What It Was Like to Sell a Business to Microsoft | Steven Cox
Today I have a special guest and friend who's been through an IPO and sold his last company to Microsoft.
Stephen Cox created his first success as an early employee at PurchasePro, a B2B eCommerce platform, which went public in 1999. Steven followed that up by building TakeLessons, an online music lessons platform to help other musicians and educators connect with students in person and online. By 2021, TakeLessons had become one of the largest live educational sites on the web and was purchased by Microsoft.
E8: Today I have a special guest and friend who's been through an IPO and sold his last company to Microsoft.
Stephen Cox created his first success as an early employee at PurchasePro, a B2B eCommerce platform, which went public in 1999. Steven followed that up by building TakeLessons, an online music lessons platform to help other musicians and educators connect with students in person and online. Steven, his team and his investors did not find instant success with Take Lessons, but they never gave up.
And 14 years later, having raised 19 million from 14 different investors in three rounds, his company TakeLessons became one of the largest live educational sites on the web and was purchased by Microsoft in 2021.
Steven Cox shares how he was able to earn, in his words, the emotional equity to convince his board to increase the equity share for some key employees and co-founders of TakeLessons who are not only instrumental in building the take lessons business, but who are critical in making the sale to Microsoft happen.
Today's episode is for founders who may find themselves needing to ask investors and their board for a bigger piece of the pie for key employees or themselves to get everyone aligned around the sale of a business. I hope you enjoy my conversation with Steven Cox.
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This episode is brought to you by Exitwise: https://www.exitwise.com
Exitwise helps business owners create the exits they deserve by assembling the best teams of industry specific, M&A experts, who will help maximize the sale of each business.
How Does It Work:
1. Schedule A Call: Schedule a call with one of our M&A Advisors and we'll walk you through the entire process of selling your business, from market valuations to M&A expert fees and from due diligence to the signing of your purchase agreement. We're here to answer any questions you may have.
Stephen Cox created his first success as an early employee at PurchasePro, a B2B eCommerce platform, which went public in 1999. Steven followed that up by building TakeLessons, an online music lessons platform to help other musicians and educators connect with students in person and online. Steven, his team and his investors did not find instant success with Take Lessons, but they never gave up.
And 14 years later, having raised 19 million from 14 different investors in three rounds, his company TakeLessons became one of the largest live educational sites on the web and was purchased by Microsoft in 2021.
Steven Cox shares how he was able to earn, in his words, the emotional equity to convince his board to increase the equity share for some key employees and co-founders of TakeLessons who are not only instrumental in building the take lessons business, but who are critical in making the sale to Microsoft happen.
Today's episode is for founders who may find themselves needing to ask investors and their board for a bigger piece of the pie for key employees or themselves to get everyone aligned around the sale of a business. I hope you enjoy my conversation with Steven Cox.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This episode is brought to you by Exitwise: https://www.exitwise.com
Exitwise helps business owners create the exits they deserve by assembling the best teams of industry specific, M&A experts, who will help maximize the sale of each business.
How Does It Work:
1. Schedule A Call: Schedule a call with one of our M&A Advisors and we'll walk you through the entire process of selling your business, from market valuations to M&A expert fees and from due diligence to the signing of your purchase agreement. We're here to answer any questions you may have.
On this call, we'll want to learn about the history of the business, your financial performance, your management team and listen to your thoughts and requirements for selling the business so we can make sure to find the best M&A experts to help maximize your exit.
2. Review Top Experts: Once we've had a chance to process all your business information, we'll share with you, our top choices for investment bankers, M&A attorneys, and tax accountants to help maximize the sale of your business.
2. Review Top Experts: Once we've had a chance to process all your business information, we'll share with you, our top choices for investment bankers, M&A attorneys, and tax accountants to help maximize the sale of your business.
We’ll present each M&A expert’s transaction history, estimated valuation range for your business and their fee structures. Then we’ll talk through the pros and cons of each choice to help you prioritize and make the best decisions.
3. Negotiate & Hire: Finally, when we've narrowed it down to your top choices, we'll negotiate your engagement letter with each M&A expert to make sure fees and terms are fair for everyone. We know what to look for and we know how to keep everyone incentivized for your optimal outcome.
Once your M&A experts have been selected and you’re ready to move forward, we’ll collect signatures and get everyone to work.
