run like what they are: rare, defensible, deeply human things worth protecting.
If you're doing $1M–$5M ARR, your product works, your customers like you, and you still feel like the ceiling is you — this was built for you.
There's a better path.
You don't need to decide yet. You need leverage.
THE LANDSCAPE
Your options as a vertical software founder.
An honest guide — including alternatives to Pre.
If you own a vertical software business and someone is telling you to sell, raise, or bring in a partner — you deserve to understand all your options first. We built this because nobody else would. We're one option. Here are the rest.
Read the Exit Guide →Pre. has no financial relationship with any companies or platforms linked in this guide. These links are provided as a resource only.
What we do
We install the operating layer.
The business functions you've never had time to build — built, running, and yours to keep.
THE AI ADVANTAGE
A lean team that compounds with every engagement.
Codified playbooks. Automated diagnostics. Shared standards that get smarter with every company we work with. AI doesn't replace the operators — it makes them dramatically more effective.
10×
what a lean team can do with the right AI layer
How it works
How it works
You are never forced into a decision.
WHAT WE ACTUALLY DELIVER
By day 7, you'll have something most founders never get.
A clear picture of what's holding your business back — and a plan to fix it. Not a slide deck. Not a strategy memo. Working documents that drive real decisions.
The Diagnostic
Day 7"50%+ of support tickets relate to schedule changes customers can't make themselves. Self-service is priority one."
We find what's actually costing you money — not what looks broken.
The Pod
Your dedicated team"Each teammate ships product. We're all engineers. 20% of every week goes to building tools for the collective."
PM, designer, engineers — allocated by percentage to your business. Not advisors. Operators.
The Kickoff
Week 1"I land Monday. Let's have the new customer feedback process live by end of week."
Real email to a founder. We don't wait for alignment decks.
The Reversal Criteria
How we know it's working"We shouldn't wait 30 days. What if we looked at 30, 60, 90 as 3, 6, and 9 days instead?"
We define upfront what would make us change course. No ego.
These are real documents from real engagements.
The names are redacted. The work isn't.
A real engagement
From near-shutdown to acquisition.
Krokit
Krokit was a multi-product vertical software company serving 2,800+ franchises — with real customers, real revenue, and a founder who had nearly run out of road.
The Problem
Growth had stalled. The existing customer persona wasn't converting. The business was approaching shutdown.
The Work
We identified a new target persona inside the same market. Rebuilt the value proposition around them. Repositioned the product entirely.
The Outcome
Revenue per customer increased 17x. TAM expanded by millions. Both products were ultimately acquired — one by Workweek, one by CoverPanda.
Charlotte, NC — visiting Krokit's first major customer with Patrick. We don't advise from a distance.
17x
revenue per customer
2
acquisitions
"Daniel helped take Krokit from near-shutdown to discovering a new persona that increased revenue per customer by 17x and expanded our TAM by millions."
Verify on LinkedIn →
Why different
Most firms ask you to sell before they prove value.
We don't.
Built around real operating experience, not theory.
- No upfront cost
- No forced sale
- No loss of control
- Real operating improvement before any major decision
Aligned from day one.
We don't charge upfront.
We align our economics to value creation.
We win only if you win.
That means you can say yes before you know exactly what you're saying yes to. The risk is ours to earn.
The technology
We're not consultants who use AI. We're operators who are AI-native.
Advances in AI, coding agents, and workflow automation make it possible for a lean team to run a centralized operating layer across multiple companies simultaneously. Playbooks that used to live in people's heads become software. Recurring decisions become checklists. Diagnostics that took weeks surface in hours.
We're building something different.
AI increases the span of control of great operators. A small team can now do what used to require many — and get better at it with every company they touch.
Free resources
Tools built for vertical SaaS operators.
Free tools we built for founders thinking about growth, retention, and what comes next. No signup required.
Call Analyzer
Upload any sales or discovery call and get a scored breakdown of what worked, what didn't, and what to change.
TAM Map
Map the total addressable market for your vertical and see where your go-to-market coverage has gaps.
Payments Gap Calculator
Find out how much revenue you're leaving on the table from payment processing and billing friction.
Churn Risk Radar
Identify which accounts are most likely to churn and why, before you lose them.
AI Guide
A practical playbook for vertical SaaS founders on where AI creates real leverage — and where it doesn't.
Who we are
Daniel Ahmadizadeh
2× YC Founder · Columbia · Stanford · TED
📍 10 Grand Street, Brooklyn, NY
Built by an operator. Not an advisor.
I'm Daniel. I'll be your lead operating partner.
Nine years ago I was in your position. We were the hot shots of our YC batch — grew from $5K to $85K MRR in 12 weeks. Then I shut it down and returned cash to investors.
Not because the business was bad. Because I thought billion or bust were the only two options. Nobody told me there was a third path.
Since then I've taken Krokit from near-shutdown to acquisition. Helped Crustdata grow from $600K to $7M ARR in 12 months. Advised 10+ YC companies. Taught at Stanford and Columbia.
I built Pre. because I know what it costs to not know your options. I'll be there personally.
We work with founders across the US and Canada — La Grange, Kentucky to Manitoba to Austin, Texas. Wherever you are, we show up.
"Daniel was our first GTM hire right after our YC batch and instrumental in scaling us from $600K to $5M+ ARR in 12 months. He helped codify our value prop, sharpened our discovery, and helped unlock new revenue streams. He operates with extreme speed and tenacity. One of his superpowers is customer conversations — world class at extracting signal from users and turning it into revenue and product clarity."
Pre. doesn't come alone. Each engagement deploys a small pod of operators — people trained at and backed by YC, Columbia, and Stanford — embedded inside your business.
YC
10+ alumni companies advised
Columbia
Business
School
500+ founders trained
Stanford
University
Entrepreneurship faculty
You get a pod, not a person. But you always know who's accountable.
Who we accept
Who this is for.
We work with a small number of companies that:
- Vertical or niche software businesses
- Have real customers and revenue
- Feel operational friction despite product-market fit
- Are not ready to sell
- Want real help, not advice
We accept a small number of companies each year. If that sounds like you — whether you're in La Grange, Kentucky or Vancouver, British Columbia or anywhere in between — the right move is to talk to us.
What founders say
From the operators who've worked with us.
"His feedback helped decrease our churn rate by 14% and a few months later our company was acquired."
George Liu, Co-Founder & CEO, Sundae (acquired)
"Dramatically impacted my life as a CEO, our business strategy, and business health overall. It's likely we wouldn't be as far as we are without Daniel's help."
Julian B., CEO · Haystack (YC W20)
"He was instrumental in helping us close our largest customer at the time — a six-figure deal. I ran all the emails, Zoom agendas, and messages through him."
Rishabh M., CEO · SuperTokens (YC)
"His relentless pursuit of focus is invaluable. We were looking for a founder coach who can get shit done and help us drive growth. Daniel is that plus more."
Gwen N., CEO · Pipekit (YC)
FAQ
Common questions.
Get started
Let's talk. There's no cost and no obligation.
Talk to Pre.Schedule directly. We'll spend 20 minutes understanding your business.
Anywhere in the US or Canada — I'll fly to meet you in person.
Charlotte, NC — meeting Krokit's first customer. Start with one.
We work with a small number of companies each year. No pitch deck required — just a conversation.
10 Grand Street, Brooklyn, NY