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Feb 11, 2018 · 20m · top-founders

932 How ShareASale CEO Kept 100% Equity, Sold For $35m+

Brian Littleton · 11m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this episode of The Top Entrepreneurs, host Nathan Latka interviews ShareASale founder Brian Littleton, who shares how he bootstrapped his affiliate marketing platform to $14 million in net revenue, retained 100 percent equity for 17 years, and completed a $35 million-plus acquisition with Awin.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 35.7% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.2 Guest teaching 4.0 Guest disagreement 2.3 Nathan pushing back 3.7
05100:0010:0020:001:42–3:49 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 ShareASale's Performance Marketing Business Model Nathan tries to do the math on affiliate commissions using hypothetical figures, but Brian gently schools him on realistic retail commission rates (5-10% for fashion versus 30-40% for digital/content) while clarifying their 20% network cut.3:49–6:22 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 Direct-to-Consumer Market Position and Early Growth Nathan asks why brands use ShareASale instead of Amazon, prompting Brian to explain the difference between direct-to-consumer affiliate programs and marketplace listings before discussing early platform growth.6:23–9:15 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Marketplace Dynamics and Publisher Network Scale Brian immediately corrects Nathan's misconception conflating sellers and publishers by using Nathan himself as a concrete example of a publisher. Brian then dismisses vanity metrics by noting that while 1M+ publishers registered, only 20k were actively paid.9:16–11:38 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Bootstrapping to Profitability and Retaining 100% Equity Nathan repeatedly presses for pre-acquisition platform volume numbers and revenue floors, but Brian firmly stonewalls and deflects to broader AWIN group Black Friday statistics before detailing his 100% bootstrapped equity structure.11:41–17:04 · Nathan as informed peer 7/10 Sponsor Break: ProsperWorks CRM After the sponsor read, Nathan demonstrates sharp research by citing public filings from Axel Springer detailing ShareASale's $14M net revenue and $5.8M EBITDA to interrogate the reported $35M sale price. Brian clarifies valuation mechanics and distinguishes ShareASale from ClickBank.17:05–19:42 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions During the Famous Five, Nathan playfully calls out the likelihood of an earn-out keeping Brian at the acquiring company, which Brian acknowledges with a laugh while giving candid answers about sleep and hiring an accountant.1:42–3:49 · Guest teaching 5/10 ShareASale's Performance Marketing Business Model Nathan tries to do the math on affiliate commissions using hypothetical figures, but Brian gently schools him on realistic retail commission rates (5-10% for fashion versus 30-40% for digital/content) while clarifying their 20% network cut.3:49–6:22 · Guest teaching 4/10 Direct-to-Consumer Market Position and Early Growth Nathan asks why brands use ShareASale instead of Amazon, prompting Brian to explain the difference between direct-to-consumer affiliate programs and marketplace listings before discussing early platform growth.6:23–9:15 · Guest teaching 6/10 Marketplace Dynamics and Publisher Network Scale Brian immediately corrects Nathan's misconception conflating sellers and publishers by using Nathan himself as a concrete example of a publisher. Brian then dismisses vanity metrics by noting that while 1M+ publishers registered, only 20k were actively paid.9:16–11:38 · Guest teaching 2/10 Bootstrapping to Profitability and Retaining 100% Equity Nathan repeatedly presses for pre-acquisition platform volume numbers and revenue floors, but Brian firmly stonewalls and deflects to broader AWIN group Black Friday statistics before detailing his 100% bootstrapped equity structure.11:41–17:04 · Guest teaching 5/10 Sponsor Break: ProsperWorks CRM After the sponsor read, Nathan demonstrates sharp research by citing public filings from Axel Springer detailing ShareASale's $14M net revenue and $5.8M EBITDA to interrogate the reported $35M sale price. Brian clarifies valuation mechanics and distinguishes ShareASale from ClickBank.17:05–19:42 · Guest teaching 2/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions During the Famous Five, Nathan playfully calls out the likelihood of an earn-out keeping Brian at the acquiring company, which Brian acknowledges with a laugh while giving candid answers about sleep and