Episode 20
Why Building a SaaS Product Is Harder Than Most Founders Admit
Damjan Dano
Founder, Aqtos
The conversation
Milan Savov talks with Damjan Dano, founder of Aqtos and creator of the tech media platform IT.mk, about the honest reality of more than 20 years building tech companies in Macedonia. Damjan started a cybersecurity company in 2006, when the market was not ready, and learned that being right too early can feel the same as being wrong. After running a digital consultancy, he saw that service businesses grow linearly, which led him to turn an internal tool into the SaaS product Aqtos.
He argues that as AI makes features easy to copy, trust will become the main differentiator. He also reflects on staying local for too long and urges founders from small markets to think globally from the start.
What came up
Introduction to Damjan Dano
The beginning of IT.mk
Why media was not profitable early
Transitioning from agency to SaaS
Why remote work changed productivity
Positioning Aqtos globally
Why trust matters more than AI hype
Moving focus from services to product
Building slower but more sustainably
About the guest
Damjan Dano
A Macedonian tech entrepreneur with more than 20 years in media, cybersecurity and SaaS. He founded IT.mk and now leads Aqtos, a business operating system.
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