Thomas Smale, the founder of FE International, shares his extraordinary journey from flipping websites in college to facilitating over $1 billion in online business sales. He discusses effective negotiation strategies and how to spot valuable businesses. Smale emphasizes the importance of building genuine relationships in acquisitions and reveals the traits that make businesses successful. He also offers actionable advice for those looking to start with a modest budget, proving that with creativity and strategy, anyone can thrive in the business world.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
From Dorm Room Flips To M&A
Thomas Smale started buying and selling domains and small websites in college, turning $100 into $500 on his first deal.
He used credit cards to fund purchases and sold his first course, which led to clients asking him to sell their businesses.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Accidental M&A Founder
After teaching others via a book and course, Thomas began selling clients' websites because they asked him to handle the sale.
He stumbled into M&A without prior industry experience and filled a gap in the market.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Hire Complementary Skills Early
Hire people for tasks you are not best at and focus on your strengths as you scale.
Thomas hired technical staff while he concentrated on sales to grow FE International.
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In this episode I talked to Thomas Smale in his New York City Office to get his story and some advice on how to buy and sell businesses. He's done over $1B dollars in sales without even knowing how to develop a website, and he shares his advice on how to flip businesses, how to negotiate, and how he would start again if he had $0 dollars. This is a perfect episode for anyone who is hesitant on starting a business, and would rather buy one and build it from there.
0:00 - Intro
0:49 - Getting into M&A
2:50 - Self-taught website flipper
4:17 - How he started an M&A firm
5:40 - Using the Pareto Principle to make more money
6:36 - How to buy a business
8:02 - How to spot good businesses
9:46 - Selling a $10M+ business
10:41 - How he got the 8-figure deal
11:23 - How much profit he makes per deal
11:56 - How to value a business
12:56 - Buying a business VS starting one
14:26 - How to negotiate
16:33 - How to buy a business from scratch
🔎 Find Thomas
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/ThomasSmale
💼 Website - https://feinternational.com
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