Boring & unsexy niches

This is a smaller cluster (about 13 episodes), and much of it is carried by Pat Walls and Gus in their reflections rather than by guests. The strongest guest case is Bo of Savvy Nomad (tax help for Americans abroad), who gives four reasons boring businesses work: low competition relative to demand, high willingness to pay to avoid hassle, quantifiable value and repeat revenue from the same customer at different life stages. He contrasts this with ‘sexy’ categories where you face hundreds of well-funded teams. Other guest evidence: Matt Giovanisci’s pool-care site (customers want to swim, not to become experts), Jordan Rejaud’s prison-services business, Lukas Hermann’s point that many tools still have 1999-era interfaces, Tom Holliday’s widget for trades, and Samuel Rondot’s line that simple boring tools make the most money. Pat’s editorial line is emphatic: he would rather make $2 million a year in a boring business than $20,000 in a sexy AI app, and he warns against the ‘ego business’ built for status rather than customers. A recurring host framing is that AI now lets services and spreadsheet chores in these niches be productised. Revenue claims (Savvy Nomad’s 1.7 million a year) are self-reported.

Key points

• Unglamorous markets offer a better opportunity-to-competition ratio than hyped categories — 6 episodes. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 05:05) (presenter · Zac (Jun 2026) ▶ 12:56) (unnamed guest · Nic (Feb 2026) ▶ 16:33) +1 more
• Simple tools that remove boring, repetitive tasks make reliable money — 4 episodes. (Samuel Rondot · Samuel Rondot (Jul 2025) ▶ 11:28) (presenter · Jack (Jun 2026) ▶ 04:44) (Nic · Nic (Feb 2026) ▶ 09:17) +2 more
• Look outside the tech bubble at clunky, outdated or overpriced tools used by trades, admins and underserved groups — 4 episodes. (Lukas Hermann · Lukas Hermann (Jun 2025) ▶ 12:30) (presenter · Tom Holliday (Sep 2026) ▶ 12:16) (Jordan Rejaud · Jordan Rejaud (Apr 2026) ▶ 05:06) +1 more
• Drop the ego: build for customers, not for how serious the business looks — 3 episodes. (presenter · Maddox (Mar 2026) ▶ 14:15) (Michael · Michael (Jul 2026) ▶ 13:46)
• Target categories where people are stressed, confused or losing money and already overpay to fix it — 3 episodes. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 09:50) (Jordan Rejaud · Jordan Rejaud (Apr 2026) ▶ 05:10) (Matt Giovanisci · Matt Giovanisci (May 2024) ▶ 07:32)

Where guests agree

• Boring niches can be large and profitable precisely because few people want to touch them (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 10:48) (presenter · Mike (Nov 2025) ▶ 12:59) (Samuel Rondot · Samuel Rondot (Jul 2025) ▶ 11:28)

Frameworks

• Why a boring business works (four reasons) — Bo’s four reasons Savvy Nomad succeeded. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 04:51)
  • Low competition for real demand
  • High willingness to pay (people want to hand off taxes/compliance)
  • Concrete, quantifiable value
  • Market matches the team’s complementary strengths
• Painful low-competition niche playbook — Bo’s start-over playbook (the spoken numbering is inconsistent: ‘Second point’, then steps two and three). (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 09:29)
  • Start with painful problems where people already overpay; see how they solve it now (DIY vs expensive professional) and find the gap
  • Evaluate competition relative to opportunity, not just market size
  • Pick one workflow, productise it, add a recurring layer
• Ego business vs the business you’re meant to build — Pat’s distinction between the business people congratulate you for (e.g. SaaS/B2B) and the unglamorous one that actually makes money. (presenter · Maddox (Mar 2026) ▶ 14:15)
  • Ego business: seen as a ‘real’ business, what you think real entrepreneurs build
  • Real business: may seem unserious but makes money
  • Choose to build for customers, not for others’ opinions
• Finding simple app ideas by observing work — Watch people in other businesses and look for tasks done in awkward, wasteful ways you would have automated. (Lukas Hermann · Lukas Hermann (Jun 2025) ▶ 12:05)
  • Go to any business and observe people doing their job
  • Spot wasted hours and awkward workflows
  • Build the simple automation
  • Look outside the developer bubble for outdated interfaces

Tactics

• Three ideas: productised immigration workflows priced at one or two thousand dollars versus 8-15,000 agency fees; productising entry to tax-friendly jurisdictions and exit from sticky ones; and international banking, asset holding and estate planning. Often the same customer at different stages. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 06:50)
• Start with painful problems where people already overpay and see how they solve it now (DIY or expensive professionals); evaluate competition relative to opportunity, not just market size; then productise one common, painful workflow and add a recurring layer, as Savvy Nomad did with state domicile change. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 09:22)
• Find boring repetitive tasks and turn them into simple products. (presenter · Jack (Jun 2026) ▶ 04:44)

Stories & examples

• Bo is co-founder of Savvy Nomad, which helps US citizens abroad pay less tax back in the US; it does 1.7 million a year, serves over 1,400 customers and has saved them about 10 million in state taxes. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 01:06)
• People don’t want to become pool experts, they want to swim, so his goal is to get them from a disgusting pool to a clear one fast; it’s not a hobby topic, so content must be short, punchy and entertaining. (Matt Giovanisci · Matt Giovanisci (May 2024) ▶ 07:27)
• A client sent to prison: He joined a Zoom call to finish a freelance app, found his client’s upset girlfriend saying he’d been sent to prison, stayed in touch by letter, and learned how poor and overpriced prison services are. Lesson: Ideas can come from an unexpected customer nobody builds for. (Jordan Rejaud · Jordan Rejaud (Apr 2026) ▶ 04:56)
• The friend’s studio timer: In a friend’s studio, a timer ran on an old Flash app in another room, so he had to get up and walk over to start it; Lukas thought there must be a better way. Lesson: Awkward workflows in other people’s jobs are simple, profitable ideas. (Lukas Hermann · Lukas Hermann (Jun 2025) ▶ 11:59)
• They fell into it: knocking on every business, they found trades responded best; they are direct, won’t pay for something that doesn’t pay for itself, and wanted tangible results, so the product was adapted to them. (Tom Holliday · Tom Holliday (Sep 2026) ▶ 07:37)
• Productised immigration workflow: People pay agencies 8,000-15,000 dollars to move to the US for what is essentially a workflow; a guided product with templates and a lawyer review could charge one or two thousand dollars. Lesson: Productise expensive service workflows at a fraction of the price. (Bo · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 06:54)
• Pat’s own ego business: Pat says he started other B2B businesses while starting Starter Story, but Starter Story was the real business he was meant to build. Lesson: Recognise which project is actually working. (presenter · Maddox (Mar 2026) ▶ 15:07)

Caveats & warnings

• Host speech in the closing reflections (P381-400) is attributed with low confidence (Pat or Gus). (unnamed guest · Bo (May 2026) ▶ 15:31)
• A slow-growing tool in a proven market is more durable than a flash-in-the-pan AI tool. (unnamed guest · Nic (Feb 2026) ▶ 16:33)

How much to trust this

• Evidence: 13 episodes, 12 independent speakers (repeat guests counted once; Pat and Gus counted as one voice).