Overview
The established Shopify store is a profitable, niche DTC brand selling premium machine-washable rugs. Trailing twelve-month revenue is USD $494,724 with profit of USD $203,901, reflecting a strong net margin of ~41%. The business benefits from a U.S. warehouse for faster fulfillment, Shopify Plus infrastructure, established paid channels, and a large email subscriber base (~166K contacts).
The $50K asking price implies extremely low multiples (~0.25× profit, ~0.10× revenue), superficially attractive. However, inventory (~USD $470K) is excluded from the asking price, which materially affects the total acquisition capital and risk. On paper, the business is operationally sound, but data inconsistencies, customer service exposure, and working-capital implications require urgent diligence.
Key Insights — Website Performance & Metrics
Website Speed: Built on Shopify Plus with GA4/GTM/server-side tracking. Page load and Core Web Vitals require verification.
Product Variation & SKUs: Focused catalog of washable rugs; SKU count modest, with expansion potential into runners, outdoor rugs, and complementary home textiles.
AOV & LTV: Average Order Value ~$182–189. LTV unknown; cohort purchase frequency must be clarified.
Repeat Customer Rate: TTM orders = 2,759 vs ~166K contacts; data discrepancy requires reconciliation.
Website Conversion Rate: Not disclosed; industry baseline 1–3% for home goods. Verification recommended.
Design & Presentation: Premium Shopify Plus design with professional photography supports high AOV.
Brand Positioning & Customer Sentiment: Positioned on style + functionality (washable/liquid-repellent). Social presence solid, but Trustpilot includes at least one severe negative CS review regarding returns/refunds.
Marketing Efficiency: Paid channels (Meta/Google) show spikes aligning with revenue. CAC and ROAS not provided; scalability unknown without verification.
Product & Repositioning Opportunities: Expand product range, explore B2B/wholesale channels, subscriptions, or protection plans.
Financial Summary
TTM results: Revenue USD $494,724, Net Profit USD $203,901 (41% margin). Monthly averages: ~USD $41,227 revenue and ~USD $16,992 profit.
Monthly breakdown (Aug 2024 – Jul 2025):
Comments on cashflow & seasonality:
There is pronounced seasonality/volatility: very strong Nov–Jan and July spikes. Some months show compressed margins (e.g., Apr–Jun 2025). Overall profit generation is strong, but volatility suggests dependence on timed promotions or heavy paid acquisition bursts.
Valuation multiples:
Reported company multiples: profit multiple ~0.2x, revenue multiple ~0.1x (very low). At the $50K asking, implied multiples are ~0.25x profit and ~0.10x revenue. These are materially below market norms and suggest buyer concerns or a motivated seller but remember inventory is excluded and represents significant working capital.
Inventory & working capital:
Inventory listed at ~USD $470,000 and explicitly excluded from sale price (negotiable separately). This is the single largest capital consideration: if buyer must buy inventory, total acquisition capital jumps dramatically (inventory + $50K). Inventory aging, turnover, and obsolescence risk must be reviewed.
Marketing
Paid channels: Meta & Google are active drivers; ad history shows capability to scale revenue (spikes align with ad activity). No CAC/ROAS numbers supplied , obtain last 12 months ad account dashboards (spend, ROAS, CAC by campaign).
Email & CRM: Owned email list ~166K a big asset. Klaviyo (or equivalent) flows, frequency, segmentation, and revenue attribution must be audited. Current usage appears under-monetized relative to list size.
Organic & social: Instagram and Facebook followings are decent; opportunity to expand organic reach (TikTok short-form, Pinterest, SEO for “washable rug” and category terms). Little evidence of wholesale/designer outreach an easy B2B channel to develop.
Opportunities: scale TikTok, Pinterest, affiliate/influencer partnerships, trade/designer channels, and lifecycle flows (welcome, win-back, VIP). Test free shipping thresholds, bundles, and protection/installation upsells to leverage high AOV.
Operational Efficiency
Fulfillment: U.S. warehouse (Jacksonville) supports faster fulfillment and returns management. This is a material advantage versus overseas dropship models.
Processes: Reported low owner involvement and use of automation. Positive for an acquirer seeking low-touch ops.
Cost control: 41% margin indicates good gross margin after COGS; however, marketing and overhead fluctuations cause month-to-month profit variance.
Risks: one public customer dispute (Trustpilot) regarding handling of returns and refunds. For large/heavy items like rugs, returns logistics and reverse-logistics costs are non-trivial and must be clarified.
Customer Data & Relationships
Database size: ~166K emails/customers potentially powerful but likely contains many non-buyers. Clarify segmentation: buyers vs subscribers vs leads.
