The founder cabinet

After the name: the tools a founder actually needs, in the order they are needed.

Organised by job to be done. Each recommendation states who it is for, when it becomes useful, what it replaces, its known constraints, whether Luscious Domains is compensated, and a non-affiliate alternative.

1. Form and protect the company

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

Northwest Registered Agent — www.northwestregisteredagent.com/
Who it is for: Founders forming a new entity
When it becomes useful: Before contracts or banking
What it replaces: A lawyer-led formation for simple entities
Known constraints: State fees apply; not legal advice
Non-affiliate alternative: Your state's Secretary of State portal, directly

Compensation: none.

2. Establish banking and payments

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

Stripe — stripe.com/
Who it is for: Any business taking card payments online
When it becomes useful: Before the first sale
What it replaces: Merchant accounts with separate gateways
Known constraints: Standard processing fees
Non-affiliate alternative: Your bank's merchant services

Compensation: none.

3. Configure email, identity, and security

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

Google Workspace — workspace.google.com/
Who it is for: Teams that need mail on the domain from day one
When it becomes useful: Immediately after transfer
What it replaces: Free mailboxes on a different domain
Known constraints: Per-seat pricing
Non-affiliate alternative: Fastmail or Proton for small teams

Compensation: none.

4. Build and host

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

Webflow — webflow.com/
Who it is for: Teams editing marketing pages without engineers
When it becomes useful: After the identity direction is fixed
What it replaces: A custom CMS for simple sites
Known constraints: Hosting tiers; limited logic
Non-affiliate alternative: A static site (Astro) on Cloudflare Pages, which is how this site is built

Compensation: none.

5. Measure and acquire customers

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

Semrush — www.semrush.com/
Who it is for: Authority System buyers publishing original content
When it becomes useful: After the first ten pages are live
What it replaces: Manual rank checking
Known constraints: Subscription; learning curve
Non-affiliate alternative: Google Search Console, free

Compensation: none.

6. Hire and pay

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

Deel or Gusto — gusto.com/
Who it is for: Companies paying their first contractors or employees
When it becomes useful: At first hire
What it replaces: Manual payroll
Known constraints: Per-person fees; jurisdiction coverage varies
Non-affiliate alternative: Your accountant's payroll service

Compensation: none.

7. Operate accounting and compliance

Disclosure: Luscious Domains receives no compensation for this recommendation as of this build. If that changes, this line will say so before the link.

QuickBooks Online — quickbooks.intuit.com/
Who it is for: Owner-operated companies
When it becomes useful: From the first transaction
What it replaces: Spreadsheets
Known constraints: Subscription; US-centric
Non-affiliate alternative: Wave, free for basic books

Compensation: none.