After 11 failed products, this founder hit $45k MRR in a little over a
year
Iuliia Shnai built a product, got seed funding, hired a team, and then had to shut it down. Unsure what to do next, she built 10 products in 12 months, but none of them took off.
Then, she took everything she learned in the process and joined forces with a cofounder on Papermark. Roughly a year later, it's bringing in $45k/mo.
Here's Iuliia on how she did it. 👇
Becoming an indie hacker
I transitioned right from getting my PhD to startups. In 2019, I started building an EdTech product to leverage my experience in academia.
It was a very painful experience, my first startup. I didn't know much about startup life, and I got a lot wrong. For example, I thought I needed to raise money. And I spent most of my time doing that — going to conferences and telling my story to investors. In the end, we raised a pre-seed round.
I also focused on easy, but unsustainable ways to sell the product, like AppSumo.
In the end, that startup failed. We were a team of ten, and I had to fire everyone. I was super depressed.
That was in late 2022. And I had no idea what to do next. I committed to posting every day on Twitter and LinkedIn, in the hopes that it would help me figure out what to do next.
This is how I came across indie hacking. I was a non-techie, but I opened up a code editor and started building. In 2023, I built 10 products.
Finding the idea
One of my projects went viral — here is the full story on that. It was a LinkedIn post generator that I later turned into Postli.
Around the same time, my partner, Marc, launched Papermark — a simple open-source alternative to Docsend.
The first version of Papermark took one weekend and was very simple — just uploading a document, sharing the link, and seeing basic analytics. He didn't have high hopes. But his launch tweet went viral too.
Both projects reached $500 MRR at the same time, but I couldn't find product-market fit for Postli and it slowly faded.
I started working on Papermark from time to time to see if there was any potential there. I mostly worked on growth. "Building for growth," I call it — building micro tools and running the blog. And, in January 2024, we both started working on it full time.
From there, Papermark just kept growing. Maybe it was a better product. Maybe it was because two people were working on it with distinct goals: building for product and building for growth.
Today, it's at $45k MRR. This time a year ago, we were at $1k MRR.
Two stacks
We have two separate NextJS projects: One for the marketing website, pages, micro tools, etc., and one for the product.
Here's our stack for the marketing side
Next.js – Framework
TypeScript – Language
Tailwind – CSS
shadcn/ui - UI Components
Vercel – Hosting
Railway - DB
On the product side, our stack is:
Next.js – Framework
TypeScript – Language
Tailwind – CSS
shadcn/ui - UI Components
Prisma - ORM
PostgreSQL - Database
NextAuth.js – Authentication
Tinybird – Analytics
Resend – Email
Stripe – Payments
Vercel – Hosting
More info on Github, as the product is fully open source.
Focus on one channel
We attracted our first 10 users by posting on social media, reddit, Dev.to, and Product Hunt. We also messaged people we knew. Launching is the fun part; the hard part comes after.
While we did that, we were developing our first channel to attract the next 100. We built free tools, alternative pages, how-to guides, and localized landing pages.
These days, we have around 1,000 pages of content, and our blog is our main channel. We focus on bottom-of-funnel articles. We spent all of 2024 developing this channel.
We ran other experiments along the way, but most just didn't work — or we didn't have the skill to do them well. Here are 17 methods that didn't work.
Here's my recommendation, as far as growth is concerned: If your product is an alternative to some existing product, USE THAT. Write about it. Especially if it is open source. People love a good open-source alternative.
Create a couple of comparison pages. Your desire to make the product better can put you in front of the best customers.
Success factors
I think Papermark growth is a combination of number of factors:
The need for a better solution in the market
The explosion of AI, which allowed us to create content faster and with fewer resources than ever before
The fact that we had failed before and learned from our mistakes
Luck
Commercial open-source model
We are a commercial open source company. So, we have an open-source version that can be self hosted. But the majority of our users opt for our SaaS offering.
We currently have four plans and a fully free version. This freemium approach has been a big part of how we've grown. And expanding our tiers has helped too.
