other Startups

Vector Media Group is a bootstrapped web development and digital marketing agency founded by Matt Weinberg in high school around 2000, initially as a computer repair service before pivoting to web design and online marketing. Now 32 employees strong and generating $6 million in annual revenue, the company serves enterprise clients including Google, the Associated Press, and Columbia University, offering web development, design, branding, and ad spend management services. The agency has been on the Inc. 5,000 list for three consecutive years and has been profitable every month since inception without taking outside funding.

NowThis is a digital-first news and media company focused on creating short-form video content for social platforms. As of January 2016, they achieve approximately 1 billion monthly views across all channels and had just closed a $16 million funding round with a team of about 50 full-time employees. Their success comes from data-driven content optimization, particularly on Facebook video, where they've pioneered techniques like volume-agnostic videos with on-screen text and close-up interview formats designed for mobile consumption.

OutCold is an experiential marketing agency founded by Fritz Heffinger that specializes in creating mobile brand experiences using converted shipping containers and vintage vehicles. The agency did $2.5M in revenue in 2015 and works with major brands like Nordstrom, creating immersive on-the-road campaigns that prioritize authentic consumer interaction over traditional media buying. Fritz aims to scale the agency to $10-15M within 2-3 years as brands shift budgets toward experiential and guerrilla marketing.

Gerard Adams co-founded Elite Daily, a content-focused online publication targeting millennials, initially bootstrapped with $60,000 of his own capital. The site grew to 80 million unique visitors at the time of acquisition by Daily Mail, generating approximately $20 million in annual revenue through display and native advertising. Elite Daily's growth was driven by high-volume content creation (80 articles per day), trend-based writing, and strategic use of social platforms to distribute content.

Michael Slavin built US Emerald Energy, an oil and gas exploration company that brings investors into drilling partnerships, after recovering from bankruptcy post-military service. Starting with $203,000 raised from four people (including a stranger met at a gas station) in his first week and a half, he grew the company to $1 million in profit within 3.5 years. The company has operated for over 23 years, maintaining an 85-90% success rate on wells by focusing on PUD (Proved Undeveloped) reserves with 3D seismic data, and profiting from both investor management fees (20%) and direct well ownership stakes.

Joe Fairless left a $150k+ VP role at a NYC ad agency in 2013 to pursue real estate syndication after an initial consulting business failed. He acquired his first 168-unit apartment complex for $6.3M in July 2013, raising $1.3M from investors. Since then, he has scaled to 250+ units and launched a daily real estate podcast (120k monthly downloads as of Feb 2016) that generates ~$2-3k/month in net sponsorship revenue and has raised over $800k from podcast listeners.

Jason Hartman is a serial entrepreneur and real estate investor who has built a media empire around podcasting, most notably The Creating Wealth Show, which has over 640 episodes and reaches listeners in 164 countries with approximately 5,000 downloads per episode. His primary revenue comes from his real estate investment company that helps clients invest in properties, generating approximately $2.4 million in referral fees from managing around 500 properties annually. He leverages his popular podcast as a marketing tool to drive attendance at Jason Hartman University events and promote his real estate investment services.

Omelette is a creative agency based in Culver City, LA with 80 employees working with major brands like Red Bull, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Pokemon, and AT&T. The agency specializes in branded video content and social media strategy, with a focus on converting creative content into measurable business results. Ty Stafford, a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree at age 27, leads content strategy efforts and works on high six-figure projects like Red Bull's campaign to drive can sales through social content.

Jefferson Lilly co-founded Park Street Partners in 2013 after spending 7 years personally investing in mobile home parks, discovering 20-40% cash-on-cash returns far exceeded traditional real estate. By 2016, he had raised a $5 million fund and personally owned 11 mobile home park communities generating over $100,000 in annual cash flow from his two Oklahoma properties, positioning himself as an industry educator and expert.

RAIN is a digital agency founded by Andrew Halla that operates across three offices (Utah, New York, Nicaragua) with about 100 employees. The agency specializes in strategy, creative, and development, working with major enterprise clients like Beachbody, Campbell Soup Company, Facebook, Walmart, and Puma. In 2015, RAIN generated approximately $14 million in revenue and was projected to reach $17-18 million in 2016, primarily through enterprise retainers ranging from $50-75,000 per month.

