Why we stopped doing client work and started building products

The agency trap

For years, we did what most technical founders do: client work. Build websites, create apps, solve problems for other companies. It pays well, you learn fast, and you're constantly shipping.

But there's a problem.

Every project ends. Every client relationship is temporary. You're only as good as your last month's billable hours. Scale means hiring more people and managing more projects. You trade time for money, forever.

We wanted leverage. We wanted to build things that compound. So we stopped.

The decision

We made a call: no more client projects as our primary focus. Instead, we'd build our own products. Not side projects—real businesses with real revenue potential.

People thought we were crazy. "You're turning down revenue?" Yes. "What if the products don't work?" Then we learn and build the next one.

The alternative was clear: stay an agency, grow to 20-30 people, manage projects, and never own the upside. We'd rather fail building something we own than succeed building someone else's vision.

What changed

Time horizons: Agency work is measured in weeks. Products are measured in quarters. We can let ideas breathe, iterate properly, and build for the long term.

Technical decisions: We're not beholden to client tech stacks or legacy systems. We choose boring, reliable tools and reuse them across everything.

Focus: No more context switching between five client projects. Each venture gets deep, sustained attention until it works or we learn it won't.

Leverage: One good product can generate more revenue than ten client projects. And it doesn't require 10x the people.

Perier Agency still exists

Here's the thing: we kept the agency as one of our ventures. But on our terms.

We work with select companies we believe in. We take equity or revenue share over fixed fees. We partner, not just execute. This model aligns incentives and turns client work into venture opportunities.

When we build for someone else now, we're betting on them succeeding—not just collecting billable hours.

One year in

ChippedPaws is in beta with early users. ZeroStack has paying customers. Perier Agency has two strategic partners.

None of these would exist if we were still taking every client project that came through. We'd be too busy, too distracted, too focused on the next invoice.

For other builders

If you're doing agency work and dreaming of products, make the jump. Not someday—soon. You'll never feel "ready." Revenue will never feel "safe enough." There's no perfect time.

Pick one product idea. Build it while you still have client work. Then cut the clients and go all in.

The worst case? You learn more in six months than you did in three years of client work. The best case? You build something that outlives you.

We're betting on the latter.