“High touch, low volume” isn’t a typical tech company mantra, even amongst services businesses.

But for Felinesoft, maintaining an intimate client roster of just 30 organizations — including some of the UK’s most prominent charities and nonprofits — proved to be a winning strategy.

The approach helped the bootstrapped software development firm grow to nearly $6 million (£5 million) in revenue and ultimately catch the eye of an acquirer.

How Felinesoft sold to ClearCourse

Founded in 2001, the Bristol and London-based tech firm built its reputation developing CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software, apps and websites for notable clients like the Royal Society of Medicine, Rolls-Royce, and Friends of the Earth.

Co-owners Ralph Johnson and Pete McBraida weren’t seeking an exit when ClearCourse came calling in 2020.

The buyer, a London-based technology group that was backed by a private equity firm, had been actively building a portfolio of software companies serving membership, events, and healthcare sectors.

“Being part of ClearCourse will give us access to the breadth of operational, strategic and financial support we need to enhance our customer service and the solutions available to our clients,” Johnson said in ClearCourse’s acquisition announcement. “We’re incredibly proud of the growth and scale we have achieved over the past 19 years.”

What the ‘high touch, low volume’ approach looked like

Felinesoft, a bootstrapped business, specialized “in supporting charity and not-for-profit organisations in fulfilling their missions by providing the tools to optimise fundraising, enhance donor engagement, and increase efficiency while reducing costs,” according to the FelineSoft website.

At the time of the company’s sale, it was working with about 30 clients, Johnson recalled. “We were high touch, low volume,” working closely and intensely with a select roster of clients.

Johnson and his co-founder grew the company “from nothing to 20% EBITDA and £5m turnover at the time of exit,” he wrote on his LinkedIn profile, or about $6 million US. They had 75 employees.

The sale price was not disclosed.

How Johnson grew his software development firm

Here are a few rapid-fire questions we asked Johnson about growing and selling his business.

Q: What was the most challenging part of selling the business?

A: “Leaving the people I worked with behind.”

Q: What’s one big thing you did to grow the business?

A: “Focused on delivery to our clients. This came through happy, productive staff.”

Q: What was one of the biggest challenges in growing the business?

A: “Working our way up the size of project we could tender for.”

Q: What advice would you give to a founder who wants to sell their business in the next few years?

A: “Focus on EBITDA and create a number of sale opportunities to get the best price.”

Post-acquisition, Johnson is considering his next venture while he runs the family business: Ski Miquel, a travel agency that specializes in European ski vacations.