In the ever-evolving landscape of WordPress and e-commerce platforms, visionary entrepreneurs like Georgi Petrov have left an indelible mark with their innovative solutions. As the co-founder of iSenseLabs and the driving force behind the groundbreaking NitroPack, Georgi's entrepreneurial journey is a testament to the power of passion, perseverance, and a relentless pursuit of excellence.

From his early days of tinkering with electronics and programming as a child, Georgi's insatiable curiosity and determination paved the way for his future endeavors. His story is a captivating one, marked by pivotal moments, such as the creation of his first software at the tender age of 16 and the subsequent launch of an internet cafe, which set the stage for his entrepreneurial pursuits.

1. Hi Georgi, can you provide some background information about yourself and your journey as an entrepreneur?

I’ve always dreamed of creating things. As early as the age of 11 I was introduced to electronics by my brother and I loved it. I was trying to create a radio transmitter day and night, until I succeeded and I launched an FM radio with 4 miles of coverage radius. It had to close only a few months later when my family was contacted by authorities and I understood I was illegally doing it. Then I moved into software by using a corporate computer to learn programming in my fathers work.

My early entrepreneurial journey started back in 1998 when I was a kid learning how to code. I made enough money by selling my first piece of software to buy a Toshiba laptop. The laptop was quite an exotic device at that time and I loved it. I was a skinny kid and this heavy Toshiba brick was with me all the time. I was even bringing my modem with me when I go to places with phone dial lines but no modems.

At the age of 16 my father suddenly passed away and I felt like I had to grow up and I co-launched an internet club and cafe in my town with a friend. It turned out to be quite a success until the age of 18 when I had to leave and go to university and sold my stake to my partner.

Joining university I was already sure this is my mission. I knew what I wanted to do. I met great people, likeminded and learned a lot about software, business and people.

2. You and Mihail co-founded iSenseLabs together. How did your paths cross, and what inspired you to join forces in establishing the company?

Mihail and I met at university. We often had discussions of how we imagine the future will look like. This led us to like-minded conclusions of ecommerce and SaaS before it even were a thing.

3. In the initial stages, was iSenseLabs focused primarily on providing OpenCart consulting services, or did you have plans to develop OpenCart plugins from the outset?

We are product guys so on the very first consulting project we took we were creating it by building our own shippable plugins for it. The next logical step was to publish these plugins so we can help other developers too. This was our best move because people started buying licenses.

4. What led to the idea of NitroPack, was it out of your own experience or because you thought there was a gap in the market?

The biggest motivator was the personal desire of websites to load faster, faster like a desktop software (at the time). With low online competition every website owner found it useful to have a fast website at that time. When we published the self-hosted NitroPack 1.0 version for OpenCart in 2013 we were innovators but also found how much work we need to do. 

5. Could you shed some light on the organizational structure and team dynamics between iSenseLabs and NitroPack? Do these two entities share a common team, or are they separate?

At that time NitroPack was a team part of iSenseLabs.

6. Could you walk us through the process of developing the NitroPack plugin? Did you have a clear vision from the outset, or did the product evolve over time? How did customer feedback influence the shaping of the product?

We integrated with the just-released PageSpeed Insights API version 1 at that time as well as Yahoo's YSlow. We identified the most impactful problems and implemented automed fixes for them within our self-hosted plugin. It is worth mentioning that the performance problems browsers and networks had in 2013 are very different from today’s performance problems. For example one of the most impactful performance optimization we were doing at the time was putting images in sprites, automatically.

The customer feedback was very positive but we didn’t like the fact that as a self-hosted plugin the support efforts were high and we couldn’t ship many libs that we were testing to further improve performance. This is because hostings are designed to host and deliver websites, and not to do heavy-lifted computing like to optimize each image in 8 different ways and choose the lowest size. This is how the nitropack.io idea was born over a team lunch. We figured out how to move all the optimizing effort to a cloud and leave the website owners to just serve the lightweight optimized pages and focus on their business. We immediately invited VCs to invest in the project and after 1.5 years of hard work re-launched NitroPack as a cloud solution, multiple times more powerful than what the plugin was.

