7 Ways to Scale a Startup Into a Billion-Dollar Business Here are seven key insights to guide your journey to becoming the next unicorn.
By Maria Cho Edited by Chelsea Brown
Key Takeaways
- Scaling a startup to a billion-dollar business is incredibly challenging, but it's achievable with the right strategies.
- Leaders must focus on solving real problems, work to achieve operational excellence, secure product-market fit, avoid overreach, build a cohesive team, consider horizontal integration and think globally.
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Every entrepreneur dreams of turning their startup into a billion-dollar business. The allure of achieving unicorn status — reaching a valuation of over $1 billion — is powerful, and I'm no exception. The journey from a fledgling startup to a billion-dollar enterprise is daunting.
While we are still on the path to this goal at Triplebar Bio, Inc., where I lead an incredible business as the CEO, I wanted to share my insights to help others navigate the beginning parts of this complex journey.
1. Start with the right problem
The most important question you must answer is, "What problem am I trying to solve?" If you don't have a clear answer to this question, how can you start building and then scale your business? It's crucial to solve a problem that affects millions, if not billions, of people. I constantly ask myself, "Is this cutting-edge? If not, how can it be?" Staying ahead of the curve is vital to keeping up with innovation, industry trends, competition and global markets.
2. Focus on operational excellence
One of the key factors in scaling a business is operational excellence. From the beginning, I focused on ensuring every dollar we spent generated significant value — ideally tenfold. This principle ensures that everything you do creates value; if it does not, it should be removed from the process or product. This concept is an output of a methodology called Lean Six Sigma (LSS), which companies like Toyota and FujiFilm use to enhance efficiency and quality by minimizing waste and reducing process variability. Staying lean is essential, but not at the expense of quality. It's a delicate balance that can make or break a business.
3. Achieve product-market fit
A crucial milestone in our journey has been achieving product-market fit. At Triplebar, we followed the 40% rule: If at least four out of ten customers would be very disappointed if our product or service ceased to exist, we knew we had achieved product-market fit. It's essential to create something that your customers simply can't live without. This requires a deep understanding of the market and ensuring that your technology precisely addresses the problem you're trying to solve.
4. Stay focused and avoid overreach
One of the biggest lessons I learned — and something I see as a common pitfall for startups, especially in high-tech sectors like biotech — is the danger of trying to do too much. Early on, I consciously decided not to try to be everything to everyone. That's a mistake I've seen other companies make, such as Ginkgo Bioworks, which saw its valuation plummet because it overextended itself. Instead, I focused on doing a few things exceptionally well rather than spreading ourselves too thin.
Related: 10 Traits of Entrepreneurs Who Built Billion-Dollar Companies
5. Build a cohesive A-team
Success in scaling a business goes beyond having a great product; it requires a strong, cohesive A-team. I firmly believe that to achieve excellence, you can't have different teams working in silos, and you can't have a team of sub-optimal performers. At Triplebar, we operate as one unified team with specific jobs aligned toward the same objectives — but we are all owners of the final outcome. Hire slowly, and fire quickly. Everyone's role is critical in an organization, and don't get me wrong, I care about people, but a bad fit for a lean/high-powered startup will only hold back your business and your mission. As we've grown and scaled, we have ensured that every effort is directed toward our common goals.
6. Consider horizontal integration
In the biotech sector, I've learned the value of moving away from vertical integration — where a company controls multiple stages of production — toward horizontal integration, where each partner in the value chain specializes in a specific area of expertise. This is the sign of a mature industry, as we see in the semiconductor industry. This approach has allowed us to focus on what we do best at Triplebar, leading to greater efficiency and operational excellence and diversifying our product portfolio and partnership base while simultaneously creating a broad impact on our mission.
7. Think globally
Finally, I've always believed in the power of thinking globally. Few unicorns are global, and scaling beyond your domestic market can have a multiplier effect. At Triplebar, we started with a strong foundation in our initial market and then strategically expanded. This global vision has been a critical factor in our growth and success.
Related: 10 Ways to Scale a Business from Startup to a Huge Company, According to These Titans
Scaling a startup to a billion-dollar business is no small feat, but it's achievable with the right strategies. By focusing on solving real problems, achieving operational excellence, securing product-market fit, staying focused, building a cohesive team and considering horizontal integration, I've positioned Triplebar Bio for sustained success. The journey has been challenging, but the rewards are immense.
Whether you're just starting or looking to scale, I hope my experience can guide your journey to becoming the next unicorn. The path is colossally challenging, but your business can achieve this goal if you stay determined, learn from your mistakes, seek wisdom from more intelligent people, and maintain grit and perseverance.
