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I sold Baremetrics

baremetrics.com

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Re: I sold Baremetrics

#91

Post by JackFr »

alextheparrot wrote: post #7
ccmcarey wrote: post #5

I've always loved the transparency and frank writings by Baremetrics. > As part of the structure of the deal, Xenon guaranteed I’d take home $3.7m, regardless of what came up during due diligence Interesting, I wonder how this is structured - surely there are items that can come up during due diligence that are deal-breakers for Xenon, and surely due-diligence is performed before the contract is closed? > But they we…

Good faith decisions go a long way, if they believe in the founder that 800k becomes an investment to be front-of-line for his next company. The economics make sense insofar as that sum isn’t going to move the fund’s returns a whole lot.

> Good faith decisions go a long way, if they believe in the founder that 800k becomes an investment to be front-of-line for his next company.

Or its the cost of a lesson to stay away.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#92

Post by tehwebguy »

ffdjjjffjj wrote: post #45

Wait, so your investors lose money, your employees (probably just a few) got at most $80k, and you get to retire? I mean, congrats on the hustle, but I wouldn’t waste your time trying to make it look good for everyone else.

The employees got paid the wage they agreed on, too. How much more of the sale do you think they should have been given?

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#93

Post by xyst »

Interesting "journey", but as I was reading I can't get over how similar this site looks to Stripe's old UI. From the color scheme to the icons for each product in the menu bar, it's almost a 1:1 copy.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#94

Post by dbbk »

falcolas wrote: post #36
Shpigford wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on the employees and when they joined and if they exercised stock options or not. Big range from a few thousand to over $80,000.

$80k for how many years of work? Unless it’s one, I’m with the parent. I’m sure it’s all legal and ‘equitable’ according to the terms, but that’s peanuts of a return for somewhere between 4 and 7 years of work (based off a typical vesting schedule).

I assume they also got paid in that time? You're making it sound like they've made a big sacrifice to (only) receive $80K at the end.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#95

Post by boyband6666 »

LandR wrote: post #83
bluedevil2k wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm with OP - $3.7M seems like a lot, but it really isn't enough to retire on. I assume he'll need to pay taxes on that, a 20% long-term capital gains tax. Brings it down to about $3M. Being generous and giving him 3.5% return (real return) a year in fixed income, that's only $105,000 a year in income, which he'll need to pay taxes on as well. He'll net out around $85k a year.

$85k a year is surely enough to live off without working? I'm in the UK, if I could earn a guaranteed £40k a year without working I'd be set for life and would have a pretty great life! That's would give me close to twice the national average salary. £80k a year would put you into the tiny percent of top earners.

I agree it is plenty but remembering it is a household income I suspect, so yes is a very nice life, without being silly.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#96

Post by ceejayoz »

bluedevil2k wrote: post #68
ianhawes wrote: post #34

>What I walk away with: $3,700,000 in cash >practically speaking, never need to work again Yikes, does someone want to tell him?

I'm with OP - $3.7M seems like a lot, but it really isn't enough to retire on. I assume he'll need to pay taxes on that, a 20% long-term capital gains tax. Brings it down to about $3M. Being generous and giving him 3.5% return (real return) a year in fixed income, that's only $105,000 a year in income, which he'll need to pay taxes on as well. He'll net out around $85k a year.

It's probably a mistake to assume he'll never earn another penny in income outside this payment.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#97

Post by skrebbel »

At the time I write this comment, half my screen is full of people calling Josh not so nice things.

Folks, this is a founder who's openly sharing the kinds of things we usually keep hidden. I doubt there's been a startup exit in the last decade where a healthy skeptical HN'er couldn't find some wrongs being done, if the details had been available. It's extremely hard to get everything right, from every perspective. The only difference here is that the details are actually available.

Please go easy. We want more posts like these, not fewer.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#98

Post by toasted_flakes »

dimva wrote: post #32
mattmanser wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

dimva also has his sums very wrong, 3.7 mill over 7 years is over 500k per year, you won't get that at any FAANG for a mid-level position.

GOOG has 3x'd in the past 7 years, FB has 10x'd, AMZN has 10x'd, etc. The initial stock grants would be worth a lot more, plus all the refreshers. My friends who are decent software engineers with a few years of experience are getting offers in the >$500k range right now. And I'm assuming that he would have been promoted at some point. I am comparing what someone with his skills could have earned at a FAMANG, not wha…

That's no different than me buying GOOG/FB/AMZN stock at the time of the grant, it's nothing more than betting on the stock market.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#99

Post by tehwebguy »

Veen wrote: post #71
nxmnxm99 wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that people on hacker news are angry about this cracks me up. The vast majority of folks here really are the crotchety programmers. Yes, a founder gets compensated significantly more than early employees. Massive shocker. If those early employees were talented enough, they’d be founders getting compensated. I don’t know when this dramatic shift happened to Americans to believe building a successful company i…

That rests on the perverse assumption that founders are the most talented and deserving individuals in the universe, and everyone one else should be happy to uncomplainingly serve the interests of these fabulous ubermensch. To say that’s a naive and inaccurate view of the world would be an understatement.

No, it doesn’t. It simply means if nobody founds it there is no company in the first place.

Whoever wants to do the first 3-6 months (or 3-6 years) without a paycheck while figuring out the problem, solution and funding gets to be the founder.

If employees were lowballed underpaid, screwed out of vested shares etc that’s different but of course the person that decides to make the company owns most of it and gets the biggest payout when it sells.

Re: I sold Baremetrics

#100

Post by eli »

ccmcarey wrote: post #5

I've always loved the transparency and frank writings by Baremetrics. > As part of the structure of the deal, Xenon guaranteed I’d take home $3.7m, regardless of what came up during due diligence Interesting, I wonder how this is structured - surely there are items that can come up during due diligence that are deal-breakers for Xenon, and surely due-diligence is performed before the contract is closed? > But they we…

Perhaps they simply had enough confidence in the information readily available at the LOI stage. Baremetrics went through a diligence process not long ago so I’m sure that was a lot already prepared.

Keep in mind it’s a relatively small purchase price.

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