7. NitroPack caters to WordPress as well as other platforms like OpenCart. Approximately what percentage of NitroPack's user base utilizes the WordPress version?

As the most popular platform on the internet, WordPress is also the top choice among NitroPack users in terms of total number of websites. On the minority side we have Magento, OpenCart, Shopify, BigCommerce, Drupal, and various custom platforms and API integrations. 

8. How beneficial was your existing brand recognition, industry connections, and client base from iSenseLabs in gaining initial traction for NitroPack? Could you share the strategies you employed to acquire your first 100 Nitro Pack subscriptions?

We’ve never followed a real marketing strategy. Our strategy has always been building useful PLG products, our initial customers found us organically. Our existing brand recognition helped to some extent but not a lot because when we relaunched as a SaaS nearly 0% of the existing customers were seeing the immediate value to continuously optimize a site through a cloud service, hence paying a subscription. This changed a few months later by having a great product and showing the value.

9. What are the primary channels through which you distribute and market NitroPack? Do you find any significant differences in marketing strategies between a WordPress product and products for platforms like OpenCart or Shopify?

Speaking of the new SaaS product, nitropack.io, very initially we launched it as an API thinking that developers would love it and start integrating. It turned out that very few actually integrated it so we quickly launched connectors for OpenCart and WordPress. OpenCart, WordPress, and Shopify are all very different in terms of how you approach the market. All platforms are at their different stage of performance readiness and have their own unique challenges.

10. In your opinion, What feature or USP do you think helped NitroPack stand out from the other products in the market that may have helped you in terms of marketing efforts?

We’ve been focused on building an easy and useful product. Our initial SaaS USP came with 5 innovations and bundled multiple optimization techniques that immediately attracted the attention of the users. 

11. Could you explain the thought process behind determining the pricing structure for NitroPack? How important is it to offer a free version, and what has been the free-to-paid conversion rate?

For us, good pricing equates to fair pricing, measured by the value we deliver. Hence, we offer complimentary plans for our hobbyists and smaller users, allowing for growth in alignment with their needs. Our free version suits personal or small-scale websites that typically do not yield business revenue, resulting in fewer conversions. However, we take pride in maintaining fairness. Typically, we witness natural transitions to our paid plans as the websites of our free users expand, which we believe is just and equitable.

12. You were recently part of the WordCamp Asia event. What was the experience like? What do you think was your biggest takeaway from the event?

Great atmosphere, many people and great organization. It was our first time coming face to face with our Asia user base and we got some invaluable feedback on how we can take our product to the next level. The event was organized to perfection and we couldn’t have felt more welcomed by the local community. WordCamp Asia 2025 is already on our radar! 

13. What is the most valuable lesson you've learned as an entrepreneur? And if you were to build your company all over again today, what would you have done differently?

The true effort begins not during the product's development phase, but when the product is actually launched. Establishing an effective feedback loop, excelling in communication, and maintaining a clear vision are crucial. If I were to start over, I would prioritize being even closer to our users in the beginning.

14. What advice would you offer to current and aspiring WordPress entrepreneurs looking to make their mark in the industry?

Begin by being useful to one person. Next, think how you can extend that same value to millions.

Georgi Petrov's entrepreneurial journey is a remarkable tale of innovation, resilience, and a steadfast commitment to delivering value. From humble beginnings as a passionate programmer to co-founding iSenseLabs and spearheading the game-changing NitroPack, his story serves as an inspiration to aspiring entrepreneurs worldwide.

Throughout his journey, Georgi's unwavering dedication to understanding user needs and delivering useful products has been the driving force behind his success. His advice to current and aspiring WordPress entrepreneurs resonates deeply: "Begin by being useful to one person. Next, think how you can extend that same value to millions."

As the WordPress ecosystem continues to evolve, visionaries like Georgi Petrov will undoubtedly play a pivotal role in shaping its future, pushing the boundaries of what's possible and empowering developers and entrepreneurs to create truly remarkable experiences.