Bootstrapped from London, Scaled in the US

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Alexandre Wentzo is the former CEO of Casewise, an enterprise software company that started in London and scaled in the US. The company was self-financed and did $24 Million in revenue when we spoke in 2015. Our discussion focuses on some of the nuances of starting an enterprise software company in Europe and scaling it in the US. Casewise was sold to Erwin in 2016. You can also listen to our podcast interview here and watch the roundtable interview here:

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very beginning of your story. Tell us where you’re from, where you were born, raised, and in what kind of background.

Alexandre Wentzo:?I was born outside of Paris in a little suburb. I come from a low social background. I would say that when I was around 13 years old, I started to set up my business. I used to?check out?every shop around my place. I started to offer brochures and create?any marketing collaterals they needed and offered the complete package,?from the design to the printing.

Sramana Mitra: Where was this?

Alexandre Wentzo:?Just outside of Paris – on the west part of Paris.

Sramana Mitra: How long did you stay in Paris? Is the story of Casewise based in Paris or somewhere else?

Alexandre Wentzo:?Somewhere else.

Sramana Mitra: Tell me about what you did in Paris.

Alexandre Wentzo:?I was very young at that time. I then joined a business school where they sent me to Singapore and London. When I graduated, I got a job offer from a massive software company based in Paris. I did that for a couple of years. Then, I met these British founders who had a business that they were trying to develop internationally. They got patents and ideas around software but they didn’t know how to roll out globally. That was the beginning of Casewise. I worked with them to make it more global. Today, Casewise is present in nine countries.

Sramana Mitra: What years are we talking?

Alexandre Wentzo:?That was back in 2004 – 11 years ago.

Sramana Mitra: You were working for this British company in 2004?

Alexandre Wentzo:?That’s correct.

Sramana Mitra: How long did you stay there?

Alexandre Wentzo:?Until now.

Sramana Mitra: Is this Casewise?

Alexandre Wentzo:?Yes.

Sramana Mitra: So you’re not the founder of Casewise?

Alexandre Wentzo:?No, I joined the two founders in 2004.

Our conversation continues here.

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