We started with one plan at $29/mo. Now, our highest plan is $349/mo and our most popular plan is $79/mo. And for some reason, customers on our higher plans stick around longer.
My advice is to start with as simple an offering as possible. Then, grow it into a more complex offering with new plans, etc. over time. And increase prices as you go. It's hard to build a sustainable SaaS with low prices.
There are exceptions, of course. Especially among AI tools, but we fight churn a lot, and subscribers on higher plans or offerings just stay longer for some reason, that’s just how it is.
Building should be fun
As far as general advice, I'll say four things:
First, just build and launch as soon as you can. If you have no development skills use AI or no code. Building has never been easier than now. Typically people wait too long. And they never launch.
Second, always invest in growth and conversion. Don’t put everything into product. People need to be able to find you if you want to build a profitable SaaS.
Third, post often. I think writing on X, Linkedin, IH, and reddit helped me a lot. I met amazing people and realized that I wasn't alone in my struggles.
And fourth, do what you are good at, and what you enjoy doing. I neglected this at first and it made me very unhappy. Why would you aim for independence and building your own thing if it isn't fun?
Here's an example. At my first startup, I did cold sales via LinkedIn. And I hated it. So I didn't do that this time around. And what I did do actually worked.
Doing what doesn't fit you will not help your startup. Building should be fun!
What's next?
Our goal is to reach $1M ARR by the end of the year.
To reach that goal, we need to continue doing what we're doing: SEO.
But I also want to test new channels. And we need to reduce churn.
On a personal level, I want to enjoy this time as much as I can. As a founder, it's easy to forget to stop for a moment, look around, and just enjoy it.
You can follow along on my personal X and Papermark's X. And check out Papermark.
Leave a Comment
Whenever an article calls out a bunch of a failures it catches my attention. My goal right now is to launch some failures and learn from them; taking steps towards a success. Congratulations on taking your steps to success.
Iuliia, can you explain what you mean by "bottom-of-funnel" articles? Intuitively, I would expect it to mean that you're trying to catch potential customers who are actively seeking a tool like you provide, and hopefully convincing them to use your tool.
Yes, it is mostly not generic articles, but the one where people look for solution the articles which actionable, like alternatives, or how tos
First of all, congratulations! I hope it continues to bring you more success. was there any thought process behind choosing you stack?
Great, your story is inspiring
Happy to respond on all the questions and share more growth hack tips here in comments 😊
Incredible persistence and resilience! 🔥 After reading this, I realized that success often comes after multiple setbacks. your story gave me confidence to keep iterating. Thanks for sharing!
EI! Very inspirational the story! I'm a SaaS founder backed with VCs fund but i've changed total my paradigm in how to build product, so now i'm coding and shipping!
Way to go. I don't think it is easier to build product which people will use with VC money always. So no matter if you bootstrapped or VC backed the right mindset is a key. Good luck!
How do people build products so quick? I’ve been coding for 3 years, designing for about 2.5 and still it takes me 3-4 months to build something from the ground up, even with AI
MVP, for me as I never learn code deeply, it was always about pushing the earliest roughest version of it out there, and than see the signs of the market.
Inspiring and informative read. Thank you for posting this. It resonates the theme of resilience and faith in yourself that seems to be at the foundation of so many success stories.
Yes, and persistence I would say in some form of it.
This was a powerful read. The emotional honesty in your journey - from firing a team to building again from scratch - really resonated. Especially the part about rejecting what doesn’t fit you. I think a lot of indie founders forget that personal sustainability is just as important as product-market fit.
I also loved the clarity of your "two stacks" approach and your focus on bottom-of-funnel SEO - it's tactical, grounded, and clearly working. Huge congrats on reaching $45k MRR - that’s no small feat.
P.S. I recently launched a cyberpunk techwear brand built on similar ideas of clarity, focus, and meaning in a noisy world. Posts like yours remind me why we do this - not just to build products, but to reclaim agency. Thanks for sharing your story.
