Startup Acquisition Stories

At just 18 years old, Siyabend Özdemir bootstrapped and sold Gen PPT, an AI-powered presentation generator used by students, marketers, and solopreneurs across the globe. What started as a school-night experiment turned into a viral hit driven by indie hacker hustle, programmatic SEO, and a killer demo shared on X. Siyabend listed the business on Acquire.com and closed a smooth acquisition just days later. In this episode, he shares how he built, scaled, and exited Gen PPT and what comes next for a founder just getting started. You’ll learn: ► How Siyabend validated the idea using a real SEO dataset ► Why building in public on X was key to early growth ► What made Acquire.com the best fit for a solo founder exit ► How he handled burnout, due diligence, and buyer negotiation ► What to do after your first big win, including gold bars and Range Rovers 3 takeaways from Siyabend’s exit: 1. Organize everything—docs, access, financials—for a fast handoff 2. Structure your business and taxes early, even if you're young 3. Use the right platform to streamline the acquisition process Whether you’re 18 or 38, bootstrapping solo or building in public, this conversation is proof that you can build something valuable and sell it on your terms. Listen now to hear how Siyabend pulled off his first exit and what he’s building next. Follow Siyabend on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/siyabend-oezdemir/]

Christopher Schwab didn’t build Inova Local to chase scale. He built it to solve a real problem: how to support home service businesses with reliable, high-quality remote admin help. What started as a side project quickly became a profitable VA agency—and a company built for flexibility, documentation, and clean operations. In this episode, Christopher shares how he grew the business with intention and sold it through a fast, strategic acquisition. You’ll learn: * Why lean, recurring models outperform traditional staffing * What made remote operations hard to sell before the pandemic * How to prepare your company for a fast, low-friction exit * What buyers actually care about—and what catches them off guard * How to balance growth, team care, and long-term personal goals 3 lessons from Christopher’s exit: 1. Simplicity and documentation make due diligence easy 2. Know what the business means to you—and what’s next 3. Take care of your team through the transition Whether you're scaling a remote service or considering your own exit, this conversation is a playbook for founders who want to build—and exit—with clarity. Listen now to hear how Christopher structured his acquisition and what he's building next. Follow Christopher on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/cschwab1⁠]

What started as a side project during business school became a profitable, product-led SaaS used by finance teams, and was successfully acquired through Acquire.com. In this episode, Trevor Lee, founder of Genius Sheets, shares how he scaled a lean SaaS through smart distribution partnerships, kept operations efficient, and exited on his own terms to build a new company: Myko, a voice-to-CRM tool for sales teams. In this episode, you’ll learn: * * How to grow a financial SaaS using Product-Led Growth (PLG) * * Why partner distribution can outperform outbound sales * * What to expect during buyer calls, due diligence, and app store transitions * * How pricing your listing well leads to stronger, faster offers * What matters most when evaluating potential buyers Trevor’s 3 tips for founders planning an exit: 1. Build around scalable, low-cost acquisition channels 2. Reduce manual ops to make your SaaS more attractive 3. Don’t wait for perfection—launch, and learn from real users Whether you're growing a SaaS or thinking about selling, this episode is full of tactical advice from a founder who exited profitably to pursue his next big idea. 🎧 Listen now and discover what Trevor’s building with Myko ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Follow Trevor on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevorlee20/] https://www.linkedin.com/company/acquiredotcom https://twitter.com/acquiredotcom https://www.facebook.com/acquiredotcom https://www.instagram.com/acquiredotcom/

If Christopher Lier could give three key pieces of advice to SaaS founders planning an exit, they would be: 1. Build a focused product that solves a specific problem 2. Be fully transparent during the acquisition process 3. Never settle for a deal you’re not comfortable with Christopher is the co-founder of LeadGen App, a form builder optimized for lead generation. What began as a side project between an SEO expert and a developer in the UK quickly evolved into a profitable micro-SaaS. No venture capital. No big team. Just strong SEO, clear systems, and consistent execution. In this episode, host Andrew Gazdecki talks with Christopher about: * How to launch and grow a lean SaaS product from scratch * The importance of SEO, Facebook groups, and direct outreach for acquiring your first users * What the acquisition process on Acquire.com looks like, from listing to closing * How documented SOPs and a reliable team streamlined due diligence * Why selecting the right buyer is about shared vision, not just price Whether you're bootstrapping, scaling, or preparing to sell a SaaS company, this episode offers actionable insights and hard-earned lessons from someone who’s successfully done it. Listen now and learn what it really takes to build, grow, and exit a micro-SaaS. Follow Christopher’s journey: LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-lier/⁠]

If Johann Sathianathen could give two key pieces of advice to founders who want to sell a startup fast, he’d say: * Build and sell early—even while working full-time * Reinvest stable income to accelerate your startup runway Johann Sathianathen was just 20 years old when he made his first bootstrapped exit, selling his startup Jars Global through Acquire.com. Before that, he dropped out of college, became the youngest full-time software engineer at Cisco, and used his salary to fund a small team and launch multiple startup projects. Jars began as a side hustle focused on competitive intelligence for e-commerce businesses. As traction grew, Johann listed it on Acquire.com. The selling process was smooth, the deal closed quickly, and Johann walked away with both capital and momentum to go full-time on his founder journey. But for Johann, selling Jars was just the beginning. He believes that a portfolio founder approach reduces risk and multiplies opportunity. By building multiple SaaS startups with lean teams, he maximized his chances of success—and today, he’s scaling a growing portfolio, focused on solving real problems and moving fast. Tune in to the Acquire podcast with Andrew Gazdecki and Johann Sathianathen to discover: * How Johann built and sold his startup while still a teenager * Why becoming a "portfolio founder" changes everything * How to leverage your salary to bootstrap and scale faster * What happens emotionally and financially after your first startup exit Johann is just getting started, and you can follow his journey below. LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jsathianathen/]