Odoo’s Journey: How Fabien Pinckaers Built More Than Just Software

“I needed to change the world. I wanted to ... You know how it is when you are young; you have big dreams, a lot of energy and naive stupidity. My dream was to lead the enterprise management market with a fully open source software. (I also wanted to get 100 employees before 30 years old with a self-financed company but I failed this one by only a few months).”

Fabien Pinckaers, CEO, Odoo

In a quiet town in Belgium, a boy grew up curious about how things worked. His name was Fabien Pinckaers. The most unique thing about him was that he wasn’t chasing money or fame. He was chasing ideas. He wanted to build tools that made business simpler, less messy, and more human.

Long story short, it all worked out well for him. What began as small experiments on his computer turned into something bigger than he could have imagined. At the time, he had no idea his project would one day be known as Odoo.

Today, Odoo is used by companies across the world. However, its early days were anything but certain. Fabien’s life was all about late nights, trial and error, and the stubborn belief that there had to be a better way.

This is the story of Odoo’s rise. And more than that, it’s the story of Fabien himself, his background, the battles he fought, and the choices that pushed his local idea towards global success.

What Is Odoo?

At the crux, Odoo is a toolbox for running a business. It started out as TinyERP (2005), and then became OpenERP, a growing suite meant to serve accounting, sales, stock, projects, etc. Over time, it became Odoo (2014), a full suite of business apps, easy to pick and plug into your workflow.

If you’re wondering about its name, the founder picked “Odoo” on purpose. It is a name free of constraints, one that could stretch as the product did. It hints at new directions like eCommerce, website builders, business intelligence, and even satellites.

Moreover, the trend where top internet companies were often named with an “O” played a part. So Odoo went with three of them.

So, what’s great about it? For starters, it’s flexible. You don’t have to buy everything. You pick what you need, customize it, and grow as you go. That’s one reason small and mid-size companies lean on it instead of pricier, locked-down ERP systems.

It’s also easy on the wallet. Open-source means there’s no steep license fee. And because it’s got a clear interface, your team doesn’t need to spend hours staring at the screen wondering where to click next.

The various modules in Odoo are interconnected. So, your sales numbers automatically feed into inventory and billing. This means no need for double-entry or needless handoffs.

And that’s not all. There’s an entire community behind it. Tons of developers and users keep tweaking, improving, and building new add-ons. It’s like a never-ending group project that brings real business value.

You can think of Odoo as a flexible toolbox for businesses, born from something small and angled to fit how people actually work. It grew in stages where each shift mirrored how the product was expanding from simple planning tools into a broader suite, be it CRM, websites, eCommerce, manufacturing, marketing, and more.

Basically, Odoo isn’t a one-size-fits-all tool. Companies can start with the modules they need and add more over time. In the end, businesses only pay for what they use and can grow at their own pace.

What’s more, it’s open-source, too! The technology stack is solid with a Python-based, MVC architecture with a PostgreSQL database, which anyone can tweak.

Odoo gets that ease of use matters just as much. Accordingly, it comes with a clean, intuitive interface. Users don’t need a manual to figure it out. All of these positives make adoption a lot smoother, even for teams that aren’t proficient in ERP usage.

Its growing popularity comes from more than just code. In 2013, it was named Belgium’s fastest-growing company, thanks to over 1500 percent growth in five years. By 2015, Inc. Magazine counted it among the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in Europe.

Odoo set up a two-track model: a free, Community version, and a paid Enterprise version with extra features and official support. This keeps doors open for startups and allows space for bigger teams that want advanced tools and smoother updates.

Lastly, there’s the community. Over 15 million users, thousands of partners, and tens of thousands of apps, built not by one company, but by people around the world who use, improve, and share.

Fabian Pinckaers: The Brain behind Odoo

Fabien Pinckaers was born in 1979 in Belgium. By the time most kids were still figuring out video games, he was already building software.

At 13, he developed his first business management software and sold it to the Belgian Writers’ Association and to green transports. This small project gave him his first taste of how code could solve real business problems.

His student years at Université Catholique de Louvain were just as restless. While studying Computer Science, he launched Auction-in-Europe, an online art marketplace that briefly outpaced eBay in Belgium. He also set up Openstuff, a quirky online store selling Linux gear. These ventures didn’t make him rich, but they sharpened his instincts: build things people actually use.

In 2002, at the age of 23, Fabien founded TinyERP. He ran it alone at first: coding by day, handling support by night. He wasn’t trying to build the next SAP or Oracle. He just wanted businesses, especially small ones, to have decent tools without paying a fortune. His single-minded focus grew into OpenERP, and eventually into Odoo.

The path, however, was anything but smooth. For years, Fabien worked 13-hour days, seven days a week, with no holidays. He lost friends and even a relationship to the grind. Money was tight. At one point, he nearly signed a disastrous deal with investors that would have left him in debt, until his wife spotted a clause that saved him. Those moments shaped him as much as the coding did.

By his early thirties, Fabien had opened up offices across three continents, with more than a hundred employees. But he still didn’t see himself as a CEO in the traditional sense. He kept coding, spending half his time with developers, staying close to the product. He believed obsession was key; and that you had to live inside the software you were building, think about it constantly, and improve it every day.

“The key part of my success is that I never left the product. Even as your company grows, the focus should remain on what made you successful in the first place. Losing that focus is when companies start to fail.”

His focus paid off. In 2014, OpenERP became Odoo, signaling that the software was no longer just about resource planning, but about every corner of business life, from sales and HR to eCommerce and project management. From this point, the company’s growth accelerated.

