Solo Mission
Paul Stannard used to make software for other companies. When he turned 40, he decided to make the profits his own.
Vital Stats: Paul Stannard, 48,
founder and CEO of SmartDraw.com in San Diego
Company: Manufacturer of
diagramming software since 1994
2001 Sales: $3 million (and
"very profitable")
"When we were
raising money to start our [first] company, we had to explain to
investors what 'software' was."
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History Repeats Itself:
"I founded a software company in about 1982, and there was the
same boom-bust cycle [as in the late '90s]. By 1985,
'software' in a company name was guaranteed to make any
investor spit on the floor. We didn't go out of business, but
finally took our marbles and went home in the late
'80s."
The Big "Four-Oh":
"I decided to get back into the game on my 40th birthday. I
was making a good living writing software for all sorts of people
that published it [like Microsoft], but I got the itch to do
something different, and said, 'You know, Stannard, you're
40--you better get off your butt.' "
SmartDraw vs. Microsoft's
Visio?: "I don't see us going head-to-head with
Visio. Mack trucks and Ford pickups both go after people who want
to move something, but do they really compete? The fact is, most
people don't need a Mack truck; they need something to easily
draw a simple diagram. There are a hundred times as many people in
that category, so we address those people. We are quite happy to
coexist with Visio and let them have total domination of their
little segment while we attempt to dominate the other 95
percent."