The 2026 eCom Trends Report
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Podcast | Episode 446
Side Hustle to $2 Billion IPO: The Solo Stove Story
Search for “side hustle ideas” in Google and you’ll get a million and one results. In fact, side hustles have trended upward over the last couple years as people worked them to supplement their income during the pandemic—and many even used their side hustle as an exit path during the “Great Resignation.” Spencer Jan is the co-founder of SoloStove.com, and he is one of the side hustle success stories, having bootstrapped his way to a $2-billion valuation in only 8 years while working a full-time job for much of that time.
Listen in as he shares Solo Stove’s journey from being a side hustle to a highly profitable and valuable company. You’ll hear why he and his co-founder and brother, Jeff, obsessed over margins from the very beginning, as well as the painful reality they faced when they first went to sell. We also discuss the importance of profitable margins, how to stay lean as a company, and why it’s important to get out of the default mode of working more and instead spend more time on what matters most.
You’ll learn:
- What it was like in the beginning of Solo Stove and the initial intention of the business. (7:00)
- The thing that was causing them the most pain when they decided to offload the business. (12:45)
- What they did to get their time back in their business. (16:55)
- How they were able to keep their margins lean. (23:50)
- The evolution of the leaders within Solo Stove. (29:15)
- The challenges of hiring. (40:00)
- What Spencer wishes he had spent more time on in his personal life. (43:00)
- His perspective on going public. (1:01:00)
- Lightning round with Spencer. (1:05:130)
Subscribe: iTunes | Stitcher | Amazon
(With your host Andrew Youderian of eCommerceFuel.com and Spencer Jan of SoloStove.com)
What Was Mentioned
- Spencer Jan: Website | YouTube
- Covertly Launching a Store with a Full-Time Job
- SEC Registration Statement for Solo Brands. Inc.
- CampSaver.com
- Summit Partners
- Score.org
- Building a $100M+ Brand without Investors or Credit
- eCommerceFuel Forum
- Fulfil.io
- One Click Upsell – Increase Sales 15%+ with Pre-and Post-purchase Upsells. (On average, Shopify users increase sales 15% immediately after installing the app!)
Photo credits to SoloStove.com featuring their Pi Pizza Oven.
Ideas Worth Sharing:
“I don’t think it’s a matter of wasting money—I think it’s a matter of not asking for enough.” - Spencer Jan Tweet this “We had our eye on a margin before we had our eye on a product. - Spencer Jan Tweet this “Is the product good enough? And is the brand good enough?” - Spencer Jan Tweet this
Post by Andrew Youderian
Founder and Chief Instigator, eComFuel
Andrew quit an early finance job to sell CB radios online — an admittedly unorthodox career path. It set him on a course to found and sell multiple businesses, host a decade-running podcast, lecture at Harvard Business School and create eComFuel, the leading community for 7- and 8-figure online business owners. Andrew is fascinated with branding, AI, building community, investing and growing meaningful businesses that don't require sacrificing what truly matters.