Today, Odoo is used by millions worldwide. And Fabien himself? In 2023, Forbes listed him as Belgium’s youngest billionaire. Even with that title, he still leans into the same hands-on spirit that fueled him at thirteen, i.e., build tools that work for real people and let the rest follow.

Odoo now operates in more than 10 countries including the U.S and Dubai, and has more than seven million users.

The India Connection

Odoo set up a local development and services hub in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, with Indian talent driving features like e-invoicing, GST compliance, and other localized business rules. These modules work with India’s tax systems, like GST e-invoice, e-way bill, TDS, and varying payroll rules across states.

To be successful, Odoo leans on a strong partner ecosystem across India. Gold and Silver partners like Pragmatic Techsoft, SerpentCS, CandidRoot, Aktiv Software, and Synconics (among others in Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Coimbatore, and Bangalore) help businesses roll out, customize, and support Odoo. These partners aren’t just service providers; they’re also the ones ensuring Odoo feels “Indian” in practice.

Additionally, community events like Odoo Community Days India and strategic partner meetings further show how active the network is. Even Fabien Pinckaers himself has been present at partner gatherings in India, indicating just how central this market is to Odoo’s future.

In short, Odoo’s global success story has a very real Indian chapter. It is being written by local businesses that demand compliance-ready solutions as well as by partners who build and refine them.

Odoo As It Stands Today

It’s time to learn about some of Odoo’s key moments and milestones in its journey so far.

2005: Fabien Pinckaers launches TinyERP, his first open-source ERP software

2008: The name changes from TinyERP to OpenERP to reflect broader ambitions

2010: OpenERP grows rapidly, with over 100 employees on board

2013: Named fastest-growing company in Belgium with 1,549 % growth over five years

2014: Rebranded to Odoo to signify a shift beyond just “ERP.” Also, introduced both Community and Enterprise editions. Secured a new round of USD 10 million in financing, jointly provided by leading venture capital firms XAnge (France), SRIW (Belgium), Sofinnova (France), and the management team.

2015: Listed among Inc. Magazine’s fastest-growing private companies in Europe

2019: Secured $90 million in investment

2021: Odoo is used by over 5 million customers; reveals plans to hire 1,000 more staff

2023: Revenue hits €282 million (YoY growth of 33 %), workforce grows to over 2,200, while remaining profitable

2024 (Nov): Raised €500 million in secondary capital, boosting valuation to €5 billion

2024: Revenue climbs to $650 million with 11,000 customers

Mid-2025: Over 16,000 official partners and more than 5,500 employees worldwide

2025 (Aug): Annual revenue reaches $750 million; the number of employees hits approximately 6,900 globally. Total funding raised hits $527 million.

2023-2025: Odoo reports about a 50% organic growth rate; turnover surpassed €370 million in 2023; expands global footprint with 19 offices, including new ones in Italy, Australia, and Indonesia. Fabien relocated to India to support local teams.

The company currently boasts 6,000+ employees, 16,000+ partners, and 15+ million users. Today, Odoo has 50 main applications to its credit, all of which are regularly upgraded. Further, its community comprises over 1500 active members, who are actively contributing another 50000+ apps to cover a wide variety of business needs.

Odoo’s “On-premise” offer has made it the most installed business software in the world. It is used by over 13,000,000 users worldwide, ranging from startup companies (1 user) to large enterprises (300,000+ users).

Making Entrepreneurship Work: Leadership Lessons from Fabien Pinckaers

Fabien’s entrepreneurial journey is full of leadership lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs. Here’s a quick gist of what he thinks makes him a good leader.  

“Even though I am a CEO, I still spend 50% of my time on the product with the developers. I look at how users use the product, where employees waste time, and find solutions to improve their lives. That’s still 50% of my time.”

Stay close to the product

Even as CEO, Fabien spends a lot of time at the ground level with developers. He also takes a keen interest in learning how people use Odoo. He firmly believes leaders lose the plot once they distance themselves from what made the company work in the first place.

Focus on value, not ego

He doesn’t build things just for the sake of it. He builds what people actually need. Looking impressive doesn’t matter to him. He’d rather make a mark by solving real problems. This focus keeps Odoo relevant and strong.

Empower people, don’t micromanage

Fabien trusts his team to make important decisions, take accountability, and learn from mistakes. For him, leadership is more about empowering others to grow rather than controlling every business aspect or process.

Protect culture, scale carefully

As far as possible, he prefers to promote from within his existing team. When hiring people, he goes for those who fit the company’s values, and avoids external leaders who could weaken the culture. For Fabien, the right culture matters more than rigid KPIs.

Coach, don’t just manage

It is important to hire solid team leads who can guide, mentor, and develop their people. After all, productivity isn’t the only goal of a company. It’s important to create a team that owns its work and keeps improving over time.

Wrapping Up

Fabien Pinckaers’ journey is proof that staying focused on what really matters can help entrepreneurs achieve more than they dreamed of. He went from starting TinyERP to building a worldwide platform used by millions. As such, Odoo’s success came from staying close to the product, trusting the team, and protecting the company’s culture.

It’s clear that Odoo’s growth is rooted in patience, apt decision-making, and empowering others to succeed. Persistence, hands-on leadership, and doing the work well are other factors that have steered the company in the right direction. All in all, this story is a great reminder that strong companies grow when leaders lead by example and focus on improving both their people and product.