Listing teardown · Ecommerce
Empire Flippers listing #97462: Apparel & Accessories ecommerce business teardown
Short answer: a first-pass read of the live listing “$19.8K Per Month eCommerce Business in the Apparel & Accessories Niche”, asking $87,112: 0 red, 7 yellow and 4 green flags from the checker's rules. Every figure comes from the public listing page; nothing here has been verified with the seller.
How to read this. Flags are questions to answer, not findings. A red flag means the listing's own figures or text need an explanation before you spend money on diligence; it does not mean anything is wrong. Sellers often have good answers. Listing details can change after the date above.
Snapshot (as listed)
| Asking price | $87,112 |
|---|---|
| Stated multiple | 2.0× annual SDE |
| Average monthly revenue / profit | $19,824 / $3,630 |
| Latest month revenue / profit | $21,948 / $3,295 |
| Payback (ask ÷ monthly profit) | 24.0 months on the average; 21.8 months on the last 3 months |
| Reported margin | 18% |
| Age | about 14 months |
| Monetization | eCommerce |
| Owner hours (seller-stated) | 7 a week |
| Top traffic channels | Paid Social 75%, Direct 9%, Organic Social 8% |
Red flags
- None from the listing's public data.
Yellow flags
- Volatile monthly profit (CV 0.68). Monthly profit ranged $-823–$7,772.
- Marketplace-reported revenue trend -21%. Profit trend -14%.
- Paid Social ≈75% of users. Single-channel dependency.
- Platforms the listing relies on or mentions: Meta/Facebook, Google, TikTok. The listing says the historical Meta Ads account is not included in the sale; a buyer would run ads from their own account, while the Facebook and Instagram pages transfer. Ask how ad performance, audiences and pixel data carry over.
- Website users rose far faster than revenue. Users per month went from about 795 (first 3 months of the analytics window) to about 14,250 (last 3), mostly paid social. Average monthly revenue over the same months went from about $8,600 to about $21,300. Ask what drove the traffic jump and how conversion changed.
- Customer/revenue concentration not disclosed.
- Generic reason for sale. The Seller would like to explore other opportunities.
Green flags
- The listing shows connected data providers: Shopify, Google Analytics. These reduce, but do not remove, the need to reconcile figures to bank deposits.
- Last-3-month average profit $3,989 is 10% above the 12-month average.
- Seller states about 7 hours a week of owner time (to confirm against the task list).
- Post-sale support is offered: The seller is willing to provide three months of full support via email to help ensure a smooth transition, including answering questions about Shopify, Printify, Meta ads, products, designs, suppliers, customer service, automations, workflows, and the current setup.
Context
- Asking multiple 2.00× is below the typical range. EF for-sale asking multiples (2026-10-06) for eCommerce: p25 2.08×, median 2.5×.
Questions to ask the seller
- Explain the low months (refunds, annual-plan timing, one-off costs?).
- What is causing the year-over-year decline and what has been tried?
- What is behind the Paid Social traffic and how durable is it?
- What would happen to revenue if Meta/Facebook changed its policy/API tomorrow? Any past incidents?
- What caused the traffic jump (campaign, bot/untagged traffic, new property in the GA view)?
- What share of revenue comes from the top 1 and top 3 customers (or traffic/affiliate partners)?
- Why sell now, and what would you do with the business if it doesn't sell?
- Provide a month-by-month P&L for the last 24 months with every cost line.
- What exactly transfers (domains, code, accounts, trademarks, email lists, contractor relationships)?
What to verify
- Store and payment-processor reports (Shopify/WooCommerce, Stripe, PayPal, marketplaces) reconciled to bank deposits
- Landed cost per SKU, ad spend and refunds month by month, so the margin can be rebuilt
- Inventory on hand, its valuation and whether it is included in the price
- Supplier, 3PL and contractor agreements and whether they are assignable
- Ad-account history (CPA, ROAS) and analytics by channel for the listing's 12 months
- Trademark, domain and marketplace-account transfer requirements
Payback at the asking price: 24.0 months on the stated average profit, 30.0 months if profit is 20% lower, 40.0 months if 40% lower. This is arithmetic on the listing's figures, not a valuation or a bid suggestion.
Seller statements to check against evidence
Quoted from the listing. Each is a reasonable thing for a seller to say and worth confirming with documents.
- “The business benefits from a lean, print-on-demand zero inventory model, with the business benefitting from strong social media marketing and healthy profit margins consistently well above 15%.”
- “The business is highly passive, with the Seller devoting around 7 hours per week to the business, with the Seller focusing on product design, advertising, marketing and strategic direction, with repetitive workflows automated through AI tools and fulfillment handled 100% through a print-on-demand provider.”
- “The business is an excellent opportunity for Buyers looking for a differentiated, print on demand apparel brand with a strong identity and significant potential for growth for Sellers that have experience with TikTok shop, organic UGC, SEO, as well as wholesale partnerships.”
Risks the listing itself discloses: An increase in Paid Traffic pricing could make the ads unprofitable. Print-on-demand partner increasing prices
Questions about this listing
What should I ask the seller of Empire Flippers listing #97462?
Explain the low months (refunds, annual-plan timing, one-off costs?). What is causing the year-over-year decline and what has been tried? What is behind the Paid Social traffic and how durable is it? What would happen to revenue if Meta/Facebook changed its policy/API tomorrow? Any past incidents? What caused the traffic jump (campaign, bot/untagged traffic, new property in the GA view)? What share of revenue comes from the top 1 and top 3 customers (or traffic/affiliate partners)? Why sell now, and what would you do with the business if it doesn't sell? Provide a month-by-month P&L for the last 24 months with every cost line. What exactly transfers (domains, code, accounts, trademarks, email lists, contractor relationships)?
What flags does Empire Flippers listing #97462 raise?
0 red and 7 yellow flags from FirstPass Memo's 33 published rules, using only the public listing: Volatile monthly profit (CV 0.68); Marketplace-reported revenue trend -21%; Paid Social ≈75% of users; Platforms the listing relies on or mentions: Meta/Facebook, Google, TikTok; Website users rose far faster than revenue; Customer/revenue concentration not disclosed.
Is this teardown a recommendation to buy or not to buy?
No. It is informational screening of public listing data. Flags are questions to answer, not findings, and nothing has been verified with the seller.
Sources
- Empire Flippers listing #97462, public listing data read 21 October 2026.
- FirstPass red-flag rules, the 33 published rules used for the flags above.
Related
FirstPass Memo is independent and buyer-paid. Not affiliated with, paid by or endorsed by Empire Flippers or the seller. Informational screening only, not investment, legal, tax or valuation advice, and not an audit. Figures are the seller's and marketplace's, as listed on the date above. If you are the seller or broker and something here is out of date, email hello@firstpassmemo.com and we will correct it.