The SaaS Podcast – Episode 455

Accelevents: How 5 Years of Nights & Weekends Built a $10M ARR SaaS
Guest: Jonathan Kazarian, Founder & CEO of Accelevents
Host: Omer Khan
Date: October 2, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Omer Khan interviews Jonathan Kazarian, founder and CEO of Accelevents, an event management SaaS platform. The conversation traces Jonathan’s unorthodox journey: building Accelevents while holding a demanding day job, surviving multiple existential crises (including COVID-19), navigating rapid pivots between in-person and virtual events, and scaling the company to $10M ARR.

They explore the pain and discipline of bootstrapping, radical customer support, creative approaches to customer acquisition, and the resilience needed to weather boom/bust cycles. This conversation offers candid lessons for SaaS founders on focus, hiring, product evolution, and the real-world highs and lows of entrepreneurship.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Origin Story: Starting as a Side Project

• Personal Motivation: In 2014, Jonathan built event software out of necessity after struggling to find an affordable, reliable solution for a charity fundraiser for his cousin.
  • "I couldn't find anything out there that was either affordable, good or had support, especially on the weekends when...our event was. And that was the catalyst." (06:32)
• Unexpected Demand: Post-event, interest from other organizations prompted Jonathan and his (then) co-founder to incorporate, though the intent was initially modest.
  • "It wasn't until...we got the first sale...$49. And that was when it kind of felt like, okay, maybe we've got something here." (08:13)

2. The ‘Nights & Weekends’ Grind

• Jonathan maintained a full-time hedge fund job for five years, working 60 additional hours/week on Accelevents.
  • "I probably spent 60 hours a week on this. Like it was every night and weekend mornings." (09:14)
• Support was crucial: They scheduled date nights with their partners on alternating days, so one co-founder was always available for customers.
  • "There were times I remember pulling over on the side of the highway to respond to a customer on a Saturday night." (11:02)
• Team Building: After cycling through 21 Upwork developers, they finally found a committed engineer in India, which became the foundation for scaling their remote team.
  • "They didn't care. It was just to get things done...Once we finally found somebody who cared as much as we did, then that really helped get us to the next level." (12:21)

3. Pivots & Adversity: The COVID-19 Crisis

• Revenue to Zero: When COVID hit in March 2020, all events were canceled. Revenue not only dropped but cash flow went negative as transaction fees had to be refunded.
  • "Not only did our revenue go to zero, but from a cash flow basis it was actually negative..." (14:45)
• Personal Risk: Jonathan borrowed $75,000 from his father's retirement just to keep the company afloat.
  • "I convinced my dad to invest 75k out of his retirement...if you know, he was either that or the company was over." (14:55)
• Rapid Virtual Pivot: They mocked up virtual event features, pre-sold the product before it was built, and built quickly as customers paid.
  • "We started pre selling something we hadn't even built yet...when somebody signed, we would go and build it." (16:59)
• Outcome: ARR rebounded to $1M within three months, ultimately 10x'ing revenue by the end of 2020 and scaling the team to over 100 people.

4. Boom, Bust, and the Need for Reinvention (Post-COVID)

• Tech Bubble Burst (2022): Layoffs in tech companies led to event budgets slashed. Their heavy association with virtual events backfired as the world moved back in-person.
  • "We had built this reputation for being a virtual event platform company...customers went back to platforms they'd used before COVID." (18:53, 20:39)
• Painful Layoffs & Recovery: Revenues were halved in months; they laid off over half the team and saw staggering churn for a year.
  • "We did that and then it took, it was probably a 12 month bleed where we just had crazy churn month after month..." (21:48)
• Re-Positioning: The team focused on rebuilding their product and narrative around in-person/hybrid events, advancing features like mobile apps and badge printing.
  • "We built...the functionality gaps we needed to fully facilitate those in person events...everything that's really necessary for large scale on site in person events." (21:55, 23:39)

5. Customer-Centric Culture – Support as a “Secret Weapon”

• 24/7, 19-Second Support: Median support response is 19 seconds, any time, any day.
  • "We average a median response time right around 19 seconds, 24, 7, 365." (31:51)
• Why It Matters: In events, stakes are high; failure means reputational damage. Real-time support builds deep trust.
  • "Dates are very, very real...it requires a different sense of urgency...that's what we've done." (33:38)