hiring an accountant.1:42–3:49 · Guest disagreement 2/10 ShareASale's Performance Marketing Business Model Nathan tries to do the math on affiliate commissions using hypothetical figures, but Brian gently schools him on realistic retail commission rates (5-10% for fashion versus 30-40% for digital/content) while clarifying their 20% network cut.3:49–6:22 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Direct-to-Consumer Market Position and Early Growth Nathan asks why brands use ShareASale instead of Amazon, prompting Brian to explain the difference between direct-to-consumer affiliate programs and marketplace listings before discussing early platform growth.6:23–9:15 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Marketplace Dynamics and Publisher Network Scale Brian immediately corrects Nathan's misconception conflating sellers and publishers by using Nathan himself as a concrete example of a publisher. Brian then dismisses vanity metrics by noting that while 1M+ publishers registered, only 20k were actively paid.9:16–11:38 · Guest disagreement 4/10 Bootstrapping to Profitability and Retaining 100% Equity Nathan repeatedly presses for pre-acquisition platform volume numbers and revenue floors, but Brian firmly stonewalls and deflects to broader AWIN group Black Friday statistics before detailing his 100% bootstrapped equity structure.11:41–17:04 · Guest disagreement 3/10 Sponsor Break: ProsperWorks CRM After the sponsor read, Nathan demonstrates sharp research by citing public filings from Axel Springer detailing ShareASale's $14M net revenue and $5.8M EBITDA to interrogate the reported $35M sale price. Brian clarifies valuation mechanics and distinguishes ShareASale from ClickBank.17:05–19:42 · Guest disagreement 2/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions During the Famous Five, Nathan playfully calls out the likelihood of an earn-out keeping Brian at the acquiring company, which Brian acknowledges with a laugh while giving candid answers about sleep and hiring an accountant.1:42–3:49 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 ShareASale's Performance Marketing Business Model Nathan tries to do the math on affiliate commissions using hypothetical figures, but Brian gently schools him on realistic retail commission rates (5-10% for fashion versus 30-40% for digital/content) while clarifying their 20% network cut.3:49–6:22 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Direct-to-Consumer Market Position and Early Growth Nathan asks why brands use ShareASale instead of Amazon, prompting Brian to explain the difference between direct-to-consumer affiliate programs and marketplace listings before discussing early platform growth.6:23–9:15 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Marketplace Dynamics and Publisher Network Scale Brian immediately corrects Nathan's misconception conflating sellers and publishers by using Nathan himself as a concrete example of a publisher. Brian then dismisses vanity metrics by noting that while 1M+ publishers registered, only 20k were actively paid.9:16–11:38 · Nathan pushing back 6/10 Bootstrapping to Profitability and Retaining 100% Equity Nathan repeatedly presses for pre-acquisition platform volume numbers and revenue floors, but Brian firmly stonewalls and deflects to broader AWIN group Black Friday statistics before detailing his 100% bootstrapped equity structure.11:41–17:04 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Sponsor Break: ProsperWorks CRM After the sponsor read, Nathan demonstrates sharp research by citing public filings from Axel Springer detailing ShareASale's $14M net revenue and $5.8M EBITDA to interrogate the reported $35M sale price. Brian clarifies valuation mechanics and distinguishes ShareASale from ClickBank.17:05–19:42 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions During the Famous Five, Nathan playfully calls out the likelihood of an earn-out keeping Brian at the acquiring company, which Brian acknowledges with a laugh while giving candid answers about sleep and hiring an accountant.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 60.3% · guest 39.7%0:00 · Nathan 60.3% · guest 39.7%3:00 · Nathan 26% · guest 74%3:00 · Nathan 26% · guest 74%6:00 · Nathan 14.8% · guest 85.2%6:00 · Nathan 14.8% · guest 85.2%9:00 · Nathan 26.8% · guest 73.2%9:00 · Nathan 26.8% · guest 73.2%12:00 · Nathan 44.2% · guest 55.8%12:00 · Nathan 44.2% · guest 55.8%15:00 · Nathan 25.9% · guest 74.1%15:00 · Nathan 25.9% · guest 74.1%18:00 · Nathan 55.2% · guest 44.8%18:00 · Nathan 55.2% · guest 44.8%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 10:10 Deflecting Revenue and Volume Disclosures

