Speedy Squirrel

How I Bootstrapped My Shopify SaaS to $11K/Month

Who are you and what business did you start?

Hello. My name is Aditya. I am the founder of Speedy Squirrel. Speedy Squirrel is an e-commerce SaaS company. We build plugins for Shopify. We have three plugins on the Shopify App Store, the hero one being "Shipping Calculator: ShipMagic". ShipMagic allows you to customise your shipping rates using 30+ parameters, and also allows you to connect your Shopify store with different carriers like USPS, Fedex, Australia Post, etc. Our primary customers are Shopify merchants who are looking to charge accurate shipping rates to their customers. We pride ourselves in providing an easy to use, easy to setup app with top notch customer support. We currently bring in about $11,000 per month.

How do you come up with the idea for Speedy Squirrel?

Before launching my own venture, I worked as a software developer and product manager at several startups in Bangalore, India. These experiences gave me the skills and confidence to independently build, deploy, and maintain products. I began exploring domains where I could leverage these abilities to create meaningful solutions. During my research, I discovered Shopify Apps, which stood out as a promising opportunity for several reasons:

It was a well-defined niche with minimal competition from large SaaS companies. Being a B2B market, it offered fewer customers but higher-value transactions. One of the biggest challenges for startups is customer acquisition. Shopify's dedicated app store for plugins provides a built-in platform to reach potential customers effectively when utilized strategically.

How did you build the initial version of Speedy Squirrel?

The first step in building my business was finding the right idea. I began by engaging with various Shopify communities, hoping to uncover potential opportunities. However, this approach didn’t yield significant results. To dig deeper, I created a free app and offered it to customers in exchange for a 30-minute conversation about their business. During these conversations, I asked about their operations and challenges, paying close attention when they highlighted pain points. This process led to the idea for ShipMagic. Since the concept originated directly from Shopify merchants, I had a handful of potential customers lined up even before development began.

This customer-first approach remains my guiding principle. Every feature in the app today is based on user requests, and there isn’t a single feature that isn’t actively used by at least one merchant.

Starting Costs Launching ShipMagic required minimal investment. Shopify charges a one-time $99 fee to create a developer account. Beyond that, I hired freelance designers to create the logo and app store assets, which brought the total initial cost to approximately $200.

Pricing Model We adopted a flat monthly subscription model, with pricing tiers based on the features customers need. While the structure has remained consistent, we’ve raised prices a couple of times as the product evolved.

To attract early adopters and gather reviews, I offered ShipMagic for free during the first three months. This strategy helped improve our ranking on the Shopify App Store. Since the operational costs were low—covering server, database, and a few tools—I was able to bootstrap the business using my savings.

The MVP and Launch One of the most crucial decisions I made was setting a hard deadline of three days to release the Minimum Viable Product (MVP). In the past, I had been a victim of the build trap. This time, I worked intensely for about 48–50 hours over three days to release the first version, which included just three or four core features. My prior experience in software development made the process straightforward.

This lean, fast approach to product development allowed me to focus on delivering value quickly, and it’s a philosophy I’ve continued to follow as the business grows.

How did you launch Speedy Squirrel and get initial traction?

Our business ideas originated from direct conversations with Shopify merchants, which meant we had a small but ready group of users at launch. To build momentum, we offered the app for free in exchange for reviews and kept it free for the first three months. This strategy allowed us to quickly gain users and reviews, which are crucial factors in Shopify’s app store ranking algorithm. By focusing on install and review velocity, we were able to improve our app’s visibility significantly.

Additionally, we optimized our app store listing to perfection. We strategically incorporated high-traffic keywords in key areas, such as the app name and the one-liner description, to boost discoverability. As a result, we consistently rank in the top 5 for competitive keywords like "Shipping Calculator," which drives over 15 new installs daily.

It took three months to generate our first revenue, as we removed the free plan after this initial period. However, the early investment in gaining visibility and user trust laid a strong foundation for sustainable growth.

What was the growth strategy for Speedy Squirrel and how did you scale?

The Shopify App Store has been—and remains—our primary source of customer acquisition. We follow best practices to consistently rank higher, ensuring visibility to potential users. This is a great channel because for most of the small to mid sized Shopify merchants, app store is the first option to look for solutions. Also, maintaining this channel is very developer friendly. Most of the things I need to do is technical stuff like keyword optimisation, optimised listing, etc. I lack marketing skills and hence this channel works best for me.

One effective strategy we implemented was thinking like a merchant searching for solutions to the problems our app addresses. We searched Google using relevant queries and engaged with top-ranking results by adding thoughtful comments, posts, and links to our app. Astonishingly, this approach has consistently driven a good steady stream of new installs.

We also actively participate in the Shopify Community Forum, offering guidance to merchants facing shipping challenges. While this isn’t a major source of installs, it helped us in building brand awareness and credibility within the community.

For aspiring entrepreneurs, especially indie founders, I strongly recommend focusing on organic acquisition channels. Paid marketing can provide quick results but is often unsustainable in the long run. Instead, identify where your target customers spend their time—whether in forums, niche communities, or industry-specific platforms—and engage meaningfully. Try multiple avenues and double down on what works best for your audience.

What were the biggest lessons learned from building Speedy Squirrel?

The biggest mistake I made was waiting too long to start. I kept telling myself I wasn’t ready, that I needed more experience, and that a bit more preparation would make everything easier. But in reality, this mindset only delayed my journey.

Since then, I’ve learned two important lessons that I now apply to everything in life:

Set audacious goals. Often, the biggest barriers to success are the imaginary walls we create in our own minds. These self-imposed limits hold us back from reaching our true potential.

Just start. Overthinking is a trap. You will never feel fully ready, no matter how much you prepare. At some point, you have to take the leap of faith, embrace the uncertainty, and trust yourself to figure things out along the way.

Looking back, I wish I had started earlier, but these lessons have become my guiding principles for every challenge I face now.

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