Vendo CEO and co-founder Mitch Platt recently reflected on more than two decades of experience in the payments industry, detailing the company's evolution from its origins in Barcelona to its current role as a global payment provider. Platt highlighted Vendo's mission to remove friction from online transactions for high-risk merchants, emphasizing the company's focus on payment orchestration, local payment methods, fraud prevention, regulatory expertise, and customer support.

Foundational Principles and Early Challenges

More than 20 years ago, three entrepreneurs in Barcelona, including Mitch Platt, began developing business ideas. Their process involved rigorous critique, with most proposals being discarded. The group eventually focused on a problem related to local payment methods, asking if offering such options in every market would increase customer purchase completion and reduce checkout friction. This inquiry became the basis for Vendo.

Platt's entrepreneurial background began at age 16. Before Vendo, he worked in Barcelona, helping a mobile payments company expand into English-speaking markets. This experience, which involved the adult industry, revealed obstacles in global online purchases. Platt and his future co-founders identified five barriers: payment methods, language, risk and compliance, customer service, and currency and pricing. They observed that customers without credit cards were excluded, and unfamiliar language on checkout pages led to abandoned purchases. Merchants faced fraud and chargebacks, international buyers encountered costly U.S. support numbers, and shoppers had to calculate currency conversions.

To address these issues, the founders developed the "Pizza and Beer Index" to determine sustainable pricing across different markets. This involved benchmarking a monthly subscription against the local cost of two delivered pizzas and a trial against the cost of a beer at a bar. This method allowed them to adjust pricing based on local economies, leading to increased sales and revenue in some countries. These five barriers became Vendo's operational blueprint, with adult and other high-risk merchants becoming early partners due to their international operations, elevated fraud risks, complex regulations, and limited provider options.

Growth and Strategic Evolution

Vendo's early years were characterized by rapid growth. During roadshows, the team used a large map covered with foreign currency to demonstrate to merchants that while 80% to 90% of their sales came from the United States, their traffic was often 50% U.S. and 50% international. This presentation highlighted the untapped potential of international markets, which Vendo aimed to help merchants access.

A significant breakthrough for Vendo came through an early relationship with Playboy. Platt met the brand's COO at an XBIZ event and delivered an impromptu pitch. This led to Playboy becoming one of Vendo's first beta customers, a relationship that continues more than two decades later. This association helped Vendo gain credibility within the adult industry, opening doors to other businesses.

As Vendo expanded, it invested in Vendo Data Tools, an advanced analytics platform. However, many merchants were not prepared to consolidate their processing volume, data, and traffic with a single provider. This experience led Vendo to shift its innovation approach, moving from building products based on internal assumptions to developing solutions driven by merchant demand. This philosophy is now described as "intelligent payments with a human touch," combining technology with responsive service and clear communication. Platt stated that Vendo's goal is to provide consumers with familiar payment options while managing the underlying complexity for merchants, connecting banks, payment methods, risk tools, and recovery strategies.

Future Direction and Core Values

Platt anticipates that Vendo's future will involve faster and more impactful changes in the payments landscape. To prepare for this, Vendo has transitioned from an independent sales organization to a payment facilitator and has obtained its Payment Institution license. The company is also pursuing Payment Initiation and Electronic Money Institution capabilities, along with other opportunities within the payments value chain.

Vendo's continued growth is also linked to its company culture, which is built around the acronym IMPACT: Integrity, Mastery, Passion, Ambition, Care, and Tenacity. Customer service is central to this framework, with "Customer First" serving as the operating system. Vendo operates as a fully remote company, empowering its employees in decision-making. Platt's long-term ambition for Vendo is to become a leading acquiring institution for high-risk commerce globally, with a reputation built on trust. He aims for Vendo to be 100% referenceable, meaning merchants, employees, partners, and regulators would recommend the company based on their experiences.

Key Facts

  • Vendo was founded more than 20 years ago by three entrepreneurs in Barcelona, including CEO Mitch Platt.
  • The company's mission is to remove friction from online transactions for merchants, particularly those in high-risk sectors.
  • Vendo offers payment orchestration, local payment methods, fraud prevention, regulatory expertise, and customer support.
  • An early relationship with Playboy helped establish Vendo's credibility within the adult industry.
  • Vendo has evolved from an independent sales organization to a payment facilitator and holds a Payment Institution license.
  • The company's core values are summarized by the acronym IMPACT: Integrity, Mastery, Passion, Ambition, Care, and Tenacity, with "Customer First" as its operating system.