7 Photo & Video Editing Tool Success Stories [2024]
Here are some real life success stories of starting a photo & video editing tool:
1. Piktostory (now known as Piktochart) ($24K/year)
Ching, the co-founder of Piktostory (now known as Piktochart Video), came up with the idea for the business while realizing the fragmented nature of the video space and the need for a consolidated video editing tool. With the goal of simplifying video editing and repurposing, Piktostory (now known as Piktochart Video) was born. Despite facing challenges and being self-financed, the company has gained traction through successful Product Hunt launches and partnerships, and is focusing on adding more features and expanding its user base.
How much they make: $24K/year
How much did it cost to start: $300K
Current team size: 6
Piktostory co-founder, Ai Ching Goh, divulges how she created a simple video editor with customizable captions and integrated "highlight" clipping features, attracting over 350 early adopters and focusing on promoting through Facebook communities and Product Hunt to acquire new paying customers.
2. ProductionCrate, LLC ($600K/year)
Chris Kelly, the founder of ProductionCrate, came up with the idea when he started making videos with his roommates in college and realized there was a demand for special effects. He created a website where he could store and share his assets, and it quickly gained traction. After a few weeks, he added sidebar ads and realized that he could turn his passion into a business.
How much they make: $600K/year
How much did it cost to start: $15
Current team size: 4
ProductionCrate, a virtual studio offering royalty-free music, video effects, graphics and sound assets, bootstrapped to $600k/year with over 10 million downloads, and one million users, thanks to loyal customer retention rates of around 80% YoY growth at 120%.
So... can you actually make money with a photo & video editing tool?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
3. Vidds ($27.6K/year)
Ed and Andrew, the co-founders of Vidds, met online through the Indie Hackers forum and decided to collaborate on Andrew's tool for creating short promo videos. They saw potential in the tool and redesigned and rebuilt it together. After a successful launch on Product Hunt and a listing on AppSumo, they have attracted loyal users and generated sales. They are now focused on scaling their marketing efforts and developing new features to enhance the user experience.
How much they make: $27.6K/year
How much did it cost to start: $150
Current team size: 0
Vidds co-founders built an online video editor, with drag & drop scene builder, pre-designed templates, music, shape, and animations features that on average is now generating $2,300 a month from solo entrepreneurs and small business owners.
4. Photopea ($100K/year)
Photopea started naturally as Ivan was in college. He had this idea of displaying PSD files to users online so they could edit photos without the software expertise. This gradually developed into a graphics editor software, and one iteration after the other, Photopea was launched.
How much they make: $100K/year
How much did it cost to start: $500
Current team size: 0
Discover how Ivan built a successful photo editor with 10 million sessions/month and $100,000 monthly ad revenue as a solo founder.
So... can you actually make money with a photo & video editing tool?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
