Sell Your $1M+ Profit Business: Andrew Wilkinson & Tiny’s Founder-Friendly Process (Close in ~30 Days)

You’re here because “Sell Your $1M+ Profit Business: Andrew Wilkinson & Tiny’s Founder-Friendly Process (Close in ~30 Days)” sounds like the clean exit you want.
You want speed, fairness, and low drama.
You want a buyer who won’t burn your team out with endless diligence.
You want to know what to prepare, how to price it, and how to keep leverage without wasting months.
I’ll walk you through exactly how I’d run this process with Tiny, from first email to money-in-bank, with templates, checklists, and pitfalls I’ve seen sellers trip on.

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Who Tiny Actually Buys

Tiny buys simple, profitable, durable businesses that throw off cash.
They like $1M+ in annual profit, clean books, and a clear moat.
They prefer boring over shiny.
I frame this as “sturdy cash machines with low drama.”

Signals you’re a fit:

$1M–$20M EBITDA with stable or gently growing revenue.
High gross margins and low customer concentration.
Clear processes that don’t depend on the founder.

For a quick mindset reset on ruthless focus, see our blog post: Delete 95% of Your Email.

What “Close in ~30 Days” Really Means

It means the deal can be signed and funded fast once you’re prepared.
It doesn’t mean Tiny skips diligence.
It means they focus on the few things that matter and move decisively.

Translation:

Get clean, pre-reconciled financials.
Prepare a short data room before the first call.
Align early on price and terms.

The 7-Point Fit Checklist I Use Before I Email Tiny

I run this checklist to decide if I should reach out.
It saves me time and raises my odds of a fast “yes.”

Checklist:

3-year GAAP or tax-basis P&L, balance sheet, and cash flows are audit-ready.
Customer concentration is <25% for top client or justified with contracts.
Churn, LTV, CAC, and cohort data exist and make sense.
Founder time in the business is <10 hours/week or has a plan to reduce.
Single-sentence moat: “We win because ______.”
No legal landmines or lurking IP disputes.
Clear path to a 90-day handover without chaos.

The One-Page Email That Starts Everything

Short beats clever.
I send one page with the four facts buyers care about.

Template:

What it is in one line.
Trailing twelve months revenue and EBITDA.
Growth rate and margin trend.
Why it’s durable.

I attach nothing.
If they’re interested, I send a tight PDF.
If you want to see how I keep messages short, read: I Don’t Respond to Long Emails.

The 8-Slide Teaser Deck Tiny Actually Reads

I keep it to eight slides.
I write it like a memo.

Slides:

One-liner and business snapshot.
Financials at a glance (3 years + TTM).
Unit economics and retention.
Customer mix and concentration.
Moat and competition.
Org chart and founder time.
Risks and mitigations.
Deal asks and preferred terms.

Valuation: Multiples, Floors, and Reality

Multiples are a starting point, not the deal.
Terms decide your take-home.

How I think:

Set an EBITDA floor where you won’t sell below.
Price the terms package, not just the headline number.
Compare offers net of tax and net of working capital.

Price vs. Terms: Why Terms Usually Win

A slightly lower price with clean terms often beats a higher price with traps.
I favor fewer outs, minimal earnout, and fast funding.

Seller-friendly terms:

Short diligence with a clear checklist.
Modest working capital peg.
Limited indemnity with a cap and survival limits.

Earnouts and Rollovers: When to Say Yes

Earnouts misalign incentives when they’re big and long.
I use them sparingly.

Rules I follow:

If the buyer controls growth levers, keep earnout small.
Prefer rolling equity if you believe in Tiny’s stewardship.
Cap contingencies so you can sleep.

Diligence Without Drama

Diligence isn’t the enemy.
Surprises are.
I pre-stage a data room with the exact folders buyers ask for.

Core folders:

Financial statements, GL exports, bank statements.
Tax returns and sales tax status.
Customer contracts and vendor agreements.
Employment agreements and IP assignments.
KPIs, cohorts, churn, and unit economics.

The Data Room: What To Upload First

I upload only the “vital 20%” first.
I keep everything else ready.

Vital 20%:

TTM P&L reconciled to bank.
Top 20 customers with revenue by month.
Churn, LTV, CAC methodology.
Updated AR and AP aging.

Financials That Make Buyers Say “Yes”

Clean beats clever.
I reconcile revenue to cash.
I explain adjustments in plain English.

I include:

Bridge from cash to accrual.
One-time add-backs with receipts.
Seasonality notes and price change history.

Legal Paperwork, Simplified

I ask counsel to keep markups tight.
I remove legacy weirdness before LOI.
I clean up IP assignments and contractor agreements early.

