Executive Summary
This is a niche e-commerce apparel brand serving nursing professionals and related healthcare workers. The brand combines DTC apparel revenue with an engaged community platform and has a track record of institutional sales (notably a 2020 national health-insurance contract that drove exceptional revenue). Publicly-disclosed totals show $3.7M in cumulative sales (2020–2024); current headline run-rate is modest: annual revenue ≈ USD $69,566 with annual profit ≈ USD $21,255 (≈31% margin). The business claims a high-converting email list that drives the majority of sales, contracted production/fulfilment partners, and a lightweight operations model (5–10 hrs/week). The seller offers 30 days transition support.
Why an acquirer should care: deep category focus (nursing) produces loyal customers and institutional opportunities, low ongoing workload, and a high-leverage email list that, if verified and monetized, could materially increase revenue with low marginal CAC. The brand also has intrinsic community value that can be leveraged into B2B contracts, expanded product ranges, training merch, and licensing.
Primary caveat: public numbers are summary-level. Key growth levers (email health, customer cohorts, CAC by channel, and institutional contract terms) must be validated in diligence.
Key Insights
Niche moat & community: The nursing profession is highly identity-driven; a brand that authentically serves that audience benefits from higher retention and advocacy.
Multiple revenue channels: Consumer DTC + institutional/contract sales give diversification and ability to land large orders (good for working-capital planning).
High margin, low time commitment: Teported 31% margin with 5–10 hrs/week operation suggests a lean structure. This is good for acquisition arbitrage but requires verifying outsourced costs.
Email list is the lever: The seller claims the email list drives the majority of sales; optimizing flows and segmentation is low-cost, high-return.
Seasonality & one-time spikes: The 2020 included an extraordinary institutional contract; normalize revenue projections to exclude one-off spikes unless recurring.
Detailed Analysis
Website performance & metrics
Website Speed
Not provided. Action: run Lighthouse/Core Web Vitals and request Google Search Console access. Priority fixes (if needed): compress images, remove unused apps/scripts, enable caching, and optimize mobile UX.
Product variation & number of SKUs
Public materials indicate a focused apparel line for nurses (tees, hoodies, scrubs-style items, accessories). Exact SKU count and SKU-level gross margin not disclosed. Request SKU export (with cost, price, stock status, and sell-through rates).
AOV & Customer Lifetime Value
AOV not given. With apparel, expect AOV anywhere from $25–$80, depending on product mix; CLV depends heavily on repeat purchases and institutional reorder contracts. Request Shopify order export and cohort LTV analysis (30/90/365-day cohorts).
Repeat customer rate
Seller states retention “exceeds industry averages” but provides no percentage. Request repeat purchase % and distribution of orders per customer.
Website conversion rate
Not provided. Benchmark for niche apparel: 1–3% depending on traffic quality. Request GA/Shopify conversion by channel.
Website design & presentation
Seller describes community-focused brand; review product pages for sizing guides, social proof, clear CTAs, and community content (UGC). These drive apparel conversion.
Brand positioning & customer sentiment
Strong niche credibility and institutional recognition. Verify Trustpilot / review platforms and look for recurring product quality or shipping complaints.
Marketing & efficiency
Heavy reliance on email; be sure to ask for readouts: open rates, click rates, purchase-per-email, list growth sources, and deliverability. Request ad account read-only access if paid marketing is used.
Customer Acquisition Cost & scalability
CAC not disclosed. Given high email dependence, marginal CAC could be low. Verify historical CAC by channel and how ROAS scales with spend.
Product offering & repositioning potential
Upside: expand into adjacent healthcare professions (EMTs, allied health), create hospital-branded B2B programs, subscription merchandise (yearly kit), or training/education bundles with apparel.
Finances
Public snapshot:
Annual revenue: USD $69,566
Annual profit: USD $21,255 (31% margin)
Monthly averages: revenue ≈ $5,797, profit ≈ $1,771
Cumulative sales 2020–2024: $3.7M (note: 2020 included a large institutional contract of ~$1.8M per earlier examples in other listings. Verify the exact 2020 figure and whether any large contracts are recurring).
What to verify (must-haves):
Shopify order exports + merchant statements (Stripe/PayPal), monthly P&L and expense ledger (ad spend, fulfillment fees, manufacturing contracts), bank statements, and tax filings.
Normalize revenue to remove one-off institutional spikes for forecasting and multiple calculations.
Valuation context: Seller suggests profit multiple 4.5× and revenue multiple 1.4×. Multiples appear reasonable for a niche brand with recurring institutional opportunity and verified email-driven conversions, but only after verifying recurring nature of institutional revenue and list quality.
Marketing (Paid & Organic)
Organic channels
Community platform and organic social appear central; email list is the highest-value asset. Evaluate community engagement metrics (daily/weekly active users, forum posts, or social engagement). Organic reach within professional networks is valuable and low-CAC.
Paid channels
No ad spend details provided. Request Meta/Google/TikTok read-only access to analyze creative performance, CPA, ROAS and scaling headroom.
Email & retention
Email drives majority of sales (seller claim). Immediate value: improved segmentation, automated flows (welcome, browse, cart, post-purchase), VIP programs and targeted institutional outreach for bulk orders. Low-cost, high-ROI.