6. Creative Customer Acquisition: 'Founder Dinners'

• Eschewing cold outreach, Jonathan & team hosted partnered dinners for senior event professionals, focusing on peer connection rather than pitching.
  • "We've tried Cold Outbound so many times and never had any success unless we have some, some offer. And in this case that offer was...come join us for two and a half hours..." (25:16)
• No Sales Pitches: Trust is built organically; people inquire about the platform themselves.
  • "No, never. We don't need to...before somebody goes to a dinner, they...go to your website, they know enough..." (27:00)
• Insight Gathering: These settings also provide valuable product ideas based on real-world event struggles.

7. Product Strengths and Differentiation

• All-in-One Solution: 80% of Accelevents customers are consolidating from multiple vendors; switching is incentivized by efficiency and simplification.
  • "About 80% of our customers are switching from an existing solution...they're able to consolidate that stack." (29:29)
• Flexibility: Clients can start with just one feature and expand usage over time.

8. Retention & Expansion

• Customer Segments: Annual plan (low churn) vs. one-off event (high churn, but a fertile ground for upsell/expansion).
  • "Churn in that bucket is around 45%...but the primary reason is the expansion, and that's around 20%." (35:13)

9. Endurance and Focus

• Staying the Course: Jonathan is adamant that focus—resisting “shiny object syndrome”—was key to surviving and thriving.
  • "I'm very big on not and staying away from shiny object syndrome, so I'm just really focused right now." (38:57)
  • "There are very few people in the world who have tried to do more than one thing at the same time and succeeded." (39:14)
• Hardest Part: Not the pivots, but the emotional toll and uncertainty of downturns—especially layoffs.
  • "The hardest day would be...the big layoff we did...that was harder day than when...every event in the world got canceled." (36:33)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Motivation:
  "Show me the incentive and I'll show you the outcome."
  — Jonathan Kazarian, quoting Charlie Munger (03:54, 38:03)

• On Support Culture:
  "We average a median response time right around 19 seconds, 24, 7, 365." (31:51)
  "Dates are very, very real. It requires a different sense of urgency..." (33:38)

• On Bootstrapping & Sacrifice:
  "I probably spent 60 hours a week on this. Like it was every night and weekend mornings." (09:14)
  "There were times I remember pulling over on the side of the highway to respond to a customer on a Saturday night." (11:02)

• On the COVID Pivot:
  "We started pre selling something we hadn't even built yet...when somebody signed, we would go and build it." (16:59)

• On Customer Dinners & Trust:
  "No, never [pitched the product]. Every dinner I've been to where somebody stands in front of the room and gives a 30 second pitch, it's just painful." (27:00)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:48] Introduction & Favorite Quote
• [06:17] Starting Accelevents & Side Hustle Challenges
• [10:56] Building the Team, Culture of Support
• [14:45] COVID Hits—Revenue to Zero, Personal Risk
• [16:59] Virtual Pivot & Pre-Selling Features
• [18:53] Recession Fallout & Churn
• [21:55] Rebuilding for In-Person, Product/Narrative Shift
• [25:16] Customer Acquisition: Dinners, Not Cold Emails
• [27:00] Building Trust, No Pitches at Dinners
• [31:51] 19-Second Customer Support
• [33:38] Why Most Companies Fail at Support
• [35:13] Retention, Churn, Annual vs. One-Off Customers
• [36:33] Emotional Toll: Pivots vs. Layoffs
• [38:03] Lightning Round: Favorite Advice
• [39:08] The Value of Focus and Avoiding Distraction

Takeaways for SaaS Founders

• Deep customer understanding, radical support, and focus can be as potent as raw capital.
• Resilience is required not just at launch but over years—especially when the ground shifts unexpectedly.
• Community building and trust, rather than hard sales, can unlock customer growth in high-stakes spaces.
• Product flexibility and a genuine “fit” focus aid in customer acquisition and retention.
• Full-time commitment isn’t always required at the outset—if you’re willing to endure the marathon.

Resource Links:

• Accelevents Website
• Connect with Jonathan Kazarian on LinkedIn