Reading stories like this makes me feels so comforting; not because I'm sadistic but because I am glad that I am not alone in my strings of failed products. It feels like I need to go through 10+ more failed indie projects before I can hit the gold mine.
I like that you mentioned that building should be fun, and building SaaS products is a challenging but fulfilling process for me and I would heed your advice and keep the process fun and enjoyable! Thanks for the inspiration!
hahah , there are many of us, much more I think share their story.
yes fun is different for all people, but maybe fulfillment is the one most important here.
Thank you for these four suggestions. People often feel that it's not good enough to be released, which leads to no feedback and giving up halfway.
Better released than not, even if nobody cares. This is also a very good feedback, if people not interested.
This is one of the most honest and motivating breakdowns I’ve seen. I especially appreciated your shift in mindset from chasing investment to learning by doing — that “10 products in 12 months” sprint must have taught you more than any course or funding ever could.
Your approach to building for growth and creating bottom-of-funnel content really resonates. I’m working on a product where we help companies identify which customers or products are truly profitable — and the most powerful traction hasn’t come from flashy features, but from simple tools and use-case content that shows immediate value.
Also really loved this:
That line is a gut-check for anyone trying to force-fit a channel or model that doesn't match their skills or energy. I made that mistake before too — trying cold sales when I hated it — and learned the hard way that growth has to align with what you actually enjoy doing.
Congrats to you and Marc on turning lessons into leverage. I’m taking notes from this post.
Love your comment. Yes, I wanted to understand what is really really important in all this journey, and if you not enjoy process in some way, it is a loss.
Loss which you maybe not understand straight but definitely after some time.
Congrats and thanks for sharing, it's very frustrating when you fail again and again, and the words from people like you spark hope...wish you the best!
Thanks! Yes it is very frustrating, but we are not alone in it!
Thanks for sharing what you’ve learned.
I think this is key - especially if you want to succeed in SEO. People looking for alternatives to competitors are very likely to convert if your product meets their needs better. It's also a great opportunity for potential users to discover your product organically and to promote your product. Good call out and congrats on the success! 😊
Love the story
very good
congratulations
Thanks for sharing what you’ve learned.
Best of luck on your journey to $1M ARR!
Incredible perseverance — 11 failed products would make most people quit, but you kept iterating and learning. Hitting $45K MRR in just over a year is huge! Loved how you leaned into feedback and stayed nimble with your approach. Super inspiring reminder that the road to success is rarely linear. Subscribed to follow the journey!
Thank you for sharing, I will learn from you and release the product as soon as possible to reduce the waiting time.
This is hell of impressive. The idea of comparing oneself to one's alternative is great! I'm going to do that for our company — Datatrixs!
Congrats, guys — this is such an inspiring story! I'm kinda in a similar conundrum right now as you, Luliia, had been.
I've built 4 products so far, and none of them gained any traction. I really wanna build my fifth project, but I don't know what to do. No solid idea to start building, no particular market in mind I can go after to look for a problem to solve. So for now, I'm just making content "videos" on social media, not to be an influencer but in the hope of building an audience so that when I build my next product, they might be a good starting point for me.
My question to you would be: what advice would you give me to help me find my next idea? or, looking back and knowing what you know now, what advice would you give to your stuck self from a few years back?
Hi 👋 thanks for the comment.
I think it is a great move to create videos. You can maybe also do videos about other products, it can make you more engaged with other founders. I remember I did for example product onboarding videos for different products during there launch days, and it helped to engage with people and learn many cool products.
I would also be active on social, at least it helped me, there some times can come some idea from smn else, and you could help build it. I would be open for that also, especially if at the moment you not sure what should be next move. It is best time to learn from smn else 😊
Hope it helps, feel free to shoot me a message on Twitter or LinkedIn
Congratulations and thank you for sharing. I’ve built 5 products in 3 years, and none of them were successful — but that’s okay, I will keep going.
Wow, that's really cool. I was really impressed by your passion and ambition for business while reading this article. It was a really great article. I want to take you as my role model. I may not be your opponent, but I consider you my rival.
I would like to take this opportunity to leave a brief feedback, so please understand.
