In this episode, I was lucky enough to interview Peter Bonney, CEO and founder of Fastbreak RFP.
Peter shares his entrepreneurial journey, starting from his childhood in a small town in Massachusetts. Growing up with a father who ran shoe stores and constantly engaged in side hustles, Peter absorbed key lessons in customer focus and hustle. He reflects on how his early experiences shaped his business philosophy, especially his dad’s mantra, "The customer is your job," which continues to influence how he approaches building customer-centric solutions. Peter’s first venture, Vendorful, taught him hard lessons about the procurement space—how difficult it was to sell solutions that save money versus those that generate revenue. Despite these challenges, Vendorful found success, leading to its acquisition.
Peter’s latest venture, Fastbreak RFP, spun out from the challenges he faced responding to RFPs while scaling Vendorful. Fastbreak simplifies and streamlines the RFP response process for B2B companies, with an early focus on industries like health insurance that experience significant RFP-related pain points. Peter emphasizes the importance of niching down to achieve faster product-market fit, something he wishes he had done earlier. He discusses the contrast between selling to procurement teams and revenue teams, highlighting how the latter is often a much easier and faster path to growth. Now leading a lean, early-stage team, Peter shares how he’s embraced experimentation and customer feedback to chart a clearer path for Fastbreak’s future success.
Hear how Peter Bonney turned his first big idea into a thriving business in this episode of The First Customer!
Guest Info:
Fastbreak RFP
https://fastbreakrfp.com
Peter Bonney's LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-bonney-nyc/
Connect with Jay on LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayaigner/
The First Customer Youtube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/@thefirstcustomerpodcast
The First Customer podcast website
https://www.firstcustomerpodcast.com
Follow The First Customer on LinkedIn
http://www.linkedin.com/company/the-first-customer-podcast/
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