We have been talking with Avinash Sukhwani and Benoit Menardo, Co-Founders of Payflow, about their challenges, their dreams and their experience at 4YFN 2023.
For those who don’t know Payflow what is it that you do? What’s special about your company?
Payflow is an innovative Pay on Demand company that is transforming the way people manage their finances in the European Union and Latam regions. With its state-of-the-art Financial Wellness platform, Payflow provides users with an intuitive application that allows them to collect a portion of their salary that has already been earned, save in automated virtual piggy banks, and educate themselves financially through interactive classes.
Payflow’s platform offers a range of benefits, including Flexible Compensation, which enables users to enjoy the benefits of their earned salary in a flexible manner. As a social benefit, Payflow’s services are completely free for employees, making it an ideal strategic ally for Human Resources teams seeking to improve productivity and employee satisfaction.
With more than 500 clients across Spain, Colombia, Portugal, and Peru, Payflow is rapidly becoming the go-to Pay on Demand company in the European Union and Latam. Its platform is designed to help users achieve financial stability and wellness, enabling them to make informed decisions about their money and enjoy a better quality of life.
What has been your biggest challenge in the last year? And your biggest learning?
Over the past year, Payflow has successfully expanded into three new markets – Colombia, Portugal, and Peru. Although our Product Market Fit has been excellent in all three countries, we have faced technical challenges in adapting our product to meet country-specific regulations and requirements. Fortunately, we have a highly skilled team of engineers who have risen to this challenge and delivered outstanding results.
At Payflow, we believe in trying new things in our home market of Spain before rolling them out to other countries. This approach has proven successful in many areas, including Talent, Marketing, and Operations. However, we also recognize that each country has unique contexts and requirements, and we must adapt our approach accordingly.
Throughout our expansion, we have learned that company culture is vital to our success. We strive to maintain a culture of innovation, continuous improvement, tenacity, and positivity across all our teams in every country. This shared ethos ensures that we remain focused, motivated, and committed to achieving our goals.
You have won the recent 4YFN Awards Barcelona 2023. What is the most exciting thing for you about your experience at 4YFN 2023?
Participating in 4YFN is an incredibly exciting opportunity for any startup. It provides a platform to showcase your product to hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world, meet investors, and connect with other colleagues from the ecosystem. The agenda prepared for each year’s edition is always impressive, making it a valuable experience for any startup.
This year, our team at Payflow was particularly thrilled to be selected as one of the Top 5 Startups of the year and the only Spanish startup in the competition. The four days of the event were filled with interesting and rewarding pitches and activities, culminating in us receiving the award. Bringing the award back to our offices is a constant reminder of everything we experienced during this edition and motivates us to continue working hard to change the lives of millions of workers.
At Payflow, we have an awards hall at the office, and without a doubt, this award holds a special place of pride there. It reminds us that the hard work we do every single day is taking us on the right path towards our mission of transforming the lives of workers. We cannot wait for next year’s edition of 4YFN and look forward to what it has in store for us.
Tell us more about the most recent project you are working on and how 4YFN has helped and done (or you think can help you in a way) to achieve your goals.
Payflow is currently working on two exciting projects: our latest product launch, Flexible Compensation, and our expansion through Latin America.
Our participation in 4YFN has been immensely beneficial for us, particularly in terms of marketing and sales. The brand awareness and recognition gained from the event have helped us to grow in these areas and will undoubtedly play a key role in our next investment round. As a startup, these types of recognitions are incredibly important as they help to put our brand and product at the forefront of people’s minds and can greatly increase our reach.
We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in 4YFN and the benefits it has brought to Payflow. We are committed to using this momentum to continue pushing forward with our projects and achieving our mission of transforming the lives of workers.
Any advice for startups that are starting now?
At Payflow, we learned an important lesson from Y Combinator: “make something people want.” While building a successful business is certainly important, it’s equally vital to create a product that has the power to change people’s lives for the better.
In line with this philosophy, we have made our product completely free for employees, which sets us apart from our competitors. As a social benefit, our mission is to improve the financial wellness of blue-collar workers, and we are constantly working towards achieving this goal.
When starting a new business, it’s also crucial to surround yourself with a capable, talented, and creative team. Company culture is key, and hard work is a reality for startups in the early stages. Therefore, it’s important to choose your team members wisely and find people who believe in your vision as much as you do. Together, you can make a difference and transform the world.
How would you like to see the world 4 Years From Now?
At Payflow, we have a clear vision for the future – we want to see a world with greater financial inclusion, where getting paid whenever you want is a reality for all workers. We are determined to keep expanding our operations throughout Europe and Latin America, and to continue improving the lives of millions of people through our innovative financial wellness platform.
As we grow, we are constantly developing new products and features to enhance our super app and provide even more value to our users. But beyond our own success, we hope to inspire a wider shift towards prioritizing the wellbeing of employees in all companies. We firmly believe that happy employees make for happy companies, and that this ethos can lead to a more productive, engaged, and fulfilling workforce overall. By championing financial wellness and flexible compensation, we hope to help create a more positive and equitable future for workers around the world.
Congratulations, guys! Best of luck on the projects ahead and see you at #4YFN24!!