Scaling SaaS Globally: Lessons in Pricing, People & Product with Lucas Lovell Artwork

The Lucent Perspective

In The Lucent Perspective, host Rebecca Hastings interviews executives and leaders from the tech sector to learn about their successes, most valuable lessons learned, challenges, solutions and insights. Rebecca is an executive headhunter who has built leadership teams and helped technology companies rapidly scale. If you're looking to learn about startup and scale-up technology companies and hear from some of the most entrepreneurial and innovative leaders, join Rebecca Hastings and guests on The Lucent Perspective.

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Scaling SaaS Globally: Lessons in Pricing, People & Product with Lucas Lovell

March 31, 2025 • Rebecca Hastings • Season 2 • Episode 48

In this episode of The Lucent Perspective, Rebecca Hastings speaks with Lucas Lovell, VP of Product at Paddle. Lucas shares the behind-the-scenes story of how Paddle scaled from a growing fintech to a global leader in payments infrastructure—including navigating a major acquisition, evolving pricing models, and hiring talent for scale.

Lucas offers insights into how AI is reshaping SaaS pricing strategies, what makes global expansion successful, and why product-led companies must strike a balance between scrappiness and operational maturity.

Key Topics Covered

How to scale a SaaS company with intention and avoid common growing pains
The impact of AI on SaaS pricing—and whether subscriptions are really dying
What product leaders should focus on to drive growth
The importance of adaptability when hiring at different stages of scale
Lessons from merging Paddle with a US-based company
How AI tools are lowering the barrier to innovation and redefining team capabilities
Tips for companies thinking about talent pipelines, upskilling, and hiring former founders

Episode Highlights

[00:59] Lucas’ background and journey from founder to VP of Product at Paddle
[02:25] Challenges of scaling from 90 to 300 employees
[06:41] Hiring for growth phases and balancing startup mindset with operational rigor
[13:55] Lessons learned from acquiring a US-based company
[19:45] Why SaaS pricing models are evolving, not disappearing
[26:48] The biggest mistakes companies make when pricing their product
[30:34] Where pricing roles typically sit in SaaS companies—and why it matters
[32:36] Are we risking a “lost generation” of talent?
[36:59] Why AI is lowering the barrier to entrepreneurship
[39:25] How Paddle is helping its teams stay current and experiment with AI
[43:00] Advice for scaling SaaS globally with intention
[44:39] Why hiring former founders can be a major asset

About Lucas Lovell

Lucas Lovell is the Vice President of Product at Paddle. Prior to Paddle, he co-founded Hopstay, an international travel tech company. With years of experience scaling product and engineering teams, Lucas now plays a key role in shaping Paddle’s global growth strategy, talent development, and pricing innovation.

📌 Connect with Lucas:
🔗 LinkedIn
🔗 Paddle

Rebecca Hastings, Founder and Director at The Lucent Group

Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hastingsrebecca/

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Rebecca has extensive talent and executive search experience supporting digital and technology businesses through complex changes and fast-paced scale-up periods. She works with businesses advising on C-level, technical, sales and commercial appointments, workforce planning, strategic talent management, recruitment processes and associated technology and employer brand development.