The $125M Exit (Fonteva)

A decade-long journey from idea to nine-figure exit in enterprise SaaS

Fonteva’s story is one of vision, grit, and the relentless pursuit of customer value. Founded in 2009 by Mac Anderson and John Doe, Fonteva set out to build enterprise-grade SaaS applications—at a time when the cloud was still gaining trust and software companies faced unique technical and go-to-market hurdles.

Beginnings: Founding Fonteva

Armed with a passion for solving complex problems and building scalable solutions, we recognized a gap: Associations, nonprofits, and membership organizations lacked robust, modern platforms that could harness best-in-class cloud technology. Thus, Fonteva was born.

The early years were defined by listening to customers, iterating rapidly, and working through the immense technical complexity of large-scale SaaS development. Raising initial capital wasn’t easy, but we bootstrapped and reinvested every cent, growing through grit and relentless customer focus. We signed our first major customer in late 2010—a pivotal moment building credibility as both a technical team and a business partner.

Product Expansion and Scaling

Between 2011 and 2018, Fonteva grew from a small founding team to over 100 employees across offices in the US and India. Our Membership and Events platforms powered mission-critical operations for hundreds of organizations worldwide. We invested heavily in product development, support, and customer success. Key to our growth was staying close to customers—taking their feedback seriously and weaving it into every iteration.

We navigated an ever-evolving technology landscape, weathered technical challenges (multi-cloud, performance, security, GDPR), and scaled our go-to-market through direct sales, partnerships, and channel growth. We built a unique culture: fully remote by 2016, guided by transparency, diversity, and the enduring curiosity to solve tough problems.

The $125M Exit: Acquisition by Togetherwork

By 2020, Fonteva had become the go-to platform for member-driven organizations, with robust growth, expanding ARR, and minimal churn. Our leadership attracted interest from strategic acquirers. In 2021, after months of due diligence and competitive offers, we reached an agreement to be acquired by Togetherwork—a technology company consolidating leaders in the association and group management sector.

The final transaction valued Fonteva at $125M. It unlocked value for shareholders, rewarded a high-performing team, and ensured customers would continue to receive best-in-class technology and service with increased resources and broader solutions.

Reflections

Exiting at $125M was both exhilarating and humbling. The greatest pride comes from the team we built, the customers we empowered, and the impact Fonteva had in our segment. Building and exiting a company is never just about capital—it’s about solving real problems for real people and growing together.

If you’re on your own founder journey, remember: persistence, customer obsession, and team culture are your most valuable assets. Exits are an outcome—not a purpose.

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