Date: 30 Sept 2026 · InvoiceBridge (working name) · Back to WHAT-TO-DO-AND-AVOID.md
Targets: $3k MRR at ~15 hrs/week. $8–10k MRR full-time. $20k is the stretch and unlikely. Tier B: $20k+ MRR, profitable, ≥80% gross margin, ≥70% month-3 retention.
Rule: nothing in a later phase starts until the current phase's gate is hit. Gates and pivot rules are in WHAT-TO-DO-AND-AVOID.md. The detail for days 1–90 is in 08-90-day-plan.md.
The calendar drives this plan. Month 11 is 1 Sept 2027, the small-business deadline. Reviews must exist before the Apr–Aug 2027 search peak.
Phase 1: Prove the pain and the margin (Months 0–3, Oct–Dec 2026) → Gates G1, G2
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Partner | Sign one white-label PA with e-reporting support, ≤10% of revenue, 24-month price lock |
| Customers | 20 merchant and 5 accountant interviews. €49 concierge pilots. |
| Product | Shopify embedded app v1: sync, reconciliation, B2B/B2C split, pre-checks, e-reporting, B2B e-invoices, rejection alerts |
| Trust | Expert-comptable review of mapping and wording. DPA, EU hosting, insurance. |
| Exit | Day 45: 10 paying pilots (7 at ~15 hrs/week). Day 90: app submitted, 20 paying (12). |
Phase 2: Get listed and reviewed before the peak (Months 4–6, Jan–Mar 2027) → Gate G3
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Product | Receiving inbox view, monthly compliance summary email, accountant export (FEC-style / CSV) |
| Distribution | App live. A review request after the first clean report. 15 French SEO pages by VAT regime and situation. Answer every Shopify forum thread on the reform. |
| Channel | Accountant dashboard beta with 5 firms |
| Exit | $1.5k MRR full-time / $700 at ~15 hrs/week. 10+ reviews. Revenue churn ≤4%. |
Phase 3: Ride the wave (Months 7–12, Apr–Sept 2027) → Gate G4
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Product | OSS / cross-border splits. Multi-store (Plus). Faster onboarding (≤15 minutes to first test report). |
| Distribution | Push the free tools. Agency referral program. Webinars with 2–3 accounting firms ("Shopify et la réforme 2027"). |
| Ops | Support playbook for the Aug–Sept rush. Status page. Scale partner volumes with the price lock in place. |
| Watch | Shopify changelog, Sufio's e-reporting page, Pennylane/Qonto/Tiime Shopify apps |
| Exit | Month 12: $5k MRR full-time / $2k at ~15 hrs/week. 20+ reviews. ≥30% of installs from free tools or accountants. |
Phase 4: Keep what the wave brought (Months 13–24, Oct 2027 – Sept 2028) → Gate G5
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Product | Marketplace flow exclusion (only if ≥20% of Pro merchants ask). History backfill add-on. Nothing else new unless churn demands it. |
| Distribution | All effort on the single best channel from months 1–12 (usually accountants). Annual-plan push at renewal. |
| Retention | Monthly summary, rejection handling, a churn-reason survey. Separate store closures from real churn in reporting. |
| Decision at month 18 | If Shopify has a native PA deal, open sale talks with PAs or invoicing apps while MRR is intact. |
| Optional | WooCommerce France only if Shopify churn ≤3% and MRR ≥$5k |
| Exit | Month 24: $8–10k MRR full-time / $3k at ~15 hrs/week, profitable. |
Revenue path (illustrative, not a forecast)
| Month | Calendar | ~15 hrs/week: merchants | ~15 hrs/week: MRR | Full-time: merchants | Full-time: MRR |
|---|
| 3 | Dec 2026 | 12 pilots | ~$300 | 20 pilots | ~$600 |
| 6 | Mar 2027 | 20 | ~$700 | 42 | ~$1.5k |
| 9 | Jun 2027 | 36 | ~$1.3k | 85 | ~$3k |
| 12 | Sept 2027 | 55 | ~$2k | 140 | ~$5k |
| 18 | Mar 2028 | 68 | ~$2.5k | 195 | ~$7k |
| 24 | Sept 2028 | 80 | ~$3k | 250–270 | ~$9–10k |
This assumes a blended ~$37 a month, ~4% monthly revenue churn after month 6, and the 1 Sept 2027 date holding. Growth flattens after month 12 by design: the wave passes, and new merchants come only from new stores, switchers and accountants. If churn runs above 5%, the full-time path tops out near $6k.
Budget guardrails (bootstrapped)
- Partner PA plus hosting plus email below 12% of revenue. Partner alone below 10%.
- Fixed costs before revenue: adviser review (~€500–1,500), insurance (a few hundred euros a year), hosting (<€50 a month). All unverified estimates.
- Zero paid acquisition before month 6. After it, only App Store search ads with payback under 3 months.
- If the mandate slips, cut all spend except hosting and the partner minimum, and keep the free tools live.