Juice Land is a bootstrapped organic juice bar chain founded by Matt in Austin, Texas, with origins tracing back to 2001. As of 2015, the company operates 16 locations across Austin, Houston, and Brooklyn with $10M in annual revenue and 275 employees. Growth has been driven by word-of-mouth and location selection based on foot traffic observation, with a focus on premium organic ingredients and product consistency despite razor-thin net margins of approximately 5%.

Steve Sims is a luxury experience broker who has built an agency connecting high-net-worth entrepreneurs and self-made individuals with exclusive, once-in-a-lifetime experiences (meeting celebrities, private performances, etc.). Operating since at least 2015 with just under 3,000 clients worldwide, the business generated just under $10 million in revenue in 2015, operating with a lean team of 11-12 people. Steve's core differentiator is his credibility chain networking approach—leveraging relationships to gain access to otherwise unreachable people and opportunities.

Boost and Co. is a venture debt fund founded by Lance Myserbo-Witch that finances early-stage high-tech companies in Europe through loans rather than equity investment. The firm has completed 25 deals totaling $120 million in capital deployed, sitting between traditional bank lending and venture capital with 8-12% interest rates, 1-2% fees, and warrant packages. With $150 million in assets under management backed by pension fund LPs, Boost and Co. offers entrepreneurs a way to preserve equity while accessing growth capital.

Laurie Lane Zucker founded Impact Entrepreneur Center after 10+ years in social enterprise and impact investing to build an ecosystem for entrepreneurs focused on triple bottom line business (financial, social, and environmental returns). The organization operates as a LinkedIn-based network of 10,700+ members across 150+ countries and generates revenue through consulting engagements, success fees on funded deals (typically 5% of seed rounds), retainers, speaking engagements, and mentoring. Laurie is now scaling the model into a physical center combining incubation, acceleration, remote learning, and regional economic development initiatives in Massachusetts.

Graham Williams co-founded Fun Fun Fun Fest in 2006 with Tim Leigh, growing it from a single-day event with 3,000 attendees and a $100k budget to a three-day festival attracting approximately 20,000 people with a $4-5M production budget. He also built Transmission Agency, a year-round booking and promotions company that operates across Texas. The business model generates revenue primarily through ticket sales (approximately $1-2M), sponsorships, and bar/beverage sales.

ZynePak is a custom publication and VIP merchandise agency founded in 2011 by Kim Kaup that creates exclusive fan packages for entertainers, brands, and celebrities. Starting with $600,000 in revenue in 2011, the company grew to $2.8M by 2015 and appeared on Shark Tank, receiving offers from four out of five sharks (though ultimately declining to accept). They work with major artists like Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes, Katy Perry, and sports teams like the Boston Red Sox and New York Mets, operating on a B2B wholesale model with 20-35% gross margins.

Beate Chelette built an image licensing business focusing on architecture and interior photography that became the industry leader, eventually licensing celebrity content to 76 countries. She sold the business to Bill Gates' Corbis in 2006 for a significant multiple of the ~$1M revenue and has since pivoted to coaching creative entrepreneurs and women in business, building targeted email lists of 12,000+ and helping clients scale to six and seven-figure businesses.

Ilias Segalexis is a former software developer who left a €40,000/year corporate job in Greece to build a media company targeting the software development industry. His network of properties (primarily Java Code Geeks) reaches over 1.5 million people per month and generated mid-six figures in 2015 with an 85% net margin through advertising, sponsorships, and lead generation partnerships.

Brian Baderra founded Amplify Relations (originally Grassroots 2.0) in 2009 at age 19 after being laid off from a political ad agency, bootstrapping the startup on student loans with his first client being a former employer client offering a few hundred dollars monthly. The company grew to 13 full-time employees and nearly $2 million in revenue by 2015, specializing in high-margin political campaigns, robocalls, and mass-market advertising for political entities, corporations, and startups. Their differentiation came from licensing a robocall system from Canada that yielded 90% margins on certain projects, while positioning themselves as a full-service agency of record.

Verbal Plus Visual is a digital agency founded by Anshay Bhatia in 2009 that specializes in e-commerce strategy, design, development, and optimization for innovative brands. The company grew from $150k in first-year revenue to low seven figures by 2015 with a healthy 20% net margin, and has become a premier Shopify partner. Their growth is driven primarily through strategic partnerships with complementary agencies and inbound leads from their strong portfolio.