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Sep 16
34m 20s

$12 Million Exit... Did He Just Get Luck...

Hampton
About this episode

Thinking about selling your company? 24 founders told us what really happens after the wire hits. — https://joinhampton.com/exit-report


Donald Spann built a multi-million dollar call center from scratch — with no outside capital, no technical background, and no safety net. Even crazier? He sold it for $12M to the first person who ever signed up.

Here’s what we talk about:

  • Dropping out of college because he knew he’d never work for anyone else
  • Building a cleaning business off a Reddit thread… then using it to launch something way bigger
  • Accidentally going viral and getting 65,000 applications on a mom blog 
  • Why he’s never raised a dollar of capital — and never plans to
  • His $12M exit from a bootstrapped call center (and how the buyer was his first-ever customer)
  • Breaking down his finances: no real estate, no advisor, just stocks and angel bets
  • Growing up Black in a private school bubble and how that shaped everything
  • Living on $10K/month in Mexico and self-funding a new mezcal brand

Cool Links:


Sponsors:


Chapters:

  • (1:26) Donald’s Net Worth & Current Ventures
  • (3:57) Early Life, Education, and First Lessons
  • (7:40) First Businesses & Getting Into Y Combinator
  • (10:49) Building and Selling the Cleaning Business
  • (14:02) The Successful Exit of Vicki Virtual
  • (18:54) Personality, Confidence, and Entrepreneurial Edge
  • (22:41) Meritocracy, Hard Work, and the Role of Luck
  • (25:40) Reflections on Success & Personal Growth
  • (29:02) Race, Identity, and the Entrepreneurial Journey

This podcast is a ridiculous concept: high-net-worth people reveal their personal finances. Inspired by real conversations happening in the Hampton community.



Your Host: Harry Morton

  • Founder of Lower Street, a podcast production company helping brands launch and grow top-tier podcasts.
  • Co-parents a cow named Eliza.
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