They Got Acquired - She emailed her dream buyer

February 2, 2024
​Read on web​

When middle school teacher Maggie Lord had her rustic wedding, there was no Pinterest to inspire her.

So in 2008, she created inspiration for other brides with Rustic Wedding Chic, a content website with photos, tips, advice and services for rustic weddings, including boho weddings, mountain weddings and vintage-style weddings.

When Pinterest went fully live in 2012, it proved tailor-made for her niche. Over the next eight years, Lord’s audience grew so much that her Pinterest page amassed more than 10 million impressions monthly.

And by 2020, as COVID arrived, she found herself ready to sell. Although the pandemic lockdowns presented challenges to the wedding industry, Lord was ready to sell anyhow.

“The company was doing great, and we did not feel we had to sell, but I did know that both the company and myself were ready for our next adventure,” she said.

She boldly emailed the CEO of David’s Bridal, and later sold to the company for 6 figures.

See our full story on how Lord scaled and sold Rustic Wedding Chic:

​She was ready to sell her wedding site — so she emailed David’s Bridal CEO​

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Lessons from 150+ case studies

That's right; we've published 150+ case studies of founders who sold their business.

Here’s what comes up as the most common seller mistakes:

➡️ 1) Not focusing enough on profit.

Net income, SDE, whatever is left in the business after you pay all of your expenses — these numbers really matter to buyers.

Revenue is important, but profit is king, and that moves the value needle more.

➡️ 2) Waiting too long to sell

You want to sell when you’re on an upswing… but it’s impossible to tell when that might end.

It’s easier to track and anticipate your own energy. Sell before you burn out, so you have plenty of gas to maximize your sale.

➡️ 3) Going with the first offer

Occasionally this makes sense. But in most cases, you want to bring in more than one offer.

You need leverage, and competition creates that leverage. It’s one of the best ways to drive up your sale price.

➡️ 4) Neglecting your financials

You want clean books before you sell, so all the intel you share with your buyer proves true during due diligence.

Clean books = fewer surprises.

Ideally, work with an accounting/CFO firm that specializes in prepping for M&A. (We're happy to recommend one.)

➡️ 5) Being surprised by due diligence

Founders often say the most challenging part of selling was balancing due diligence w/ running the business.

Put systems in place, delegate if possible, and expect that this phase might be grueling.

➡️ 6) Thinking the business isn’t sellable

This is the biggest mistake of all: Not realizing you can sell what you’ve built!

Not all businesses are sellable, and you might need to put certain pieces in place to transfer what you’ve created.

But don't shut down a business without at least considering a sale.

See you next time,

Lexi Grant
Founder & CEO
​They Got Acquired​

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P.S. Keep your eye on your inbox...

Next week I'm sharing my own personal annual year-in-review for this business.