Startup Sphere Weekly #12

Making $30,000/month with an online platform for botox treatments and $2 million for an active lifestyle coffee brand.

Welcome back to Startup Sphere, the weekly 5-minute digest about online businesses selling for life-changing amounts of money. We’re nearing 1,000 subscribers, which is absolutely mind-blowing. I’d appreciate it if you could forward this newsletter to family, friends, business partners, and anyone who enjoys reading business content.

Last edition’s (read here) poll results:

🥇 [60%]: 👨‍💻 Part-time coding boot camp for adults

🥈 [40%]: 📈 Conversion focused web design agency

🥉 [0%]: 🧼 Platform offering cleaning services

Don’t forget to vote in this week’s poll at the bottom of this newsletter!

Most people voted for the coding boot camp. I also thought the boot camp was the best business. I found it interesting that no one voted for the platform offering cleaning services, which I thought was a good business. A reader who voted for the web design agency left some valuable feedback, which I wanted to share:

I like agencies as a springboard for other ventures. You get to work with all sorts of clients. Have something to offer your dream client. And can use the agency to build or launch other products of your own.

I definitely agree with this comment. This is something I’m trying to work on myself.

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Now, let’s get into this week’s business listings.

A suite of tools designed to enhance the sports betting experience

Asking Price: $150,000
Monthly Revenue: $7,000
Monthly Profit: $7,000

I never thought I’d cover a business like this. But this listing definitely caught my eye. The business for sale is a platform that enhances the sports betting and fantasy experience. It includes things like cheatsheets, player prop analysis, and updates on player news and injuries.

The sports betting industry has been quickly growing in America. Currently, 38 states allow some form of sports betting. So this is an industry that will keep growing in the coming years.

The one potential downside I see is in regard to the regulations and rules around sports betting. I’m not certain of all the details, but I’m sure there are a lot of hoops to jump through with advertisers. There is also the restriction of location and age. However, if you’re knowledgeable in the industry, this can be very lucrative.

Outlier is an example of a competitor.

An online platform for comparing & booking injectable treatments

Asking Price: $1.1 million
Monthly Revenue: $30,000
Monthly Profit: $20,000

When I see a business this niche, I just know it’s going to be good. The business for sale is an online platform for comparing and booking injectable treatments (injectable treatments are procedures like botox and filler). The platform helps users find and schedule appointments at nearby certified clinics.

Something to note is that this business is based in the Netherlands. I am not sure what the process would be for building this business up in the United States, but I can imagine there is a larger customer base for a product like this.

WhatClinic is an example of a competitor. What I found interesting is that they expanded past injectable treatments. Their website allows you to search for hair transplants, dentists, plastic surgery, etc in different countries. I think the same can be done for the business listed for sale.

Another example of a competitor is kliniekervaringen.nl.

Apparel and coffee brand for active lifestyle enthusiasts

Asking Price: $1.99 million
Monthly Revenue: $80,000
Monthly Profit: $20,000

The business for sale is an e-commerce store with an interesting blend of products. The company sells premium coffee and lifestyle apparel. The main target seems to be fitness enthusiasts who enjoy coffee.

I think the company did a good job establishing its presence in two separate niches, which seemingly don’t overlap (in my eyes). However, based on the numbers there is clearly interest in this segment, and the revenue numbers reflect that.

Something else to note is that this e-commerce store generates recurring revenue. The listing mentions about $150,000 in ARR. I assume this is from some sort of subscription sales. But this proves that there is a dedicated group of people who are very passionate about the niche.

Some competitors include Black Rifle Coffee and Live Fit Apparel.

Best of startup Twitter (X)

How Tim acquired a Shopify app making a few hundred dollars per month (link)

Marc removed the free plan in his Saas Story AI and MRR shot up (link)

Building the best product is useless without marketing and sales (link)

Weekly Poll

Given the funds, which of the above businesses would you buy?

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Thanks for reading this edition of Startup Sphere. As I mentioned above, we are nearing 1,000 subscribers so I’d appreciate it if you shared this newsletter with someone who loves reading about business. Till next week 👋.

— Vlad Verba

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