The Revealing Math Behind a $100 Million Exit
“Dan Berger founded a company called Social Tables and eventually sold his business for $100 million. When all was said and done, he ended up with just under $20 million. So, what happened?” asked Sam Thompson, a Minneapolis business broker and the president of Transitions In Business. “In this episode Dan will share his story. He’ll also talk about running a process with an M&A advisor that will give you leverage when selling.”
Dan Berger built Social Tables into a SaaS success story with $20M in recurring revenue and more than 6,000 customers. He sold the business for $100 million.
But after raising $27M in venture funding and navigating liquidation preferences, his personal payout was just under $20M.
In this week’s episode of Built to Sell Radio, Dan reveals the surprising math behind his deal and shares the emotional highs and lows of walking away from his company.
You discover how to:
- Understand how liquidation preferences shape the founder’s payday.
- Decide whether you’d rather own a smaller slice of a bigger pie—or keep more of a smaller one.
- Run a process that gives you leverage when selling.
- Prepare for the emotional crash that can follow a big exit.
- Create a “soft landing” by building belonging outside your company.
- Reframe your “next goal” after selling.
Listen now to hear the real economics—and the hidden emotional toll—of a $100M exit.