EDGE Skills

Our AI Coaching Platform Makes $58K/Month

June 28th, 2025

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About
Business

Chiara Operto

Founder, EDGE Skills

$58K

revenue/mo

Founders

Employees

EDGE Skills

edgeskills-career.com

from Paris

started October 2023

$58,000

revenue/mo

Founders

Employees

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Who are you and what business did you start?

Hey,

I am Chiara Operto, CEO and Co Founder of EDGE Skills, a next-gen career acceleration AI platform helping students break into highly competitive industries. After working in Investment Banking at Citi and Credit Suisse in London, I realized how unfair and opaque the recruitment process could be especially for students without the right network, school name, or codes. That's why I decided to create the tool I wish I had when I was starting out.

I started by personally coaching over 1,000 students, helping them land roles in top finance firms my area of expertise. With a 96% placement rate during their coaching period, I saw the massive impact tailored support could have. From there, I built something scalable: a platform that combines AI-powered coaching, technical training, and real mentoring from insiders to turn students into top candidates. We don’t just help you polish a CV. We simulate interviews, recreate test environments, and train you to win.

Today we generate around €50K/month, with no external funding, and a fast-growing community of 20,000+ users and over 100,000 followers across my social media. But the most exciting part? We have helped more than 1,000 students land interviews at top firms and many of them against all odds.

What I want to build now is the world’s leading EdTech platform one that revolutionises the recruitment process and gives every student the same shot no matter where they come from.

My image

EDGE is going to be part of the biggest tech companies that wants to revolutionise the education sector.

How do you come up with the idea for EDGE Skills ?

The idea for EDGE Skills wasn’t something I sat down to brainstorm. It hit me in the middle of coaching. After working in M&A at Citi and Credit Suisse in London, I started mentoring students who were trying to break into finance. I realised that most of them didn’t fail because they weren’t smart enough but they failed because no one had ever shown them how the game was played. I kept seeing the same pain points: lack of preparation, no access to insiders, no clear roadmap.

Yes. The real "aha" moment was when one of my students, who had been rejected everywhere, because his university was non target and it was impossible for him to get M&A, landed interviews in M&A in Luxembourg then in London, after just a few sessions with me. That's when I realised the problem wasn’t talent but it was access. And if I could scale what I was doing manually, I could level the playing field for thousands of students.

I had thought about other content-based ideas before newsletters, templates, coaching formats but this was the first time I felt like I was solving a real, painful, urgent problem. Also because my first business was a sustainable sportswear brand that I never really launched and where I had spent all my economies. The difference is that this wasn’t just about making money. Tt was about giving power back to students who had the motivation but lacked the tools.

I worked in investment banking at two top firms Citi and Credit Suisse and I know the codes from the inside. I’ve also coached over 1,000 students myself, hosted 60+ conferences across Europe, and had a 96%+ placement rate with people I personally trained. So I understand both the expectations of recruiters and the struggles of students. That’s what makes the platform powerful it's built from real field experience.

At first, I didn’t build anything I just coached. The demand exploded organically. Students were asking for mock interviews, technical training, follow-ups. I hit full capacity fast. That was the signal. Then I built a minimum viable platform and tested it on my own community. We got paying users from day one. The retention, testimonials, and results validated the core product long before thinking about funding or scale.

How did you launch EDGE Skills and get initial traction?

Honestly? I didn’t even realize I had "launched" a business. There was no press release, no big announcement. I just started helping students answering LinkedIn DMs, jumping on calls after work, doing mock interviews for free. Fun fact: I remember being on holidays in August, people were asking me what I was doing and my answer was "I am just publishing on Linkedin and giving some advise". I was even not realising that I was increasing my number of followers super quickly. One conversation became five, then ten, and suddenly I was fully booked. I had no logo, no website, just value. Looking back the business launched the moment my co founder contacted me and I think this is something important. Finding your co-founder can help increase your business so fast.

I didn’t “tell” the world, I showed them. I posted. I shared stories. I documented my students’ transformations by making some testimonials. I talked about rejection, imposter syndrome, and how brutal the recruitment process can be. I was honest and I managed to demystify a world that was too blurry. And people responded not because it was perfect, but because it was true and this made the biggest difference. That’s how the first wave came people didn’t just want a coach; they wanted someone who understood the game and also something personalised depending on his CV.

My strategy? Show up every day and give a damn. I created content that educated, inspired and made people feel seen. I leveraged LinkedIn, Instagram, and word of mouth. Every student I coached became an ambassador because when they got results, they couldn’t help but talk about it. I didn’t have ads.

