Zero to $1.1B from Flipping Websites

Thomas

• Started flipping websites in his dorm room in 2008–2009, buying a domain name and selling it for a small profit, then moved to buying established websites that generated revenue
• His first deal was buying a website for $100 on his credit card, getting it to make some money, and selling it for $500 by the end of the month
• Was entirely self-taught, learning through forums since no playbooks or resources existed at the time
• Founded FE International in 2010 after graduating college, initially writing and selling a book and course on buying and selling websites for $30,000
• Accidentally stumbled into M&A when students who took his course asked him to sell their businesses for them, which required no capital from him and leveraged a process he already understood
• Hired his first two employees early on to handle the technical side while he focused on selling, and brought on his current business partner Ismail, who applied big investment bank processes to their smaller deals
• Applied the Pareto principle early, cutting out parts of the business that didn’t make money and focusing only on what was most profitable
• Closed their first eight-figure deal (over $10 million) through a referral from a past client, which transformed the business and led to regularly closing eight-figure transactions
• Has helped people sell over a billion dollars worth of businesses in total

Products and Offerings

• FE International, an M&A advisory firm specializing in buying and selling online businesses
• Initially offered a book and online course teaching people how to buy and sell websites and domains

Metrics and Financials

• First deal: bought for $100, sold for $500
• First course generated $30,000 in revenue
• Early biggest deal before scaling was $30,000
• First eight-figure deal was over $10 million
• Broker fees typically start at 15% for smaller deals and decrease on a sliding scale as deal size increases
• Small businesses generally sell for a multiple of profit (not revenue), typically in the 4–10x annual profit range

Strategy and Growth

• Started by flipping small websites to learn the process, then scaled into a full M&A firm
• Growth was driven by referrals and compounding deal experience—each deal led to more and larger deals
• Focused early on being data-driven and cutting unprofitable activities to concentrate on what made the most money
• Positioned FE International in a gap where no other M&A firms or brokers served small-to-mid-size online businesses

Lessons and Advice

• Start by figuring out your budget and what business model you’re comfortable with before looking for deals
• Reach out to business owners directly via email in a human, personalized way—avoid generic messages
• Good businesses are evergreen, have repeat or recurring customers, and are growing; buyers pay more for growth
• When buying a business, look for one where your skill set complements the founder’s rather than mirrors it
• In negotiation, decide what matters most to you, pick your battles, and give the other side some wins—the best deals happen when buyer and seller prioritize different things
• Don’t try to negotiate on every point; focus on what’s most important to you
• To buy your first business with no money, find some capital first—even $100 opens many more options than $0
• Early deals should be about learning the process (how to sell, negotiate, and build expertise), not about making a living
• You won’t make a long-term living buying for $100 and selling for $200, but if you learn the process you can apply the same skills to million-dollar deals
• Build a track record, even a small one, as it makes it much easier to attract investors or partners later