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- Sam Parr's hot dog stand
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From launching a hot dog business to renting a mansion for a party to launch his startup…
Sam Parr has done it all (and is a big reason I am all-in on EVERY Founder building personal brands).
Sam Parr and his hot dog stand.
These 7 wild facts show how he hustled his way to millions:
1. Sold The Hustle to HubSpot for a reported $27M
This started with just a newsletter that shared business content.
Then it grew to 1.5M subscribers.
Takeaway:
Great content wins, period.
2. Launched a hotdog stand in college
Sam went to Belmont University.
Where he opened a hot dog stand:
Southern Sam's – Wieners as Big as a Baby's Arm.
How did he use the money?
To pay off his student loans.
Setting him up for what was to come.
Takeaway:
Unusual ideas can lead to massive returns when the execution is there.
3. Runs a podcast with 2 million downloads a month
His podcast My First Million interviews entrepreneurs and breaks down how people make money.
Why?
Because it's like listening to people have a conversation on a park bench in New York.
Takeaway:
Everybody wants the path, someone just has to be able to show it to them.
4. Turned down a job with Airbnb early on
Before The Hustle, AirBnb came knocking.
It was just a startup at the time.
Instead of taking the "safe" path, Sam bet on himself.
(I'd say it paid off big time)
Takeaway:
Sometimes you just have to look in the mirror and say, "I'm built different."
5. Lived with his co-founder in a closet-sized apartment
In the early days of The Hustle, Sam and his co-founder lived in a tiny San Fransisco apartment.
They were:
Bootstrapping, putting in the hours, and just getting it day by day
All to build their media company.
Takeaway:
Founders who are willing to put it all on the line give themselves a chance to win in the long run.
6. Used guerrilla marketing to launch The Hustle
Now, I've heard of PR stunts (but this is one of my favorites).
When you are competing, you have to think outside the box.
So Sam rented a huge mansion and threw a party for 2,000+ people.
This put The Hustle on the map.
Takeaway:
Traditional marketing is great, but nothing beats a party.
7. Built Hustle Con with just $5,000
As a non-technical Founder, this is my favorite.
Before The Hustle, Sam ran Hustle Con (a conference for non-technical Founders to learn how to start a business).
Budget: $5,000
Result: 300 attendees (that eventually powered the newsletter)
Takeaway:
When you can create community and bring it in person, magic happens.
Now I joined Hampton this Summer because I wanted to be surrounded by people who get it.
They get the grind, the loss, the triumph, and everything that goes into building a business.
(and it has over-delivered)
I started Legacy Builder because (like Sam) I believe every Founder deserves an audience and platform.
(and I get to do this daily with our clients)
So, whether you are going to go launch a hot dog stand or are scaling a $1B SaaS I hope this helps.
As always, keep building…
Top Pieces of Content This Week:
Kieran Drew’s top 7 tips for writing after building a nearly 7-figure info-product business by growing his account on Twitter.
A great clip from David Perell interviewing Sam Altman.
A quick piece on the power and importance of creating content daily
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