Brian flatly rejects Nathan's repeated probing for specific pre-acquisition revenue floors, refusing to provide private platform figures.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 9:20 Pushing for a Revenue Floor

Nathan refuses to accept Brian's deflection to generic Black Friday metrics and directly pushes Brian to give at least a ballpark pre-acquisition volume floor.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 6:23 Explaining the Core Affiliate Role

Brian explicitly corrects Nathan's confusion about platform participants, using Nathan's own podcast and affiliate monetization models to demonstrate what a publisher actually is.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 15:51 Dropping Specific EBITDA and Net Revenue Filings

Nathan displays deep homework by pulling Axel Springer's official financial filings, quoting exact figures of $14M net revenue and $5.8M anticipated EBITDA.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
ShareASale's Performance Marketing Business Model 4523 Nathan tries to do the math on affiliate commissions using hypothetical figures, but Brian gently schools him on realistic retail commission rates (5-10% for fashion versus 30-40% for digital/content) while clarifying their 20% network cut.
Direct-to-Consumer Market Position and Early Growth 3412 Nathan asks why brands use ShareASale instead of Amazon, prompting Brian to explain the difference between direct-to-consumer affiliate programs and marketplace listings before discussing early platform growth.
Marketplace Dynamics and Publisher Network Scale 4623 Brian immediately corrects Nathan's misconception conflating sellers and publishers by using Nathan himself as a concrete example of a publisher. Brian then dismisses vanity metrics by noting that while 1M+ publishers registered, only 20k were actively paid.
Bootstrapping to Profitability and Retaining 100% Equity 4246 Nathan repeatedly presses for pre-acquisition platform volume numbers and revenue floors, but Brian firmly stonewalls and deflects to broader AWIN group Black Friday statistics before detailing his 100% bootstrapped equity structure.
Sponsor Break: ProsperWorks CRM 7535 After the sponsor read, Nathan demonstrates sharp research by citing public filings from Axel Springer detailing ShareASale's $14M net revenue and $5.8M EBITDA to interrogate the reported $35M sale price. Brian clarifies valuation mechanics and distinguishes ShareASale from ClickBank.
The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions 3223 During the Famous Five, Nathan playfully calls out the likelihood of an earn-out keeping Brian at the acquiring company, which Brian acknowledges with a laugh while giving candid answers about sleep and hiring an accountant.

Statements from this episode (8)

Disclosure
ShareASale's core business model took roughly 20% of affiliate commission payouts
“The models are a little different depending on programs, but generally speaking, it's about 20% of whatever the affiliate commission is.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 2:36
Assertion Not checkable as stated
ShareASale grew to roughly 500 merchant retailers within 18 months
“By the end of, I'd say year one and a half we were talking about having about 500 retailers at the time, mostly small businesses that were starting to use our platform.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 5:40
Disclosure
About 20% of ShareASale publishers were sourced directly from retailers
“What we found is about 20% of publishers are finding programs from the retailers.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 7:24
Disclosure
ShareASale hosted about 5,200 merchant retailers and programs
“Now it's over 5000, it's about 5200 programs and retailers that are on the platform.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 8:17
Disclosure
ShareASale paid roughly 20,000 active publishers in the preceding year
“Over the past year or so, we've paid about 20,000 different publishers.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 8:56
Disclosure
Brian Littleton fully bootstrapped ShareASale for 17 years
“Totally bootstrapped.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 10:33
Disclosure
Brian Littleton retained 100% equity in ShareASale through its acquisition
“I did hold a hundred percent. I mean, you do a lot of things over the years with bonusing and things along those lines to make a company grow, obviously. So I can't take, you know, all of that credit or whatnot, but the you know, I did own the company all the …”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 11:23
Disclosure
ShareASale operated with a lean 30-person team in Chicago
“There's 30 of us here in Chicago, so.”
Brian Littleton Feb 11, 2018 ▶ 17:01
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