Number of orders (TTM): 2,759 implies average order cadence consistent with reported revenue, but raises questions when compared to total customers figure (see data inconsistency below).
Reputation: Mixed. Some strong positive reviews citing product quality and fast delivery; at least one severe complaint regarding returns/refunds which could indicate systemic CS process failures or an isolated incident.
Loyalty potential: High AOV and functional product (washable) suggest repeatability (households/pet owners may return), but purchase frequency data is required to model LTV and retention strategies.
Legal & Compliance Due Diligence
Jurisdiction: Florida, USA. Confirm entity formation, tax filings, and seller representation.
IP & trademarks: Confirm ownership/assignment of all brand IP (trademarks, domain, design assets).
Supplier & warehouse contracts: Review service agreements, lead times, minimum order quantities, and liabilities. Confirm whether the warehouse contract is transferable.
Consumer protection & returns: Verify returns policy, warranty claims, and any unresolved PayPal/chargeback disputes. The Trustpilot complaint suggests escalation potential.
Data privacy: Confirm GDPR/CCPA compliance where applicable (especially for US customers), and check server-side tracking and cookies/legal disclosures.
Product safety & labeling: Ensure rugs meet any applicable U.S. flammability and safety standards; check import documentation and material claims (e.g., “liquid-repellent”).
Challenges Identified
Inventory capital requirement: Inventory is large (~$470K) and excluded from the asking $50K, this is the most significant cash/financing obstacle for an acquirer.
Data inconsistency: 166K customers vs 2,759 orders TTM is inconsistent and must be reconciled (likely includes subscribers and historical leads). True buyer conversion rates and repeat rate are unknown.
Customer service risk: At least one documented dispute with returns/refund indicates operational weakness in reverse logistics and CS for heavy items. Potential reputation / chargeback risk.
Valuation signal: Extremely depressed listing multiples (0.1x revenue / ~0.2x profit) either indicate an undervalued opportunity or signal hidden risks (decline, churn, concentration, legal issues).
Unknown CAC & LTV: Without marketing ROI math it is impossible to confidently project scalable growth.
Seasonality & margin volatility: Profits swing month to month buyer must understand drivers (promotions, ad spend, inventory purchases).
Working capital strain: If buyer must purchase inventory or assume warehouse stock, cash requirement increases materially and may erode apparent bargain.
Recommendations
Immediate diligence requests (ask seller for):
Full P&L and merchant statements (last 24 months).
Detailed ad account exports (Meta & Google) with spend, revenue, ROAS, CAC, CPM by campaign for last 12 months.
GA4 and Shopify reports: monthly sessions, conversion rate, refunds/returns, AOV, new vs returning customer cohorts, LTV by cohort.
Inventory aging report, SKU profitability, and recommended replenishment plans. Clarify whether inventory is sellable, consigned, or needs cleaning/discounting.
All customer service tickets and PayPal/chargeback histories for last 24 months.
Warehouse & supplier contracts, and a list of owned vs drop-shipped SKUs.
Explanation of customer vs orders figures (166K customers vs 2,759 orders) — define “customer” in seller’s reporting.
Reason for sale and post-sale support details.
Operational & growth plays to pursue if acquisition moves forward:
Audit and remediate returns & CS processes before scaling ads unresolved CS issues will amplify with scale. Implement prepaid return labels for heavy items to avoid future disputes.
Activate list monetization: rebuild flows, segmented win-back, high-AOV cross-sells and replenishment campaigns. Test “complete the set” bundles and room-based merchandising.
Expand channels: test TikTok and Pinterest (visual, home-focused traffic), and develop wholesale/designer channels to diversify acquisition.
SKU rationalization: identify top 20% SKUs driving 80% margin and prune underperformers to reduce working-capital needs.
Negotiate warehouse terms: secure inventory consignment or extended payment terms where possible to reduce up-front capital.
Conclusion
Overall, this Shopify store for sale presents a classic “cashflow + infrastructure” eCommerce opportunity: high AOV, strong margins (41%), and U.S. fulfillment make it operationally attractive. The $50K asking price is unusually low relative to reported profits, but inventory exclusion (~$470K) flips the economics: total capital required to run the business post-close may be large.
Before any acquisition decision, the buyer must insist on rigorous, seller-provided proof of reported figures (ad account exports, GA/Shopify data, P&Ls), reconcile customer vs order counts, and verify inventory condition/ownership. The Trustpilot complaint and returns handling represent a real reputational and cashflow risk for heavy, high-cost returns; fix this before growth.
If due diligence confirms the figures and inventory is negotiable (or the buyer can secure favorable inventory terms), this business could be a high-ROI acquisition provided the buyer addresses CS, clarifies CAC/LTV, and uses the large email list and fulfillment advantage to scale.
