Executive summary / Overview

This is a 1-year-old Shopify ecommerce brand selling high-ticket custom seat covers (and related accessories) with a dropship/China-fulfilled manufacturing model. The business reports annual revenue $518,394 and annual profit $133,872 (margin ~26%). The asking price is US$280,000, implying ~2.1× profit and 0.54× revenue (payback ≈ 2.1 years at current earnings). The SKU set is focused on custom seat covers (standard & full custom) plus floor mats and interior bundles; product pages highlight custom fit, 1-year warranty and made-to-order lead times.

• Why this is interesting: niche high-ticket product with a clear technical edge (VIN-level fit + ability to handle difficult seat types / vintage seats), profitable at scale, proven ad channels (Facebook + Google) and an owner-operated system with phone-sales as a strong competitive advantage. Big upside exists through product expansion, CRO, SEO and a more aggressive supply / inventory strategy.

• Primary risks: short track record (1 year), supplier / China dropship dependency, some internal metric inconsistencies in the listing (orders vs customers, two AOV values reported), limited external review footprint (no Trustpilot profile discovered during public search), and need to validate ad spend / CAC / returns / chargebacks.

1) Website performance & metrics — assessment & action items

Website speed

Quick public check: Site is a Shopify store with multiple rich media assets (product images, embedded video), which can increase load times. A technical audit (Lighthouse/GTmetrix/WebPageTest) is required to produce numeric metrics (TTFB, LCP, CLS). Do not buy without a full performance report.
 Action: run Lighthouse + GTmetrix; optimize image sizes, lazy-load offscreen assets, and ensure CDN + Shopify theme optimizations.

Product variation & number of SKUs

The public store shows seat covers (standard & full custom), floor mats and interior packages; site structure supports year/make/model selectors. The exact SKU count was not published in the listing. You should request a SKU file (Shopify export) and top-SKU sales % (Pareto).

AOV & unit economics

Seller gave AOV values of both ~$430 and $372 at different points in the listing — inconsistency flagged. For calculations in this report we used AOV = $372 (this aligns with annual revenue / reported order count). Average COGS ≈ $160 (seller claim). That implies gross per order ≈ $212 and gross margin ≈ 57% before ads and overhead. Verify AOV/Cogs on Shopify & merchant statements.
 Action: request a Shopify orders export + COGS per SKU to validate gross margin.

Repeat customer rate & CLTV

Inconsistent public figures: listing shows 1,383 orders and 9,959 customers, which is internally inconsistent (orders < customers). Repeat purchase rate and LTV cannot be calculated reliably from the data provided. Request cohort reports (Shopify/GA) and merchant/fulfillment records to compute 12-month LTV and repurchase cadence.

Website conversion rate

Seller reports ~0.6%–1.0% conversion. That is low for a high-ticket custom offer (but still profitable given present ad ROAS). Conversions can be improved via trust signals (video proof, more UGC, clearer measurement/VIN explanation, stronger FAQ, enhanced on-site social proof). Action: AB test improved trust flows (VIN explanation, installation videos, money-back / warranty callouts).

Website design & presentation

Professional Shopify layout with product detail pages, install guides and a visible contact phone number. Product pages emphasize custom fit & features (3D scanning language, warranty). However, the content library is limited (seller: needs more UGC and video demonstrating difficult seat fits).

Brand positioning & customer sentiment

Brand positions as a premium custom option (VIN data used; full-360 wraps for many seats). On-site reviews exist, but external review footprint is small to non-existent (no Trustpilot profile found in public search). BBB has a profile but the business is not BBB-accredited (listing accessible publicly). Limited independent reviews is a trust / acquisition concern for new buyers.

Marketing & efficiency

All sales reportedly come from Facebook & Google ads; a new ad agency (paid as % of sales) has helped scale. A phone-sales process (abandoned checkout calls via GoHighLevel) closes ~7% of prospects and currently contributes 35–40% of monthly revenue — this is a unique and valuable performance lever (differentiator). These are proprietary operational strengths to validate and replicate. (Seller provides these figures.)

CAC & scalability potential

CAC cannot be calculated from public data  seller did not provide ad spend. Based on seller revenue & AOV: monthly revenue ≈ $43.2k, AOV $372 → ≈116 orders/mo. With conversion ~0.6–1% that implies monthly traffic ~11.6k–19.4k visitors (estimate). Verify FB/Google ad spend, ROAS, and top performing creatives. Scaling is possible but likely requires >1.5× ad budget increases while maintaining creative/phone workflow. (Traffic estimate calculation is shown in the “Financials” section.)

Product offering & repositioning potential

Clear opportunities: add non-leather materials (cloth/mesh/ventilated fabrics) for hot climates, create pre-built bulk SKUs for best-selling vehicles to reduce COGS, build a larger UGC/video library around complex seat types, and pursue SEO for high-intent keywords. These are low-cost, high-ROI levers.

