Interview: ” Building online story from fun to doing it full time”
Oliver
Driven by the passion of helping others through the e-com journey with Thomas Smale
App/Company Name:
FE International
Website:
Obvi wasn’t a random idea born overnight. In fact, Obvi comes with a lot of history, 6 years to be exact! The three of us co-founders, who double as best men at each other’s weddings, have been working in the health and wellness space servicing other brands with our unique skill sets for the last 6 years
Sharing Success Stories with Thomas Smale
Disclaimer: all the success stories published on our blog are the results of written interviews. Even though the editors may make some minor changes to the grammar, spelling, and/or punctuation, the respondents’ writing styles, views, opinions, stores screenshots and personal photos are left unchanged.
The Dropshipping.com Team
Describe your business/service in a few words:
FE International is an award-winning global M&A advisor of SaaS, e-commerce and content businesses. It has completed acquisitions for thousands of founders, owners and acquirers, and is the preeminent valuation thought leader in the industry. Its team includes experts in exit planning, valuation, accounting, legal and more.
Describe your e-commerce journey. How did you enter the space?
I began building and selling online companies in my early 20s as an interest. After realizing I had a natural talent for increasing the value of these businesses, this became my full-time career. I’ve led our firm to sell over 1,200 businesses in the last decade, with many being e-commerce businesses.
How your business is helping the e-commerce owners?
With free valuations, we help e-commerce owners get a pulse check of their business to decide whether selling now or later down the road is in their favor. If now isn’t a good time to sell, we provide advice for increasing their business’ value and setting it up for a successful exit down the line. Once it’s time to sell, we learn about everything related to the business to ensure we nail down the right buyer for each e-commerce owner’s unique needs and goals.
What is the most significant challenge dropshippers are facing today?
Managing inventory. With one or more third-party suppliers, it can be difficult to keep up with how much inventory there is and how much inventory each supplier has. Dropshippers need to have the necessary technology to automate order processing and effectively manage their inventory, especially if they want the business to grow.
What was the game changer to enter dropshipping or e-commerce business as a service provider? What are your future plans?
The fact that the world was becoming increasingly digital, and more business was taking place online. I knew it was the right time to enter the space and be an early provider of expert M&A services to e-commerce owners looking to sell their online businesses. Future plans are to expand our reach and help even more entrepreneurs make life-changing exits.
What’s your best advice for both dropshipping beginners and experienced e-commerce owners?
Get a valuation of your business, no matter the age of your business or your plans (or lack thereof) for selling it. FE offers free valuations (https://feinternational.com/sell-your-website/) to help founders see where their business falls, learn how to best set themselves up for an exit, and determine if selling now or later down the road would be in their best interest.
