David McNeill, the founder of Expat Empire, gave this in-depth presentation on June 17, 2021, to Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft (HTW) Berlin graduate business students about what it means to bootstrap a company as an entrepreneur and how he followed the methodology with his company Expat Empire. The video of the entire presentation can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFQwoIrPIrY

1. Introduction to Bootstrapping
and How I Did it
David McNeill
June 17, 2021
HTW Berlin

2. About Me
Career Highlights
● Started career in
investment banking
● Worked for 7 years in
product management
● Founded Expat Empire
to help people move
abroad
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3. Introduction to Bootstrapping

4. Usual Startup Route
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50% of your ownership stake

5. Usual Startup Route (cont’d)
5

6. Usual Startup Route (cont’d)
6
Metrics
Money

7. Usual Startup Route (cont’d)
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OR
Likely Unlikely

8. … but there’s another way!

9. Defining Bootstrapping
Bootstrapped businesses
1. do not initially raise outside funding,
2. stay lean to keep expenses low, and
3. generates revenue as quickly as possible
Usually also focuses on selling products online, but that’s not
a requirement.
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10. Bootstrapping is Different
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11. Changing the Conversation
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12. Why Bootstrapping is Better
1. Maintain full control (no bosses!)
2. Don’t need to be a unicorn to be successful
3. Greater personal freedom
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13. My Experience Building a
Bootstrapped Business

14. How and Why I Started Expat Empire
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1 3
2

15. Growing the Empire
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July 2018 December 2018
February 2020
December 2018
May 2021
April 2021

16. Consulting Page
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● Went live April 2019 and didn’t even announce it
● Started getting traffic and form submissions
● Scheduled calls and started listening to potential customers

17. Finding the Money
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Too Niche Needs listeners
& sponsors
Needs readers
Needs sponsors Started getting clients

18. Reorienting the Business
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19. Going Full-Time
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● Joined in Nov. 2019 to move to Portugal and learn
about the relocation industry
● Laid off one year later and so I took the opportunity
to go full-time

20. How Did You Finance It?
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Side Project Full-Time
● Full-time job to cover
expenses and investment
● Using free tools
● Savings
● Money from sales
● Unemployment benefits
● Startup bank loan

21. Revenue Streams
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● Consulting services
● Referral fees
● Affiliate links
● eBooks
● Online Courses
Current Potential Future
● Sponsors (podcast, meetup)
● Ads (blog, YouTube)
● Event tickets
● Other products (webinars,
conferences)

22. My Takeaways

23. Mixing Passion & Business
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24. Take Advantage of Having a Full-Time Job
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25. ...But Also Give Yourself a Break
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● Watch out for burnout
● Other life events have to
take priority
● Do you come back to it?
● How long will you allow
yourself to stay away?

26. Go Full-Time at the Right Time
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● Does it feel like the right
timing to you?
● Are your metrics and
market trends going in
the right direction?
● Look for opportunities!
● How long is your runway?
● Can you reliably replace
your full-time income?
● How much will you need to
invest on top of your daily
living expenses?

27. If You Build It, They Won’t Care
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Began releasing episodes
every 2 weeks
Podcast
episode
downloads
per
month
Finding success without an audience is hard!

28. Managing Costs
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Free Tools Paid Tools Outsourcing

29. Research Alternative Financings and Programs
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● Government grants
● Bank loans
● Revenue-based financings
● Pre-accelerator and
accelerator programs

30. Thank You!