"
Hi everyone, I’m Haruki from Japan
I’m a freelance web developer with solid skills in React, Vue, Node.js, Laravel, TailwindCSS, MySQL, and MongoDB. While I’ve finished my learning phase and built some personal projects, I’m still early in my freelancing journey and looking to gain more real-world experience.
My goal now is to work on small but meaningful projects, improve through collaboration, and eventually build my own products. I’m excited to be part of this community, connect with other makers, and contribute wherever I can.
If you’re working on something and need help with frontend or backend development, I’d love to support you. Let’s build together!
Thank you.
"
Thanks again, Iuliia
Absolutely loved this deep dive, Iuliia. It’s rare to see such honest reflection combined with tactical execution.Your transition from a failed, funded startup to building 10 projects in a year — and finally finding traction with Papermark — is a real testament to resilience and iteration. The “build for growth” mindset, paired with focus on a single distribution channel (SEO), clearly paid off.Also appreciate the breakdown of your tech stack and your open-source/commercial model. Super helpful for others trying to walk a similar path.Congrats on hitting $45k MRR — can’t wait to see Papermark hit $1M ARR!
Hey Indie Hackers!
I’m training to become a persuasive copywriter, and I’m offering to help 3 founders improve their landing pages or email copy — for free.
I’ll share some ideas, test copy, and try to make your message clearer and more compelling. All I ask in return is honest feedback or a testimonial if it helps!
Just reply here or DM me what you’re working on and I’ll take a look. Cheers!
Not enough people talk about what it actually takes to stick through that many losses without losing your head. We’ve grown our agency almost entirely through SEO and gotten tons of website deals just by SEO. Started doing it for clients after we saw the results ourselves. It works but only if you give it time.
congratulations!
Your journey is truly inspiring! It’s amazing how you transitioned from startup struggles to indie hacking success with Papermark. Your persistence and growth mindset are key takeaways for anyone building products!
This is such a real, hard-earned journey. Curious—after 10 products and a pivot to growth-led building, what mindset shift made the biggest difference? Was it strategic focus, or just letting go of what should work?
Good luck in your next milestone! And we hope to hear about your success in SEO very shortly :)
🔥 Incredible story, Iuliia.
Two key takeaways that really stood out to me:
Focusing on a single growth channel — especially bottom-of-funnel SEO — is gold. Too many founders (myself included) try to chase 5 channels before dominating 1. Your focus clearly paid off.
Your simple but effective stack proves you don’t need a bloated product to get traction. You just need to solve a real problem with speed and clarity.
Also love the idea of “building for growth” — micro tools and content that actually drive traffic. Inspiring stuff.
Congrats on the $45k MRR and looking forward to seeing Papermark hit $1M ARR soon 🚀
Amazing story... I wish you continued success dear
Hey , inspired a lot , gona fail , learn , and build from now on......Thanks for sharing.....
This was great! One big nugget jumped out. Evolving from one $29 plan to a $349 top tier mirrors what I see across SaaS: higher‑ACV customers churn less and subsidize deeper product bets. Curious if there were usage or revenue signals that indicated it was time to introduce those higher plans?
thanks Iuliia Shnai for sharing such a wonderful journey of yours.
Truly an inspiring journey! 👏
This post shows that success isn’t just about having a great idea — it’s about learning from failure, staying consistent, and making smart decisions along the way. The concept of “building for growth” really stood out, and the reminder that building should be fun hit home — there’s no point in chasing freedom if it makes you miserable.
The growth of Papermark from $1k to $45k MRR is incredible and proves what focus, partnership, and content-driven strategy can achieve.
I learned a lot from this — especially about leveraging open-source models and growing through SEO and free tools.
Wishing you the best on the road to $1M ARR! 🚀
This is incredibly inspiring. Iuliia’s story shows that persistence really pays off — 11 failed products sounds tough, but every one of them was a step closer to finding product-market fit. I really admire how she pivoted from chasing funding to focusing on building and validating ideas fast. Also love the transparency around building in public and using open source to build trust.