12 Questions with Cédric

Let's start easy. Who are you and what do you do?

I'm Cédric — design-led founder, agency owner, software builder, and creator. I make things on the internet and somehow turned that into a career. I run three businesses: Trueform (a digital agency), Billow (accounting software), and Y5K (my creator brand and digital products). If it lives on a screen, I've probably built something like it.

You said "somehow." Take us back. How did this all start?

I built my first website when I was 14. Not because someone told me to — I just thought it was cool. That turned into hundreds of websites over the years. I went the traditional route for a while: agencies, client work, the whole thing. Worked at places like Digitas and Publicis, always on the digital side. It was a solid career. Good paycheck. Safe path. Very Swiss, if you know what I mean.

But you didn't stick with safe.

No. The whole time I had this itch. I kept launching side projects after work, trying to make something stick. Most of them didn't. I'd build something, it wouldn't take off, I'd try again. Classic trial and error. Then I started making Framer templates.

And that changed everything?

Completely. Turns out I'd been sitting on a little gold mine. Those templates made me about $200K. I was 28 when I finally quit my 9-to-5. That was the unlock — not just financially, but mentally. It proved to me that I could build something on my own terms. No boss. No permission. Just me, my skills, and an internet connection.

200K from templates. That's wild. Did you see that coming?

Not even a little. I think that's what makes it a good story though. You don't always know which thing is going to be the thing. You just keep building until something clicks. I talked about it on a bunch of podcasts, like Shaping Design, 10x Designers, and Consistent Creators.

I also created a course and ebook on how I did it so others can do exactly what I did, too.

Now you run three companies. Walk us through them.

Trueform is my digital agency — we do websites, branding, and apps. It's the natural evolution of everything I've done since I was 14. Billow is accounting software — a product I'm building because I know firsthand how painful the financial side of running a business can be. And Y5K is my personal brand and creator business. Digital products, content, resources. I've built a community of about 16K followers on X alone, and it keeps growing.

Four languages, two cultures. Tell me about that.

I'm American and Swiss. I speak German, Swiss-German, English, and some French. The Swiss-German one always throws people off — it's basically its own language. Growing up between cultures gave me this weird superpower of being able to adapt to almost any room. Helpful when you're building things for people all over the world.

Switzerland is known for stability. Playing it safe. How did people react when you went the entrepreneurship route?

Let's just say it wasn't the popular choice. In Switzerland, you get a good education, land a solid job, and you stay. That's the playbook. Breaking out of that mindset was honestly one of the hardest parts. Harder than the business stuff, in some ways. You're not just betting on yourself — you're going against what everyone around you considers normal.

Alright, let's get personal. What surprise people about you?

I don't drink alcohol. That one always catches people off guard, especially in business settings. I'm also pretty introverted. I know — guy with a 16K following and three businesses. But I recharge alone. That said, put me in a room with someone who wants to talk about business, building things, or life in general? I'll talk for hours.

When you're not building things — where are you?

Probably somewhere I've never been before. I love traveling and discovering new places. It's the best reset I know. New city, new food, new energy. I think it feeds the creative side too — you can't design interesting things if you only ever see the same four walls. Plus, running online businesses means I can work from pretty much anywhere. That's not a flex, that's the whole point.

What do you believe that most people don't?

That anyone can do this. Seriously. I'm not saying it's easy — it took me years of failed side projects and late nights before anything worked. But if you're willing to put in the work, stay consistent, and keep going when stuff breaks? You can build whatever you want. I'm living proof of that. And I wasn't some prodigy. I was just a kid who liked making websites.

Last one. What are you working on right now?

A lot. I'm running Trueform, my digital agency where we build websites, brands, and apps. I'm building Billow, an accounting software for people who'd rather not think about accounting. I run Dark, a curated collection of dark-themed website inspiration for designers who like the moody side of the internet. I sell Framer templates through Canvas. And I run Creative Prosperity, a publication for freelancers and agency owners who want to actually grow their business. So yeah — a bit of everything.

But it all connects back to the same thing: making cool stuff on the internet and helping others do the same.

Want to work together or just say hi?