Small Business

5 Signs It’s Time to Sell Your Startup, According to Corey Shader

Published

3 years ago

June 9, 2022

There may come a time when it’s best to sell your company and move on to something else. As Corey Shader explains, though, it can be very difficult for entrepreneurs to sell their company.

One of the biggest challenges that entrepreneurs face in this regard is knowing exactly when to sell. Timing is essential if you want to maximize the return on your investment and/or minimize your long-term risk.

Luckily, there are many signs that can help you make the right decision. Here are five signs that it might be time to consider selling your business.

1. It’s No Longer Fun

Startup companies are so much work. They take up so much of your day, whether you’re actively working or thinking about it when you’re not.

Running a startup should be fun. Not every part of the day should feel like a vacation, of course, but it should bring you consistent enjoyment.

If it doesn’t anymore, then it’s time to make a change. That change could be hiring more help to take annoying administrative tasks off your plate. Or, if you’ve just grown tired of running the startup, it could be time to sell.

2. You’ve Grown Too Much

Business growth is a good thing; it’s something that every entrepreneur aspires to achieve. At the same time, it’s possible that your startup could eventually outgrow your own skillset.

Maybe you’re really great at taking a business from the idea stage to launch, but you’re not great at significant expansion. Or, maybe you’ve already experienced massive growth and you’re not suited to handle what needs to be done.

This stage could be an opportune time to sell to someone else who is more capable of building a sustainable business.

3. There’s Another Opportunity

Many entrepreneurs keep their eyes peeled for new opportunities at all times. Sometimes, opportunities arise seemingly out of nowhere. In many cases, these outside opportunities could take capital that you don’t have on hand or that’s tied up in other assets.

If that’s the case, then it might be a good time for you to sell your current company so you can capitalize on that opportunity. In this way, you’ll be potentially benefitting from profits from the sale of one company and then re-investing a part of that in another endeavor.

4. You’re Ready for a New Challenge

Entrepreneurs love a challenge. They love to start businesses from the ground up and accomplish things that most people would consider impossible.

After your startup is fully established, you may lose some passion for it — only because it’s not as challenging as it once was. This isn’t a bad thing. It just means you’ve created a stable business.

But, if you thrive off new challenges and feel you’re ready for that next one, it could be time to sell your startup.

5. Threats Have Emerged

Not all industries last forever, and not all businesses last forever within all industries. New threats emerge all the time, as Corey Shader explains, and some of these threats can spell doom for startups — or at least foreshadow difficult times ahead.

If you’ve identified a looming threat on the horizon, it’s prudent to decide whether you’re prepared to take the challenge head-on, or whether you’d rather step aside while you still can. Know that deciding not to take on a threat doesn’t mean you failed. In fact, getting out while the “getting is still good” is a savvy business decision to make. Also short selling is an option.

About Corey Shader

Corey Shader is a self-made entrepreneur, consultant, investor, real estate developer, and founder of several companies, notably Insurance Pipeline. Operating primarily out of Ft. Lauderdale, Corey’s endeavors span across the nation, consulting for start-ups, and sitting on the board of digital media and senior healthcare agencies. As a consultant, Corey helps young businesses develop sales funnels and maximize profitability. Shader takes pride in challenging others to push themselves to be their very best — he believes in constant self-improvement, inspiring others through sharing his own life experiences.

Small Business

Airbnb: Selling cereal to a globally successful company

Published

1 day ago

April 18, 2025

Sandra Abeleo - Staff

Airbnb is a service that is used globally for travel purposes, those looking for a place to relax or even for tenants. The company has become such a normalized thing that it is hard to imagine life before Airbnb. The accessibility that Airbnb provides, allowing you to book a room within a moment’s notice for anywhere in the world, is amazing. It is a platform that provides an incredible service for customers, as well as providing a place for landlords to rent out their properties easily. Airbnb management businesses have also sprang up, creating more jobs. Airbnb wasn’t always such a big company though, and it has some very humble beginnings.

Founders Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia had moved to San Francisco from New York, and had little cash. They decided to buy some air beds and set up a bed and breakfast. 3 guests stayed the night, being the first ever Airbnb guests.

They launched in 2008, with 600 people booking Airbnb’s for the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

In order to fund their startup, they started selling cereals with election themes. They made $30,000, and raised $20,000 in funding from Y Combinator.

Their platform starts to gain traction, after visiting their users in New York.

By 2009, they have 2500 listings and 10,000 registered users. From there on, Airbnb kept growing and growing and now have over 2 million listings in over 190 countries, and the company is now worth $25.5 billion.

Airbnb is an incredible story of startup success, from having barely enough money to fund their company and having to sell cereal, to being worth over $25.5 billion, Chesky and Gebbia’s journey is something else. Airbnb continues to grow to this day, and is a household name which is globally recognized no matter where you are in the world.

Small Business

Uber: the startup that changed how people move around

Published

3 days ago

April 16, 2025

Billy Roman - Staff

Uber the startup that changed how people move around

Uber is an app that is globally recognized and used by millions. It provided an alternative to using expensive taxis, and provided high service for customers. Furthermore, it provided jobs for those looking for extra cash or wanting to try something different. Uber spawned a variety of similar but different ride sharing apps, and essentially created a whole new industry. From Uber came Uber Eats, Menulog and so on. But how did it all get started, before all of this?

It started when Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick were in Paris and unable to find a cab. When Camp returned to San Francisco, he was fixated on the idea of a ride sharing app and subsequently bought UberCab.com. Camp was the CEO of StumbleUpon (bought out by Ebay for $75 million) and started working on Uber as a side project. Camp persuaded Kalanick to join in on the project. Uber was tested in New York using 3 cars, then officially launched in San Francisco. The ease of access to a ride share gave the app much popularity, using GPS to locate the car and rider then charging the rider.

The company received $1.25 million in funding from First Round Capital.

In 2011, Uber raised $11 million in its Series A round of funding, allowing to expand into New York, Boston, Seattle, Chicago and Washington DC.

The company broadened in 2012 by introducing UberX, provided less expensive hybrid cars in contrast to expensive black car services.

The story of Uber is one of a startup success built on a demand, being ride sharing. Many people were not happy with prices and the service within the Taxi industry, and Uber filled that need for them, ultimately bringing them recognition and large success globally.

Small Business

Tips from Jeff Bezos for startups

Published

4 days ago

April 15, 2025

Billy Roman - Staff

Jeff Bezos has always treated his business giant Amazon as a startup. His famous mantra of “It remains Day 1” shows that he continually demonstrates that his company should always be treated like it’s just starting up. Amazon now has over 560,000 employees, and over 100 million members with Amazon Prime, and yet is still treated as a startup. Bezos started Amazon in a garage as a book selling platform, before turning it into a store to sell ‘everything’.

Amazon found success almost immediately, and has grown into a business giant making Bezos the richest man in the world.

These are some tips from Bezos for startups.

Set high standards

Bezos holds the belief that high standards must be taught and maintained in a startup. If a company will operate with low standards, new employees that come on board will operate at the same level of standards. Keep the standards high, and they will strive for that high standard in their work. It’s also important to identify employees weaknesses, and aim for them to improve these.