Two founders, one philosophy. A conversation with Diana Kasay of Readymag
When we started Savee in 2015, we weren't thinking about raising money or building a unicorn. We just wanted to make something useful for designers, a place to save what moves you. A decade later, Savee is still bootstrapped, still ad-free, still user-funded. So when I came across Readymag's story, I felt like I was reading a mirror.
Diana Kasay co-founded Readymag twelve years ago with the same quiet conviction: make something great for creatives, don't compromise it for investors, and trust that the product will speak for itself. We had a chat about what it actually means to run a creative tool business on your own terms.
Andre: How do you protect Readymag's design vision as the company evolves?
Diana: When launching Readymag, we had no business experience and no financial metrics: we just wanted as many people as possible to use it and benefit from the product. Now the business side has grown stronger, but the core remains the same: we focus on creativity and the creatives.
While remaining true to ourselves, we have managed to stay self-funded and sustainable. Last year, I spoke with over seventy investors to research the market. After this quest, I realized that the lifestyle these investments implied wasn't for me. I don't want to constantly think about company capitalization. To me, that's a vague, inflated thing, a bubble serving someone else's interests. The real interest lies in the product we create and the value we bring to our users. Our independence gives us the privilege to choose how we live and work.
With the rise of AI, we can decide whether to hire more people or bring in tech helpers. Big companies don't always have this choice, as their processes must be scalable and very fast to cater to stakeholders' needs.
We can proudly say that Readymag is entirely human-powered. Our edge is talented, highly skilled people and a small, focused team.
We can also afford to avoid unethical marketing tactics. I want people to make conscious choices about whether to use our tool or not. Ideally it should be a win-win, or at least a win for the user. As a person with ADHD, I sometimes become a victim of urgency marketing and don't want to create the same pressure for others.
Andre: What shapes product decisions and inspires new features at Readymag?
Diana: Users are a key factor in our decisions at many levels. Our product team receives valuable insights from users who contact support, write on social media, or share ideas at meetups and webinars. We also look not only at what people tell us but at what we can read through analytics and feature usage.
Readymag is about creating the way you feel, without templated solutions and rigid layouts. However, we've always offered a flexible choice of templates to start. Seeing how popular they were with some users and reading requests for making template creation available to everyone, we introduced it as a feature. First as an invite-only MVP for creators, then at full scale. Now, anyone can design, share, or sell Readymag templates. For some designers it's a great way to showcase their work and attract clients. For others it's a source of extra income. For everyone else it's a great place to start with a unique design.
Andre: How do you define success for Readymag?
Diana: For me, it's the emails and messages we get from users who are genuinely loyal to the product. Not "it works for me, so I'll pay for it" loyal, but emotionally connected. It's a success when my friends and new acquaintances use Readymag. The freedom to stay a boutique team making something great, instead of becoming a giant company, is also a success. I love to see how many people want to work at Readymag and create it together with us.
I've always chosen people first, the ones I simply enjoy spending time with. I still personally interview every new team member. I want to work in an environment where everyone feels valued and supported. With this, many team members stay five, seven, or even ten years. That's success.
Running a creative business now is all about balancing success and doubts, since any business will have its ups and downs. The good outweighs the bad as long as your eyes still light up.
Talking to Diana felt like talking to someone who made the same bets we made. Still loving what you built, still working with people you genuinely like, still making something that users feel something about.
Savee exists because we believe the design community deserves tools built for them, not around them. Readymag is proof that bet pays off. Go check them out.
Andre
Co-founder of Savee