Institutional / B2B
Proven ability to land institutional contracts. Request contracts, terms, renewal rates and references. Institutional sales introduce longer sales cycles but higher order sizes.
Operational Efficiency
Fulfillment & production
Seller reports contracted production and warehousing partners handling manufacturing, warehousing and shipping. This reduces buyer’s ops burden. Request copies of production agreements, fulfillment SLAs, inventory ownership rules, lead times, and pricing tiers.
Team & outsourced services
Social media team contracted. Request contractor agreements and handover documentation; verify who owns content and community accounts.
SOPs & transition risk
With a 5–10 hour/week operation, a structured handover and SOPs are critical. Request documented SOPs covering production reorder triggers, complaint handling, and institutional sales pipelines.
Customer data & relationships
Email list
Claimed to be large and engaged. Request export and metrics (list size, segmentation, opt-in timestamps, open/click rates, revenue per subscriber) and proof of consent/opt-ins.
Community engagement
Community platform is an asset; request engagement analytics (DAU/MAU, top contributors, churn of members).
Customer satisfaction
Request returns & refund rates, NPS or survey results, complaint logs and Trustpilot/third-party review histories.
Legal & compliance due diligence
Contracts & IP
Obtain supplier/production contracts, fulfillment agreements, and any exclusivity or IP assignments for in-house designs. Confirm domain, trademark ownership (if any), and transferability of community platform accounts.
Institutional contracts
For any national/payer contracts, request the contract copies, invoicing history, service-level commitments, and reasons for 2020’s exceptional revenue if applicable.
Data & privacy compliance
Confirm privacy policy, email consent capture methods, and compliance with US data laws (CAN-SPAM) and any relevant HIPAA considerations if the community stores health info (unlikely, but verify).
Product compliance & labeling
For apparel claims (organic cotton, certifications), request supplier certificates and traceability documents.
Challenges identified:
Dependence on one major channel (email): If list health is poor, revenue could fall fast.
Concentration risk from institutional sales: Past large contract(s) may not recur; must not be assumed in forward revenue.
Founder/transition risk: 30 days support is helpful but limited if processes aren’t documented.
Lack of public granular metrics: Conversion, AOV, CAC, returns, and SKU margins are required to build a credible forecast.
Regulatory/data risk: Community platforms collecting personal/professional data must be GDPR/CAN-SPAM compliant; if any health info is collected, HIPAA exposure must be checked.
Category expansion execution: Moving into other healthcare professions or B2B requires sales resources and contract management capability.
Recommendations
Documents to request (pre-offer, required)
Shopify export (orders, refunds, discounts) for last 24 months + merchant statements.
Monthly P&L and expense ledger (ad spend, fulfillment fees, manufacturing, contractor fees) for 24 months.
Email list export + campaign performance (open, click, revenue attribution).
Copies of production and fulfillment contracts (service levels, pricing, inventory ownership).
Institutional contract copies + invoicing/payment history and renewal terms.
SOPs, contractor agreements and proof of community ownership/access.
Returns & customer-service logs; Trustpilot/third-party review exports.
Evidence of legal compliance (privacy policy, tax filings, trademarks if any).
Short-term (0–6 months post-close)
Email optimization sprint: segment list, implement lifecycle flows, run VIP & reactivation campaigns; expected immediate uplift.
Normalize financials: build a 12-month base case excluding one-off institutional spikes; stress-test cost lines.
Institutional sales playbook: formalize B2B pricing, minimum order quantities, and fulfillment SLAs for bulk orders; assign a dedicated B2B rep (even part-time).
Document all SOPs and secure at least 60 days founder/contractor support for handover.
Test paid acquisition at conservative spend levels with tracked ROAS to add traffic channels beyond email.
Deal Structure Guidance
Given the reliance on email and potential variability from institutional business, favor a modest upfront payment + performance-based earn-out tied to verified revenue or institutional contract renewals. Include reps & warranties around contracts and list ownership.
Suggested Buyer Questions To Include In The Data Request
Provide Shopify/merchant exports for last 24 months (orders, refunds, chargebacks).
Provide detailed P&L and bank statements for 24 months.
Give an email list export (with engagement metrics) and last 12 months of campaign reports.
Supply copies of production & fulfillment agreements and proof of warehouse/stock ownership.
Provide copies of any institutional contracts and details on whether revenue is recurring.
Provide Returns/RMA log and customer service ticket samples.
Confirm data privacy practices and provide privacy policy/version history.
Conclusion
Overall, this is a compelling niche acquisition: strong brand affinity within a professional community, diversified revenue paths (DTC + institutional), and a lean operating model that enables rapid scaling with modest investment. The main sources of near-term value are an under-monetized email list and institutional sales expansion. However, the opportunity is conditional: the buyer must validate the quality and ownership of the email list, confirm institutional contracts and their recurrence, reconcile financials (to exclude one-offs), and obtain clear SOPs and supplier/fulfillment contracts.
If those checks pass, the buyer can reasonably expect to lift topline by 30–80% within 6–12 months via email optimization, modest paid acquisition, and a focused institutional sales push. If the checks fail (inactive list, nontransferable contracts, or opaque financials), the asset reverts to a small but tidy ecommerce operation with limited growth without more investment.
