Small Business Builds Its Own
dinesh@din8sh
+1.6%
since Oct 9
The idea
I believe cheap, plain-English coding tools are a few years away from letting any small business build its own software. I'm betting on the companies that get stronger when that happens, not weaker: payment platforms that earn more as these businesses sell more, and the hosting and website tools where their new AI-made apps get built and run. A smaller piece sits in back-office software handling money and records that a homemade app won't easily replace.
What it owns
- These companies process sales transactions for small businesses and earn a percentage of each one, so they grow as affordable software helps those shops reach more customers and sell more. · Shopify Inc.It powers online storefronts and captures a portion of every transaction that flows through its payment processing system., Block, Inc.It processes card payments for millions of small retailers and takes a cut of each transaction, so if affordable tools help those shops increase sales, it earns more from the volume., Toast, Inc.It takes a percentage of restaurant sales through its payment system, and restaurants are small businesses that may build their own ordering and loyalty applications on top of it., Fiserv, Inc.Its Clover system processes payments for a large base of small merchants and takes a cut of each sale, so it benefits as those businesses add their own tools on top of its platform., Shift4 Payments, Inc.It processes payments for hotels, restaurants and event venues and earns a slice of every transaction, so it benefits as those businesses continue to need a trusted processor underneath their own software., PayPal Holdings, Inc.It is the checkout option many small online sellers integrate first, and a wave of new affordable small-business platforms means more places to add that button., Global Payments Inc.It processes card sales for a broad range of merchants and offers a lower-cost option among payment processors, so it benefits as small-merchant transaction volume increases.40%
- These companies provide the infrastructure, tools and platforms where small businesses will build, host and run the websites and applications they create by describing them in plain language. · GoDaddy Inc.It provides the domain names and hosting infrastructure that small businesses rely on to establish their first online presence., Wix.com Ltd.It lets people build websites and applications by describing what they want rather than writing code, which aligns with how small businesses may create their own online presence., Cloudflare, Inc.It runs and protects websites and applications on its global network, so every new application created by small businesses needs a fast and secure place to operate., HubSpot, Inc.It stores a small business's customer lists, marketing and sales data, information that a homemade application would connect to rather than rebuild from scratch., DigitalOcean Holdings, Inc.It sells simple, affordable cloud hosting aimed at small teams and individual developers, a natural platform for applications small businesses build with artificial intelligence.33%
- These companies manage the financial and operational systems small businesses rely on, like payroll, accounting and lending, which carry legal weight and historical data that are difficult to recreate with a homemade tool. · Intuit Inc.It manages a small business's accounting and tax records, which have legal standing and years of historical data that a new homemade tool cannot easily replace., BILL Holdings, Inc.It moves money between small businesses and their suppliers and maintains invoice records, functions that are complex and risky to recreate independently., Paychex, Inc.It manages payroll and human resources for small businesses and handles the tax filings and compliance that come with employing people., Live Oak Bancshares, Inc.It lends to small businesses, so more small businesses starting and growing with affordable software means increased demand for its loans.18%
- Cash9%