2) Financials (seller-provided)

Note: Monthly figures below were provided in the listing. They sum to the reported annual revenue and profit (we validated arithmetic). All numbers must be reconciled with Shopify + merchant statements.

Key financial metrics (from listing):

• Annual Revenue: $518,394 (seller-reported)

• Annual Profit: $133,872 (seller-reported)

• Profit Margin: ~26% (seller)

• Average Order Value (AOV): $372 (listing) — the listing also mentions $430 elsewhere; please reconcile.

• COGS per order (avg): ~$160 (seller) → implied gross margin ≈ 57% per order (before ads & overhead).

• Number of orders (year): 1,383 (listing) — close to estimated orders using AOV (518,394 / 372 ≈ 1,394).

• Number of customers: 9,959 (listing) — inconsistent with orders; needs verification.

• Email list: 5,375.

Valuation math (asking price USD $280,000):

• Asking / annual profit = $280,000 / $133,872 ≈ 2.09× profit (≈ seller’s 2.1×).

• Asking / revenue = $280,000 / $518,394 ≈ 0.54× revenue.

• Implied payback ~ 2.1 years at current profit run-rate (no growth).
   (These calculations are arithmetic validations of seller multiples.)

3) Marketing (Paid & Organic)

Current (seller) approach

• Paid: Facebook + Google ads are sole paid sources. New ad agency (paid as % of sales) contributed to recent scale. Creative team + video editor produce ads. (seller claim)

• Proprietary win: abandoned-checkout phone calls via GoHighLevel convert at ~7% and currently generate 35–40% of monthly revenue. This reduces reliance on funnel conversion and increases AOV. (This is an operational/marketing moat if reproducible.)

Weaknesses & opportunities

• SEO is untapped. There is opportunity to target high-intent keywords (e.g., “custom seat covers [make model]”, “leather seat covers for [truck model]”), build comparison content vs competitors and collect organic leads.

• Content library is small. Invest in UGC + demonstrative videos for difficult seat types (molded headrests, integrated seatbelt seats, vintage cars). This will lower buyer fear and improve conversion.

• Email & retention playbook not shown. Email list of 5,375 is valuable — set up lifecycle flows, cross-sell (floor mats, interior packages), and segmented offers to increase LTV.

• CRO: current conversion (~0.6–1%) is low for a premium product — test stronger trust elements (photo installs, VIN fit guarantee, 30-day fit/fix policy, clearer refund/repair flow), simplified vehicle selection, and immediate social proof at checkout.

Quick wins

1. Build a 20–video UGC/fitment library (complex seat types).

2. Launch SEO landing pages for top 20 vehicle models and run a small test budget.

3. Create an email welcome + abandoned cart sequence tied to phone follow ups.

4. Test a small inventory program (pre-built kits for top 10 vehicles) to shrink COGS and test price elasticity.

4) Operational efficiency

Strengths

• Established team: customer support, sales closer (phone calls), support assistant for full custom orders, creative director & video editor, fulfillment manager in China. Owner claims ~1 hour/day involvement due to systems.

• Supplier relationship: a factory partner in China that understands their custom processes, with inspection & fulfillment to a Chinese warehouse (seller claims). This is the backbone enabling custom made-to-order scale.

Risks & items to verify

• Supplier reliability & terms: single-supplier dependency is a material risk. Request supplier contracts, lead times, MOQs, pricing tiers, quality failure rates, and contact details for direct audit.

• Lead time inconsistency: site pages state production takes 2–6 weeks (different pages show 2–3 weeks vs 4–6 weeks). Confirm actual average production + shipping times and variability (holiday spikes).

• Fulfillment & returns: dropship model reduces warehousing but increases dependence on overseas timelines and QC. Request RMA, returns rate, and photos on returned items.

• Systems transfer: seller offers 90 days post-sale support and includes GoHighLevel sub-account, ad account + pixel transfer (if possible), social accounts, supplier contacts — but payment processors and the LLC are not included. Confirm what exactly is transferable and the timeframe for onboarding.

5) Customer Data & Relationships

• Email list: 5,375 (seller) — request list export, segmentation, open/click rates, revenue attribution to automation campaigns.

• On-site reviews: visible on the site (on-site testimonials) but limited presence in third-party review sites. This is a vulnerability for scaling beyond paid traffic.

• Phone sales process: a key competitive advantage — documented process? scripts? recorded calls? Ask for SOPs and call recordings (anonymized) to verify conversion claims.

• Subscription/repurchase: not shown. Recommend launching cross-sell bundles and a post-purchase flow focusing on referrals + installation support.

6) Legal & Compliance Due Diligence

Documents to request immediately (minimum):

• Shopify admin access (read-only) for 12 months (orders, customers, SKU sales).

