Founder stories
$100K ARRin 1 month
4 milestones
From open source to $2M+ with Tailwind UI
Founder
Adam Wathan
Co-Founders•Technical•Canada
Commitment
Full-timeExperience
ExperiencedProduct
Utility-first CSS framework and commercial UI component library.
Type
SaaSIndustry
Developer ToolsModel
SubscriptionMarketing Strategy
How Adam acquired customers
Primary Channel
Twitter / X
Also Used
CommunitiesWord of Mouth
Tech Stack
Tools used to build Tailwind CSS
GitHubStripeLaravelVue.js
The Full Story
We built Tailwind CSS as an open source project, then launched Tailwind UI as a commercial product. The first day made $500K.
Building in Open Source
Tailwind CSS started as an internal tool. We open sourced it and it grew organically. Developers loved the utility-first approach.
The Launch
When we launched Tailwind UI (premium components), we had massive pent-up demand. Day one: $500K. The audience was already there.
Growth Strategy
We continued improving the free framework while building premium products on top. The open source work drives awareness for commercial products.
- Open source: 2017
- Tailwind UI launch: Feb 2020
- Day 1 revenue: $500K
- First year: $2M+
Key Takeaways
1
Open source can be a business model
2
Build audience before monetizing
3
Premium on top of free works
4
Developer tools have huge markets
Originally published onAdam Wathan Blog
Inspired by Adam's journey? Generate a business idea in the Developer Tools space using AI and real founder data.
Milestone Journey
Adam achieved 4 milestones on the path to $100K ARR
First Customer
1 days
January 2020
99% faster
vs avg 3 months+6 days to next milestone
$1K MRR
$1,000
7 days
January 2020
98% faster
vs avg 11 months+7 days to next milestone
$10K MRR
$10,000
14 days
January 2020
98% faster
vs avg 1 year+16 days to next milestone
$100K ARR
$100,000
1 month
February 2020
97% faster
vs avg 3 years1 month
Total journey time
4
Milestones achieved
Adam's Path to $100K ARRPremium
The journey, decisions, and context behind this milestone
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