Скачать или смотреть Bootstrapping to Billions E17: A 7-Figure Exit. Elisa Wood’s Story Selling the Business She Loved

Elisa Wood (Founder of Microgrid Knowledge – exited 2022) joins host Chris Sacchinelli to pull back the curtain on what really happens when a bootstrapped media & events business gets acquisition offers… twice.

In this raw, no-BS episode you’ll discover:

• Why two editors starting a company together is a terrible idea (her hilarious first business lesson from the early 2000s)
• How Superstorm Sandy + Google Analytics spikes led to spotting the microgrid opportunity before it was an actual industry
• The near-miss 2019 exit that got torpedoed by COVID – and how they pivoted to virtual events that actually saved (and grew) the business
• Turning down the first buyer, running an inbound + outbound process with no broker, and creating real competition
• The moment one partner wanted to retire – and why that forced the sale (even when Elisa wasn’t ready)
• Growing from tiny hotel breakout rooms to 600-person conferences… and realizing they’d hit the ceiling as a scrappy bootstrap team
• The bittersweet truth of the 7-figure exit: euphoria, relief, money in the bank… then the post-exit void that lasted months
• Why clean books from day one matter, how buyers value media/event businesses, and what Elisa wishes she’d known about earn-outs and non-competes
• Life after exit: non-compete landmines, grabbing Google real estate fast, and launching her new publication EnergyChangemakers.com

If you’re bootstrapping a media, events, content, or niche B2B business and wondering “Can this actually be sold one day?” – this episode is pure gold.

Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro + The 7% who actually exit
00:53 – First business fail: two editors, zero sales
01:53 – Founding Microgrid Knowledge (fully bootstrapped)
03:00 – The 2019 deal that died because of COVID
06:10 – Pivoting to virtual conferences that kept sponsors happy
08:27 – Tiptoeing back to in-person events (and running out of hotel space)
09:00 – Inbound offers return + deciding to explore a sale
10:41 – Partner retirement forces the timeline
11:36 – Hitting the growth ceiling as a small team
14:29 – Running a no-broker process in a tight-knit niche
15:52 – How Google Analytics + Superstorm Sandy created an entire industry
20:58 – Going all-in on microgrids and killing the old publication
23:44 – The emotional side of letting go after 8 years
25:02 – Post-close relief… then the “what now?” depression
28:24 – Starting Energy Changemakers while under non-compete
32:52 – Vetting buyers: who can actually scale what you built?
37:31 – Due diligence nightmares and why clean books kill deals when they’re messy
40:46 – Valuation reality check (and feeling the business was worth more)
44:30 – Elisa’s new project: EnergyChangemakers.com

Subscribe to never miss an exit story 👉 https://simple.beehiive.com
Check out Elisa’s new work: https://energychangemakers.com
Host Chris Sacchinelli – Founder of https://Bootstrapper.ai (real-time valuations for bootstrapped businesses)

#Bootstrapped #BusinessExit #MicrogridKnowledge #Entrepreneurship #SellYourBusiness #MediaBusiness #EventsBusiness #FounderStories #BootstrapToBillions


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