HubSpot, the publicly traded CRM and marketing automation platform, has acquired Starter Story, the bootstrapped media company founded by Pat Walls, in a deal that brings the fast-growing entrepreneur-focused brand into HubSpot Media.
The acquisition marks a full exit for Walls, who started Starter Story eight years ago as a side project inside a small Starbucks in New York City. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Starter Story began as a simple idea: interview founders to understand what was working. At the time, Walls was 27 years old, five years into a career he did not care about, and $60,000 in debt. For a year, he woke up at 6 a.m., went to that Starbucks, and worked there before heading to his day job. He cold-emailed founders, coded the platform, and published content. For months, little moved. Eventually, revenue reached $3,000 to $4,000 per month, prompting him to quit his job.
After burning out at 29, Walls took a “think week” road trip across the United States, where he realized Starter Story was not a stepping stone to something else. It was the idea. He doubled down on distribution, monetized more aggressively, made his first hire, and saw revenue nearly double overnight. Within two years, Starter Story surpassed $1 million in annual revenue.
Over time, the company expanded beyond written founder interviews into video and community. Five years in, Starter Story made a major push into YouTube, traveling the country to film business owners. The channel reached 100,000 subscribers in 6 months and accelerated growth. Today, Starter Story has more than 1.6 million total followers, over 250,000 newsletter subscribers, more than 10,000 paid members, and multi-million-dollar annual revenue. The company has been fully bootstrapped and profitable.
With the acquisition, Starter Story will join HubSpot Media, the company’s growing portfolio of media brands. HubSpot Media includes The Hustle, the business and tech newsletter acquired in 2021; My First Million, the entrepreneurship podcast hosted by Sam Parr and Shaan Puri; and Trends, a premium research and insights community for entrepreneurs and operators. Through these brands, HubSpot has built a large audience of founders, marketers, and business operators.
Walls said Starter Story will continue to operate under its own brand while gaining the backing of HubSpot’s distribution and media infrastructure.
KEY QUOTES
“We’re joining HubSpot Media, and continuing to build. Starter Story will remain Starter Story. HubSpot understands distribution. They believe in the builders. And they understand what we built. That alignment mattered.”
Pat Walls, Founder of Starter Story
