I've been running a small ecommerce store for about 6 years now (home goods, ~$400k annual revenue) and I'm finally ready to move on. The problem is I keep hearing horror stories about people getting scammed or screwed over during the sale process. What's the actual safest way to sell an ecommerce site online? Like, do I need a broker? Are marketplaces safe? Any advice from folks who've been through this would be hugely appreciated.
ecommerce exit
What is the safest way to sell my ecommerce site online?
Brokers are expensive but honestly they're the safest route if you don't want to deal with tire-kickers and scammers yourself. We sold my wife's jewelry site through one and it was smooth, though the 12% commission stung.
12%?? That's robbery. I sold mine on Flippa with no broker and it was fine. Just use escrow and don't haqnd over anything until funds clear. Also ignore everyone who messages you with "I'll pay cash, just transfer the domain first."
I second escrow strongly. My cousin sold a dropshipping site and the buyer tried to do a chargeback after he transferred everything. Total nightmare. With a proper escrow service at least there's a paper trail and a neutral third party.
Wait, is Flippa actually reputable? I looked into it years ago and it seemed full of people selling literal garbage. No offense to the previous poster lol
It has good and bad listings, same as any marketplace. The vetting isnt great but if you do your own diligence as a seller it's fine. That said, 12% for a broker with a real buyer list is worth it when your store is doing decent revenue. Yours at $400k might actually get attention from serious buyers.
the safest way is the slowest way: get your financials audited/clean, get an NDA and a proper puurchase agreement drafted by a business attorney, use escrow, and don't let anyone poke around your analytics or supplier contacts until they've signed and put down a deposit. Most of the "scams" people complain about are really just sloppy sellers who gave away too much info too early.
Yeah this is fair. Though I will say the attorney fees add up if you're not careful. Get a quote first.
All of this is making me glad I'm not selling anything. Anyway OP good luck, let us know how it goes (unless you get scammed, in which case definitely let us know so we can roast the buyer).