• Merchant processor statements (PayPal, Authorize.net, any others) for 12 months. Note: seller moved from Stripe to Authorize.net due to Stripe holds — request details and any outstanding disputes. (Seller note: stripe holds; processors are PayPal & Authorize.net.)

• Federal & state tax returns / P&L for the past 12 months.

• Supplier contracts, MOQs, lead times, exclusivity (if any) and contact info.

• Fulfillment agreements, QC process documentation and inspection reports.

• List of trademarks, IP, domain registration, and any pending disputes.

• Customer complaints, chargeback history, refund & RMA logs.

• Employee / contractor agreements (NDAs, non-compete where applicable).

• Terms of sale, warranty documents, privacy policy, GDPR/COPPA/CCPA exposure (if selling internationally).

Red flags to watch for:

• High chargeback rates or processor holds (seller’s Stripe history requires careful review).

• Unwillingness to transfer ad accounts/pixels or supplier contact info.

• No written supplier terms (verbal commitments are risky).

• Misstated KPIs (orders vs customers inconsistency).

• Lack of external independent reviews.

Key insights (condensed)

1. Unique product moat: VIN-level fit + ability to fit complex seats (vintage, molded headrests) is a defensible differentiator.

2. Phone sales engine is high value: abandoned-checkout calling + a 7% close rate producing 35–40% of revenue is a rare conversion lever and should be baked into any scale plan. (Seller claim)

3. Healthy unit economics on paper: implied gross margin ≈ 57% per order (AOV − COGS), with overall net margin ~26% after ads / overhead — attractive for a 1-year old brand.

4. Growth runway is clear: SEO, product line expansion (non-leather), inventory for top SKUs, and an expanded content library can materially increase conversion & margin.

Challenges Identified:

• Data inconsistencies in the listing (AOV reported as $430 and $372; orders vs customers mismatch). This must be reconciled.

• Supplier dependency & lead time variability — custom production + overseas fulfillment creates quality and time risk.

• External trust gap — small or no presence on independent review platforms (Trustpilot / large third-party review aggregators).

• Single ad channel dependency (FB + Google) — need to diversify and improve organic acquisition (SEO, partnerships).

• Payment processor history (Stripe holds) — confirm reasons and whether this will affect future processor relationships.

Recommendations:

Doable deal structure (recommended)

• Recommended: Conditional offer with data escrow + earnout / holdback. Because this is a 1-year business with supplier dependency and metric inconsistencies, structure the deal to mitigate risk:

• Initial payment: 60% upfront of agreed price.

• Earnout/Holdback: 40% held and paid in 12 months based on agreed revenue/profit targets and verification of KPI (ad spend, orders, returns). Alternatively: 25% holdback + 15% seller earnout on 12-month net profit targets.

• Seller warranty & transition: 90 days transitional support (seller already offers) + seller signs a 6–12 month consulting agreement (paid) to transfer process knowledge (phone scripts, supplier SOPs) — only if seller involvement is essential to phone sales success.

Negotiation points

• Reduce price if seller cannot provide 12 months of bank/merchant statements reconciled to Shopify orders. Given short track record, a target range of 1.6–1.9× profit (instead of 2.1×) is defensible unless documentation is perfect.

• Escrow on supplier contact and QC proof: require supplier contact details be transferred into escrow and validated.

• Holdback on undisclosed liabilities (chargebacks, refunds) for 12 months.

Immediate data to request (to validate before final offer)

1. Shopify admin export (orders, customers, SKUs) for 12 months.

2. Merchant processors statements (PayPal, Authorize.net, Stripe historical) for 12 months.

3. Ad accounts (FB & Google) performance + ad spend for 12 months (ROAS, CAC by campaign).

4. Supplier contracts + recent inspection photos + 3 sample order tracking numbers.

5. Full COGS breakdown by SKU and shipping cost per order.

6. RMA/refund & chargeback logs.

7. Call recordings and GoHighLevel SOPs for abandoned checkout calls (to validate 7% close & 35–40% revenue attribution).

8. Clarify the orders vs customers discrepancy and reconcile AOV figures ($372 vs $430).

Conclusion

This profitable ecommerce brand for sale is an attractive niche play: differentiated product, solid unit economics, profitable early traction and a rare phone sales engine. The asking price of $280k (≈2.1× profit) is reasonable if the seller’s claims reconcile with primary data (Shopify + merchant statements) and supplier contracts are robust. However, material diligence is required before proceeding — specifically to reconcile inconsistent metrics (orders/customers, AOV), validate ad spend and CAC, confirm supplier stability/terms, and assess chargeback/processor history.

Short checklist to move forward now: request the documents listed above, run a technical site speed audit, perform a small test order to validate fulfillment & QC, and obtain recordings/SOPs for the phone-sales workflow. If the documents support seller claims, proceed with a structured purchase (partial holdback + earnout + transition consulting). If the seller cannot provide clean data, reprice to reflect the additional execution risk.