Happy Birthday! The New Stack Turns 10 and Judy Retires
Today is The New Stack’s 10-year anniversary. In June, Judy Williams — my spouse and business partner — retires. Her retirement fulfills a promise we made to ourselves as a way to set goals for the business.
Our deal in 2014: make The New Stack a 10-year project. And now comes the deal’s fulfillment. Judy’s ready to enjoy what comes after our 10-year run. No more weekends at the computer, managing the books and the rest. It’s time for her to enjoy all the things she loves.
Making it complete: The New Stack is in great hands. We leave the reins to Insight Partners, which we joined in 2021.
As for me, heck, I could do this for the rest of my life. I’ll remain on for at least another two years. I have no idea what I will do once the day comes to move on, but that’s not a matter of any concern right now.
Our Origin Story
Judy and I met in 2004 via Craigslist — that’s another story. We married in 2008. For most of those years, I was broke — so broke. We spent the first several years of our marriage just scraping by. I worked as a freelance writer for the most part. I did OK as far as freelancing goes. Judy worked as a nurse. But things were tight, very tight.
In early 2014, as my freelance days at TechCrunch were winding down, I started considering what was next. Heather Fitzsimmons, founder of Mindshare PR, suggested we get a coffee. We met in South Park, San Francisco. On April 29 that same year we launched The New Stack, thanks to the sponsors Heather brought to the table. Thank you, Heather.
Judy still worked as a nurse at that time. On the weekends, she did the books for The New Stack. We had sponsors, and more were coming on board. After less than a year, Judy left her job to work full-time on The New Stack.
What do I remember about April 29, 2014? I went to sleep sometime around 2 a.m. and woke up a few hours later. It was like having a newborn. We have a website to take care of! I recall saying to myself. Stories to post!
Judy is a loving stepmom to my two children, now 30 and 28. But The New Stack felt like it was a child of our own — something that represented both of us. It needed lots of care and love, and we needed to raise it according to our values.
In 2015, we hired our first employees. And by 2019, our bookkeeper said we needed more help than she could provide. She suggested Upsourced Accounting, which, over the years, gave us the discipline we needed to grow the business.
Like any youngster, The New Stack needed a lot of care. Luckily, we had a growing team, but anyone who has a self-funded business knows how hard it can be to make ends meet. On more than one occasion, Judy had some sleepless nights. But we did it. We always made payroll.
Since The New Stack joined the Insight Partners team, we’ve seen such tremendous change in the media landscape. We feel very lucky. We made it. We kept our 10-year commitment. The New Stack is now ready for all that growing up brings. Change will come. New successes will arrive. And The New Stack will live on.
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