They were curious then impressed and then obviously obsessed. Some people doubted it at first “another coach" but then they saw students from non-target schools getting interviews and that made the difference. That shut down the skepticism. The energy shifted fast. People started sharing.

I learned that you don’t need perfect branding or a polished funnel to start. You just need to solve a real problem and make it obvious that you care more than anyone else. If I could do it again, I’d maybe build structure faster — automate earlier — but the messy, scrappy launch gave me all the insights I needed to scale.

Share the story behind making your first dollar or making your first sale. My first sale was… chaotic. I had no payment system. No formal offer. A student just said: “Can I pay you for more sessions?” And I was like — “Um… sure?” I sent a PayPal link and hoped it worked. That €150 felt like €15,000. Because it proved the idea had value. It wasn’t charity. It was change.

I earned them. One student at a time. I gave without counting, shared everything I knew, and made sure that every person who interacted with me walked away better - the freegiveaway strategy. That trust became momentum. People started saying, “If you want to break into finance talk to Chiara.”

About 2–3 weeks after my first content post. I didn’t force anything. I just focused on helping and the rest followed. I just needed to show people I could actually get them results.

I learned that I am way more resilient than I thought also accepting patience. That I can build something from zero. That I can turn rejection into growth and chaos into clarity. I needed to take risks as I have left everything: my job, my economies. And I learned that when your mission is real when it comes from a place of lived experience people feel it. They follow it and they trust you to lead. I would say that if you manage to build a community and build trust you are the best salesman ever.

What was the growth strategy for EDGE Skills and how did you scale?

I managed to grow EDGE SKILLS thanks to social networks first. No ads. No funding. Just content consistency, and community.

I used Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok to share real stories behind-the-scenes of M&A, coaching wins, and the truth about breaking into finance when you have no network.

I also launched a free 5-day challenge with quizzes, discord, and mentor calls. It created FOMO and converted 300+ sign-ups organically.

What helped is that showing proof over perfection. Talking like a human and not a “brand.” And I would say that people started acquiring my coaching because it was me. Because I didn’t pretend. Most platforms teach like professors and being too serious. People and students managed to identify to myself quite quickly. I have been through the process, got rejected, made the mistakes and came back stronger. Also I reply to my DMs and I show up in comments and I am not a faceless founder. That builds community and not just a funnel.

Some advise for entrepreneurs that are starting: You must show proof not perfection. Do not lose some time having the perfect product. Test, fail and improve. Build a community that will help you grow and make your PERFECT product. Show that you get results ! Also start ugly don’t wait for the fancy website and this has been my mistake at first. Something that helped me is being obsessed with your user. You need to talk to them and answer their questions and build them. Leverage virality with community. One viral video is cool but a viral video + Discord server + call to action is growth.

What were the biggest lessons learned from building EDGE Skills ?

What I have learned since launching EDGE Skills? That starting is the easiest part and staying in the game is where most people disappear. Also do not think that things are impossible --> just look at the fact that I am currently applying for this podcast ! I made so many mistakes and I waited too long to delegate. I tried to be everywhere, do everything and please everyone. I doubted myself when I was actually ahead and I struggled a lot telling myself that I could make it. But with hard working, good surrounding and a motivated team you can build a strong product.

Missed opportunities? Tons. Especially when I was afraid to ask for bigger deals or pitch people I “wasn’t ready” for.

But I also made good calls: Building in public. Showing up messy but honest. Betting on storytelling before scaling, and trusted the famous "Fake it until you make it!" and it worked ! Partnering with people who shared the mission not just the metrics (bad story happened with the previous CTO) happy to tell more about that !

Forces out of my control? Timing helped. People are done with boring job platforms. They want human, they want now. AI came at the perfect moment for us not to replace coaching but to scale it with soul I would say.

Biggest lessons? Nobody knows what they were doing at the beginning so don’t wait to be “ready”, you may miss the opportunity. Also your speed of execution matters more than your pitch deck. Vulnerability is a superpower especially when you mix it with skill. And also building trust with your core team. No matter what if your core team trusts you you can make huge things no matter the obstacles.

What’s helped me the most? Resilience, discipline and my cofounder. And being deeply obsessed with the people I serve. I didn’t build EDGE Skills to look successful (of course a bit) but I built it because I was that student once lost, broke, and dreaming big. And this dream became a new want by aiming to become the biggest international EdTech for competitive industries.

Top advice? Stop copying. Start testing. Create more than you consume. Don’t build a business. Solve a real problem out loud and every day. You’re not behind. You’re just early. Keep going. And do not focus on what others things, stay focused and trust the process

EDGE Skills Acquisition: How much did EDGE Skills sell for and what was the acquisition price?

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