The Fun of Starting Again: A Tech Startup Story with SlashExperts

Season 2, Episode 3 of the Tech Startup Stories Podcast features Braydan Young, co-founder of SlashExperts, with host Natalie Binns.

In this episode, Braydan shares why he keeps coming back to the startup world, what makes the early chaos addictive, and how he’s applying lessons from his previous ventures to build smarter this time around.

Listen to the Podcast
Available on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

Braydan isn’t new to the rollercoaster of being a tech startup founder. He co-founded Coffee Sender, before building Sendoso and helping to scale it into one of the best-known names in B2B gifting. After a decade of highs, challenges, and a lot of process building, you’d think he might take a step back. Instead, he decided to do it all again with SlashExperts, a platform that connects prospects directly to existing customers before they ever talk to a salesperson.

Why the chaos matters
Some founders crave the structure that comes with scaling a business, Braydan thrives on the opposite. He loves the “zero to ten” phase, those unpredictable early days where you’re working out if the product really has a market, figuring out how to price, and closing deals that feel more like experiments than processes. That’s the phase he missed once Sendoso became a bigger machine, and it’s what pulled him back into the game.

Lessons learned the hard way
Doing it again doesn’t mean doing it the same way. Braydan is clear about what he’s bringing forward and what he’s leaving behind.

• No over-hiring too early – at Sendoso, the team scaled quickly, which brought costs and complexity. SlashExperts is leaner and more deliberate.

• Funding with intention – rather than chasing round after round, the focus now is on raising what’s needed to prove the hypothesis and move toward profitability earlier.

• Smarter use of tools – everything from CRM to AI automation is in place from day one, keeping the business organised and efficient.

Sales, trust, and peer-to-peer proof
At its core, SlashExperts is built around a simple idea: people trust people more than they trust polished pitches. Instead of sitting through a demo with a sales rep, prospects can connect directly with existing customers to hear what using the product is really like. It’s peer-to-peer selling brought into the sales cycle from the very first conversation.

Building again, but balancing better
This time, Braydan is not just focused on the business. He talks openly about how the approach is different now he has a family. The long, aimless days of his twenties have been swapped for structure, sharper priorities, and an understanding that the world won’t collapse if an email isn’t answered in sixty seconds. Experience, it turns out, makes you not only a smarter founder but also a calmer one.

For the next wave of founders
Braydan’s advice for anyone starting out is simple:

• Talk about your idea constantly, long before you build it.

• Find a co-founder you can truly trust, doing it alone is harder than most people think.

• Don’t be afraid to ask for help. A genuine, personal note on LinkedIn can open surprising doors.

Listen to the Podcast
Available on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

Connect with Braydan Young and learn more about SlashExperts on their website.