For more on cutting complexity, see our blog post: Never Tell, Always Storytell.

Your Team: Offers, Roles, and Retention

People remember how you sell them, not just how you sell the company.
I align incentives with retention bonuses and clear roles.

What I do:

Share a simple transition memo.
Offer stay bonuses for key staff.
Lock in remote and flexibility where possible.

10-Day Clean-Up That Adds Real Value

Most value is created before the first meeting.
I fix the obvious friction.

Quick wins:

Kill zombie subscriptions and unused tools.
Consolidate vendors and reduce SKUs.
Document the top 10 SOPs and publish them.
Move to a single source of truth for finance.

Red Flags That Stall a Tiny Deal

Buyers hate surprises more than high prices.

Common stalls:

Unrecorded liabilities.
Hidden churn behind prepaid contracts.
Founder-keyed sales with no process.
Legal gremlins in old contractor IP.

The 90-Day Post-Close Plan

A good plan removes fear.
I write a one-pager the buyer can believe.

Plan outline:

Day 0: Cash, access, and owner comms.
Days 1–30: Knowledge transfer and KPI cadence.
Days 31–60: Owner downshift and leadership handoff.
Days 61–90: Final training and on-call schedule.

Rolling Equity With Tiny

Rolling 10–30% can 2–5x your outcome if Tiny compounds it.
I only roll if I’d happily buy my own company at today’s price.

My rule:

Roll for strategy.
Don’t roll to fix a weak price.

Tiny vs. PE vs. Strategics

Each buyer type “pays” differently.
PE offers structure and scale.
Strategics offer synergies and speed.
Tiny offers simplicity, time horizon, and founder empathy.

How I choose:

If you want a career exit, Tiny fits.
If you want a second bite with heavy ops help, PE fits.
If you want max price with integration risk, strategic fits.

Mistakes I See Sellers Make

I’ve made some of these.
You don’t have to.

Avoid:

Sending messy financials and “fixing later.”
Negotiating price but ignoring terms.
Hiding risks that will surface in week one of diligence.
Dragging the process past 60 days without reason.

How To Pitch Andrew Wilkinson and the Tiny Team

Be short, sharp, and transparent.
State the numbers.
State the moat.
State the risks.

Close with:

Your preferred terms.
Your transition plan.
Your timeline to close.

For a peek at Andrew’s operating taste and personal philosophy, browse the essays and podcast here: Never Enough – Home, Podcast, and Newsletter.
For an example of decisive capital allocation, see: A $3,600 Keyboard and a $66 Million Dollar Investment.

My 30-Day Tiny Deal Timeline (What I Actually Do)

This is my playbook to make “close in ~30 days” real.
I stack tasks so there’s no idle time.

Day 1–3:

Finalize teaser and send the one-page email.
Pre-stage the data room.
Choose counsel and tax advisor.

Day 4–10:

First call and follow-ups.
Share vital 20% of data room.
Align on terms and LOI.

Day 11–20:

Financial and legal diligence.
Customer calls as needed.
Draft definitive agreements.

Day 21–30:

Final markups.
Funds flow.
Close and transition kickoff.

When in doubt, keep communication crisp.
If you need inspiration on direct messaging, read: I Committed Email Suicide.

Founder FAQs

How fast can I close with Tiny if I’m prepared?
Around 30 days is realistic when your data room is tight and terms are simple.

What EBITDA multiple should I expect?
Expect a fair market range, then focus on terms and certainty to maximize net proceeds.

Do I need audited financials?
No, but clean reconciled statements and bank ties are non-negotiable.

Will Tiny keep my team?
If the team runs the machine, yes.
Prepare roles and a 90-day plan to reduce fear.

How much should I roll?
Roll only what you’d gladly invest today based on conviction, not pressure.

What about earnouts?
Keep them small, short, and crystal clear or avoid them.

How do I avoid a broken process?
Decide fast, disclose early, and keep one communication channel.

What kills deals late?
Hidden liabilities, surprise churn, and legal IP gaps.

Should I run a broad auction or go exclusive?
If speed and fit matter most, a focused path with Tiny can beat a long auction.

How do I communicate the sale to customers?
Use a customer-first note that emphasizes continuity and benefits.
One page.
No drama.

Conclusion

“Sell Your $1M+ Profit Business: Andrew Wilkinson & Tiny’s Founder-Friendly Process (Close in ~30 Days)” is a practical, low-drama way to turn a durable cash machine into a life-changing outcome.
Get prepared, focus on terms, disclose fast, and protect your team.
Then move.
Get Your Copy of Never Enough at https://www.neverenough.com/

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