He lost 90% of his users overnight—then grew his consumer app to $10M ARR. | Koen Droste, Founder of Polarsteps

A Product Market Fit Show | Startup Podcast for Founders

He turned a personal travel tracker into an app with 10 million users and $10 million in revenue, with almost no funding. He reveals how ignoring conventional startup advice—like launching early, chasing revenue, or partnering for growth—was key to their viral success.

He realized everything growth was about word-of-mouth. So the key to success was obsessing over a single metric: NPS.

If you’re an early-stage founder deciding where to focus, this is your must-listen episode.

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Why You Should Listen

• From losing 90% of users overnight to over $10M in revenue.

• Why obsessing over Net Promoter Score (NPS) instead of revenue can drive explosive organic growth.

• How to stay hyper-focused on one metric—and avoid distractions.

• The truth about partnerships and why most startups shouldn’t chase them.

• The counterintuitive decision to build for quality first, even if it delays your launch.

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Keywords

product market fit, startup growth, net promoter score, organic growth, consumer apps, app monetization, viral growth, user retention, travel app, early-stage startup

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(00:00:00) Losing 90% of Users Overnight

(00:01:10) Turning a Personal Project Into a Travel App

(00:09:36) Raising $50K and Building Before Launch

(00:24:09) Launch Day and First 2000 Users

(00:30:35) Why Chasing Partnerships Can Hurt Growth

(00:36:40) How Polarsteps Reached $10M Revenue

(00:41:00) Surviving COVID as a Travel Startup

(00:42:20) Finding True Product Market Fit

(00:43:26) The Moment Polarsteps Almost Failed

(00:45:03) One Metric Every Founder Should Track

Send me a message to let me know what you think!

Chapters

1. Losing 90% of Users Overnight (00:00:00)

2. Turning a Personal Project Into a Travel App (00:01:10)

3. Raising $50K and Building Before Launch (00:09:36)

4. Raising $50K and Building Before Launch (00:09:40)

5. Launch Day and First 2000 Users (00:24:09)

6. Why Chasing Partnerships Can Hurt Growth (00:30:35)

7. How Polarsteps Reached $10M Revenue (00:36:40)

8. Surviving COVID as a Travel Startup (00:41:00)

9. Finding True Product Market Fit (00:42:20)

10. The Moment Polarsteps Almost Failed (00:43:26)

11. One Metric Every Founder Should Track (00:45:03)