When Jennifer Viemont created Beyond the States, she set out to make the seemingly complex process of attending university overseas into something simple, central, and comprehensive. Of course, the Chicago native never would have guessed that her passion for travel would result in a full-fledged business exit on Flippa. Life has a way of surprising us.
As a parent, the importance of sending your kids off to the right college needs no introduction. But thanks to America’s rising tuition costs and the growing accessibility of international programs taught in English, many families are finding the ‘perfect’ school outside of the U.S. entirely.
After all, Jenn was happily working as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker after getting her Master’s from the University of Illinois. But she noticed that there was no single-source, unbiased resource providing information about the 1700+ English-taught bachelor’s degree programs in continental Europe – and took it upon herself to create it. Fast-forward to authoring a book on the topic, countless trips across the Atlantic, news appearances, and sending her own children to their dream universities abroad, Beyond the States had officially taken hold.
Changing Trajectories
In just a few short years, BTS continued to expand, and so had Jenn’s interests. She missed the experience of working 1-on-1 with teens that had let her here in the first place, and knew that things could grow more rapidly with a seasoned business owner at the reins. So, she partnered with The Magnolia Firm and listed it for sale on Flippa’s platform.
“When I started thinking about selling my business, I had no idea where to start”, Jenn confessed. “Many of the websites I found during this time, as well as interactions with other brokers, either overwhelmed or confused me.”
The Magnolia Firm posted the listing on several popular for-sale platforms. As a fully remote, highly profitable business with recurring revenue and YOY growth, there was no question that Beyond the States would sell itself. They got plenty of bites, but nothing quite stuck.
Christine, Principal of The Magnolia Firm & Business Intermediary on the deal, decided to switch things up. She listed Beyond the States on Flippa, hoping its lead quality and vetted buyer pool would pave a clear path to the right buyer.
If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try Flippa
Lo and behold, she was right. The perfect buyer came through Flippa, with a record-fast sale of only a few days between initial inquiry and the final closing transfer (including the full amount wired over in cash, over asking price).
“We had three offers with the final offer closing at $40K OVER asking price and in just 24 hours!”
Not only was Jenn delighted with the process, but the Flippa buyer was equally, knowing he had struck gold.
These days Jenn is living the post-exit life and loving it. She’s focusing on her passions, helping kids in a 1:1 therapy setting and leading by example to show women that a similar journey is completely within reach.
Her story embodies the reality that there is no single ‘archetype’ of an exited entrepreneur: mom, wife, academic, first-timer…. selling a business is for anyone with the drive to make it happen.
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