Tom Holliday took a simple booking widget from AU$597 in Stripe revenue one August to AU$63,000 the next, and roughly AU$85K (US$50K+) a month today. Here’s how he grew Avenue, and the one rule he’d give anyone starting out.
The bet he wouldn’t recommend
Before Avenue had a single customer, Tom hired a lead designer, a head developer and a front-end developer. He paid for them with income from his marketing agency, which still had 70+ clients paying for website hosting. He calls it a terrible idea on paper, but says the team gave Avenue the confidence to pitch bigger companies.
Knock on every door
No TikTok, no UGC, no building in public. Tom walked into every open business he could find, from music studios to repair shops to electricians, and didn’t skip a single one.
Make the demo impossible to misread
Early pitches on an iPhone confused people, who thought Avenue was an app. An early team member suggested switching to an iPad, showing the widget on the prospect’s own website in their own branding, then leaving a printed brochure behind. Traction came quickly after that.
Lead with the problem
The pitch was simple: show owners they’re losing sales outside business hours, then show the fix. Even rejections helped. Some owners with no use for Avenue sent him straight to a friend who needed it.
Let the market pick your niche
Tom didn’t set out to serve trades. They just said yes most often, because they’re direct and only pay for things that pay for themselves. That forced Avenue to deliver real results rather than hype.
Turn small wins into big ones
Landing lots of small local businesses built a reputation. Bigger clients later signed because they’d already seen Avenue everywhere.
Get inside Google
Avenue now lives on client websites and inside the Book Online button on their Google Business Profile, through a direct partnership with Google. Both feed into one branded booking form.
Know where the money goes
His biggest running cost isn’t hosting. Twilio SMS costs about AU$4,000 a month, against roughly AU$150 for AWS.