Lessons From 2,000+ Acquisitions, with Andrew Gazdecki (Acquire.com)
Selling a business is never as simple as the headlines make it seem. While multi-billion dollar acquisitions grab attention, the reality is that most exits are much smaller and that doesn’t make them any less meaningful. In fact, as Andrew Gazdecki, founder of Acquire.com, explained on a recent episode of QSBS Solved, many founders can achieve life-changing results without ever chasing a unicorn valuation.
Andrew’s own journey includes three exits: a college-era job board for mobile developers, a decentralized crypto trading platform, and Business Apps, a SaaS company he bootstrapped to $10 million in revenue before exiting. Each deal taught him something new about building and exiting a company, but the most consistent lesson was that preparation and perspective matter as much as the product itself.
“When I sold my last startup, I claimed QSBS and it changed my life.”
-Andrew Gazdecki, Founder | Acquire.com
Why Bootstrapping Changes the Exit Equation
For Andrew, bootstrapping Business Apps was a conscious decision. By avoiding outside capital, he kept a clean cap table and preserved flexibility in deal negotiations. While a $10 million ARR SaaS might be a modest win by venture capital standards, for a founder with majority ownership it can be life-changing. Bootstrapping allowed him to prioritize profitability and sustainability over hypergrowth, which ultimately made the business more appealing to buyers and easier to sell.
This approach also reduced stress. Instead of scaling at all costs, he focused on building a product that solved a real problem, maintaining happy customers, and creating healthy margins. That combination positioned him for multiple offers when it came time to sell and gave him the ability to choose a deal structure that aligned with his personal and financial goals.
Common Traits of a Sellable Business
When asked what separates businesses that sell quickly from those that struggle on the market, Andrew pointed to three essentials:
Clean Financials – Organized, transparent, and easy-to-read profit and loss statements make due diligence faster and more appealing to buyers.
Operational Independence – A business that can run without the founder in day-to-day operations will attract more offers and higher valuations.
Profitability – While growth is important, sustainable profit is often the deciding factor for a buyer looking for long-term stability.
Founders who focus on these fundamentals early, even before they think about selling, can dramatically increase the pool of interested buyers and the overall sale price.
The Reality of Most Exits
Andrew stressed that the majority of acquisitions are far smaller than people expect, with most falling under $30 million. The average deal on Acquire.com is around $250,000, and yet many of these transactions provide founders with the financial security they set out to achieve. In some cases, a $4 million sale may be easier to close and just as impactful as a $40 million one, especially for bootstrapped founders.
The key takeaway for entrepreneurs is that building a profitable, well-run business, even if it never becomes a household name, can lead to a satisfying and financially rewarding exit. Chasing headlines is optional. Building something valuable, sellable, and personally fulfilling should be the priority.
