From Nothing to $25 Million in 12 Months
May 24, 2017 |
Want to increase the value of your business by up to 71%?
Take the 13-minute survey and get your Value Builder Score
About this episode
Subscribe:
SnapSaves was created by Buytopia, which has a deal-of-the-day business model similar to Groupon. Started by Michele Romanow and her partners in Buytopia, the idea was to let shoppers snap a picture of their grocery receipt using the app.
Romanow started pouring more than $100,000 per month into SnapSaves, and within six months had a product she could take to market. The company was a quick hit with consumers and advertisers, and within a year of launch, Romanow was entertaining venture capital investment offers which implied a whopping $25 million valuation for the young company.
That’s when Groupon called and said they wanted to buy SnapSaves outright.
Romanow, who now stars as an investor on Dragon’s Den (the Canadian version of the hit show Shark Tank), negotiated hard with Groupon and got them to double their offer from their first term sheet, which is when Romanow decided to sell.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
- What M&A bankers call a “tech and team” deal.
- The three currencies public companies use to buy businesses.
- What Romanow looks for when investing in a company on Dragon’s Den.
- How to use customer cohorts to track and boost the value of your company.
- The difference between a term sheet and an LOI.
What’s Your ‘Unfair Right to Win’?
Romanow has evolved from an entrepreneur into an investor and now looks to bet on companies with what she calls “an unfair right to win”, which is what we call your Monopoly Control. We’ll help you figure out your Monopoly Control in Module 6 of The Value Builder System™—complete Module 1 for free by completing the Value Builder questionnaire now.
Our guest
Dragon”, CBC Dragons’ Den | Co-Founder, Clearbanc Michele Romanow is an engineer and a serial entrepreneur who started three companies before her 28th birthday. The newest (and youngest ever) entrepreneur to join CBC’s hit show Dragons’ Den, Michele is the co-founder of e-commerce platforms Buytopia.ca and SnapSaves (acquired by Groupon), which have saved millions of users hundreds of millions of dollars. Ranked in WXN’s “100 Most Powerful in Canada” and listed as the only Canadian on Forbes’ “Millennial on a Mission” list. Her current venture Clearbanc is offering financial services for freelancers and entrepreneurs.
Related to this topic
The One Question You Never Answer
, a T-shirt business he quickly scaled from start-up to sale in 18 months.
Lessons from Home Depot’s Acquisition of a $100 Million Juggernaut Blinds.com
Jay Steinfeld started selling blinds online in 1993. The e-commerce pioneer went on to build Blinds.com into a $100 million category killer before Home Depot decided enough was enough and made Steinfeld an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Cracking the Amazon e-Commerce Code
Sophie Howard built and sold a 7 figure Amazon e-Commerce business in less than two years. Here’s how she did it.
The Acquisition of the Company Behind Chicago Bulls Sunglasses
If you own Chicago Bulls sunglasses—or sunglasses from just about any other NBA team—you owe your eyewear to Jason Bolt.
5 (Sobering) Lessons from the Sales of Hammocks.com
David Fairley estimates he has sold more than 20 online properties but admits it was the sale of Hammocks.com—one of his first exits—that taught him the most.
How a Simple Strategy Led to a 35% Higher Valuation for Conversio
In 2014, Adii Pienaar started an email marketing platform for retailers, which became Conversio. By 2019, Pienaar had $2 million in revenue and 14 employees.
The Atheist Bible Salesman Who Sold His Company for 5X Revenue
Trevor McKendrick had created the best-selling Spanish-language Bible app when he was approached about an acquisition. The offer was 3.5x revenue but Trevor got them to 5x with a combination of chutzpah and a knack for reading the fine print.
How Much Are Your Employees Worth To An Acquirer?
Impact LABS had no hard assets and little intellectual property, so why would ContextLabs want to acquire them for millions?
In this episode, Stephan Spencer details three strategies he pursued to withdraw from his business’s day-to-day operations. By 2010, he was able to take a six-month sabbatical which ultimately lead to a sale in 2010 with only a six-month earnout.
The Philosophy of Building to Sell
Dan Faggella started Science of Skill, an e-commerce website selling self-defense videos and paraphernalia, in 2013. His goal was to sell the business as soon as possible, and he started soliciting offers just 14 months later.
Derek Sivers sold CD Baby for $22 million dollars and decided to do something interesting with the money.
Bitcoin – The Investor vs. The Acquirer
Back in 2013, Dave Ripley became fascinated with Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency market was gaining notoriety and Ripley and a friend decided to start Glidera, a company focused on creating tools to help developers integrate cryptocurrency.