I am Patrick Posner, the founder of Simply Static and the cofounder of OllieWP.
I travel the world as a digital nomad, but I’m originally from Germany and have lived in Berlin for most of my life.
I was always a nerd. I started scripting little game mods in middle school, built my own computer, and was fascinated by all things tech early on.
The Journey Began
I started working with WordPress while studying Information Science – we had a module about content management systems, and WordPress was the system of choice.
Before I knew my way around WordPress, I started building custom plugins and themes—its extensibility hooked me.
After graduating, I immediately began self-employment, and not long after, I dabbled in building WordPress websites for a living.
The Need for “OllieWP & Simply Static”
Simply Static logo
Simply Static:
It started with a customer project I was working on.
We had to prepare for a TV commercial with little to no control over the server environment, and Static WordPress saved the day!
Back then, the only competitors were SaaS solutions, and I was curious if there wasn’t a way to bring that concept to life with just a plugin.
It was the toughest technical challenge I ever faced, but I’m glad I stuck with it and improved it over the years.
As of today, we are still the only product on the market that allows you to create a static WordPress website from your local computer.
OllieWP:
WordPress isn’t known for its outstanding design, and while there are countless themes, you can often spot a WordPress website from a mile away.
On the other hand, you have the block editor and FSE – a powerful toolset with little adoption in the product space.
As both of us (Mike and I) always follow the latest developments of WordPress and are advocates for modern web technologies, we asked ourselves: What will it take to bring FSE to the masses while delivering an outstanding yet adaptable design system?
That’s how OllieWP was born, and we still follow the same principle – deliver something easy to understand but powerful to use.
I think that’s also our primary differentiator—with Ollie, you use WordPress Core and all its power—no custom blocks, no page builder, just sleek design concepts brought to you without any dependencies.
Myself with my Brilliant Team
Sadly, we never managed to get the whole team together!
As we are spread around the globe (Europe, Asia, US), we have never had a decent team picture; it’s definitely something on the agenda!
Advice for Business Owners
Be patient.
I know it’s hard to stick with a product when seeing little to no traction in the early days, but one thing I learned about building successful WordPress products for over a decade now is that it takes time – especially in the WordPress space.
Running a business isn’t just about code.
I learned that running a successful WordPress business requires much more than code. Be prepared to step out of your comfort zone often.
Write that blog post, record that video, promote your product on Social Media, reach out to others, look for partnerships, and give that WordCamp presentation.
I’ve done all of it and I can tell you, it will be worth it!
WordPress & Beyond
Simply Static:
We just announced the early access for Simply Static Studio – an all-in-one hosting solution for Static WordPress.
It combines everything we’ve learned while building Simply Static with a modern hosting environment and a high-performance CDN.
I’m not going to lie—it’s scary and a whole different ballgame than running a plugin business.
However, we strive to bring Static WordPress to the masses; this is the only way to make it simple enough for everyone to use.
OllieWP:
OllieWP’s growth largely depends on the success of WordPress and its powerful toolkit, which includes the block editor and FSE.
We will continue to simplify it and bring our knowledge into discussions about developing core, solving tricky UX problems like responsive controls while trying to keep the product lean and straightforward.
We will release a completely overhauled onboarding experience and make it free for everyone to grow the adoption of full site editing.
Despite all that has happened around WordPress in the last few months, I’m eager to see it thrive.
We came a long way with the block editor and modernizing WordPress and I can finally see the north star of it. I’m eager to see an entirely bullet-proof way of creating entire websites with blocks and FSE.
Besides that, I’m amazed about the concept of WordPress Playground.
It will drastically change how we onboard new users to our ecosystem.
I don’t think there is a real threat yet.
I know many people will disagree, and some people are always eager to predict the end of WordPress, but all of these shiny new tools miss the most critical part of WordPress – the community around it.
Stay in Touch
My Love for the WordPress Community
YES!
I’m a frequent attendee of WordCamps (primarily in Europe) and even gave a talk in Athens in 2023.
I have made many friends over the years, and attending a WordCamp often feels like a big gathering of people I like and admire.
I made friends with a lot of them!
However, I do want to give a little shoutout to some important people I interact with day to day:
- Mike McAlister (my OllieWP co-founder)
- Igor Benic (the second developer on the Simply Static team)
- My mastermind group
Since so many people have been featured on WPFounders, you might have gotten everyone who inspired me already!
How I Keep Myself Updated
It’s 99% with podcasts:
- WP Builds
- The WP Minute
- WP Product Talk
Beyond that – Social Media – X and BlueSky work well to keep yourself updated.
I Have a Life Other Than the Work
I’m pretty deep into photography. I like to travel to different places, take photos, and learn about the latest camera trends and gadgets.
I mainly do travel and street photography, but I’m also eager to explore wildlife photography one day!
Beyond that, I love retro games from the 90s – you can’t say no to a calm day with a good coffee and some sci-fi retro charm brought to you on a modern console.
I’m an active traveller, exploring cities or some untouched nature.
This gives me energy and calms my mind, especially after a stressful work period.
I don’t feel comfortable in crowded and noisy areas, so you would much rather find me in a calm coffee shop than on a crowded market.
I’d say Laos.
It has everything you would expect from Southeast Asia without the over-toursim other countries suffer from.
Indeed! Sheldon, my ten years old Shetland Sheep Dog:
Patrick Posner’s dog
I Reward Myself by
Traveling.
Visiting a new country, exploring the day-to-day culture, and sightseeing work best for me.
It calms my mind and allows me to step away from work completely, even for only a few days.
