From Broke and Unknown to Building Something Real

I was a broke 22-year-old kid when I learned how client acquisition really works.

Fresh out of college, I had a product no one cared about. But I knew one thing: our ideal clients were all in one place — retail conferences.

That made the plan simple.

NAMA would be our big break.

Not All Innovation Zones Are Created Equal

We were placed in what the organizers called the “Innovation Zone.”

It sounded promising — until we realized it was the darkest hallway in the entire building.
People only walked by if they were lost or looking for a bathroom.

You didn’t need a realtor to know it was a bad location.

Most other startups figured that out quickly — and left their booths empty.

Pitching in the Dark

I stayed.

For hours, I pitched to anyone who made accidental eye contact.
By 4 PM on the final day, I had already been shut down by 50 people.

Then, someone in a suit stopped.

He didn’t just nod. He asked real questions, listened carefully, and made me prove the value.

When I showed him our numbers — “$4 saved for every $1 spent” — he pulled out a business card.

That was it.

Our first Panoptyc contract: $30/month.

The Most Valuable $30 We Ever Made

That client:

  • Showed us everything that was wrong with our product

  • Gave us real feedback retailers actually cared about

  • Introduced us to bigger, better opportunities

[Insert Supporting Image Here]
Suggested: A candid shot of your early team at a booth or a symbolic photo of a business card exchange. Place this before the bullet list above or after it.

Would it have happened if I left early?
Maybe not.

The Playbook Hasn’t Changed

Just last month, an exec told me at a conference:

“You’re literally the only booth where someone talked to me instead of looking at their phone.”

Here’s the lesson for any founder trying to scale:

  • Talk to absolutely everyone

  • Know your numbers cold

  • Don’t disappear when it gets boring

That $30 sale in a dark hallway?
It turned into a company that now powers smarter retail loss prevention across the country.

And it all started by showing up when others didn’t.

#StartupLessons #RetailTech #FoundersStory #Panoptyc #NAMA #CustomerAcquisition #EarlyStageGrowth