One Person Bootstrapping Gaming Company Wargraphs Sells for $54M

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Today’s Highlights:

• 🎮One Person Bootstrapping Gaming Company Wargraphs Sells for $54M💰

• 💸How Green Coffee Co.'s $25M Funding Boost Will Transform Colombia's Coffee Industry ☕

One Person Bootstrapping Gaming Company Wargraphs Sells for $54M

The gaming industry has increasingly become stronger than ever and gaining a lot of trust as seen from acquisitions and stock price rises in 2023 Q2. Just last May, Microsoft acquired Activision for $68.7 billion, creating the biggest deal in not only the gaming sector but in the technology sector overall.

Acquisitions are occurring not only between big companies, like Sega and Rovio last April, but also to small gaming startups. Wargraphs, a 10-year-old startup with just one member and no outside funding, has been acquired by MOBA Networks, a Sweden-based company short for Multiplayer Online Battle Arena.

Wargraph’s Years of Success

Wargraphs has survived for years in the hands of Jean-Nicholas Mastin, its only employee. Having been around for 10 years, Wargraphs has always been consistently profitable, with €12.3 million or approximately $13.3 million in revenue last year without any outside funding.

Wargraphs is mostly known for the League of Legends companion apps, League of Graphs and Porofessor, used by players to track and improve playing stats. Wargraphs also builds analytics for Legends of Runeterra and Teamfight Tactics. Its biggest project, Porofessor, was created using Overwolf and has had 10 million downloads and over 1.25 million daily active users.

MOBA Acquisition

MOBA has bought Wargraphs and all its existing products for $54 million, half in advance and the other half based on certain earnings and growth targets. MOBA is known to develop web-based forums and communities for users of popular network-based computer games.

Following this acquisition, MOBA intends to be more hands-on with the games themselves and plans to expand Wargraphs’ existing products to more markets, particularly across Asia. MOBA also has plans to build analytics for more titles.

Jean-Nicholas has revealed that a card game, which hopefully will grow into a competition to Hearthstone, is one of the projects he will be building next. Although Jean-Nicholas, once again, has no plans to raise outside funds, he might hire an employee or two to help out this time.

How Green Coffee Co.'s $25M Funding Boost Will Transform Colombia's Coffee Industry

Coffee. It’s not just a humble bean. It’s an economic powerhouse and a global staple. Its market is colossal, with a valuation of nearly $493 billion worldwide. And one company is making huge strides in this fertile ground: Green Coffee Company. Armed with a recent infusion of $25 million in Series C funding, this company is percolating a bold strategy for expansion.

The Power of Vertical Integration

Founded by Cole Shephard in 2017, Green Coffee Co. proudly labels itself as Colombia's largest coffee producer. The company is U.S.-based, yet its vast operations span 9,000 acres across 39 farms in Colombia, with a staggering 11.5 million coffee trees under its care. Such figures make Green Coffee Co. twice as large as any other coffee producer in the country, according to Shephard.

Finding a Unique Niche

While their size is impressive, it's not just their extensive coffee acreage that sets them apart. Shephard initially conceptualized the company as an asset management product but swiftly found himself heading operations. He identified an underutilized opportunity: to grow a business in an international manner from Colombia. According to Shephard, while others had human or economic capital, they were not investing in the sector.

Pioneering Sustainable Solutions

The company now oversees the entire supply chain, from cultivation to processing, to direct trade with the end-client. This means quality control at every step and maximum profit retention. In addition to this, Green Coffee Co. has implemented cutting-edge technology that allows the company to significantly reduce its water usage, from a traditional 20 liters per pound of green coffee to just 0.3 liters.

From Seed to Skyrocketing Growth

Under Shephard's leadership, Green Coffee Co. has experienced explosive growth. Revenue jumped from $1 million to $10 million in a single year, and Shephard anticipates this will almost triple to $27 million in the following year.

Investing in the Future

How does a company fund such rapid expansion? Legacy Group, a Latin American investment firm where Shephard is a partner, is one answer. Green Coffee Co. is a portfolio company of Legacy Group and raises its funding through a network of over 450 individual, high-net-worth investors. They contribute directly to portfolio companies advised by Legacy Group rather than a pooled fund. To date, more than $60 million has been poured into the business through this model.

A Spirited Vision for Growth

With the $25 million secured in their recent Series C funding, the company plans to expand its Colombian farming operations, boost its U.S.-based coffee roasting operations in Houston, and break new ground with the launch of a line of liquors and spirits. These beverages will be distilled from coffee byproducts, utilizing otherwise discarded parts of the coffee plant. To support these ambitious plans, the company is seeking $65 million of institutional debt capital.

Lessons for Business Leaders

Looking to the future, Shephard sees his company becoming the world’s largest producer of Arabica coffee in the next two years. And if that's not enough, he's setting his sights on a U.S. IPO in 2026. Additionally, the company plans to construct a large-scale distillery in Colombia for their own pure ethanol, aiming to produce around 5 to 6 million bottles of vodka per year from a quarter of their coffee byproducts.

So, what's in it for professionals and business owners? Green Coffee Co.'s journey offers a blueprint for international business expansion and vertical integration, proving that a thoughtful, sustainable approach can yield dramatic results. As entrepreneurs, this success story reminds us to challenge the status quo, find untapped opportunities, and always strive for innovative solutions, whether it's in product development or fundraising. After all, sometimes the road less traveled is the one that leads to the most fruitful destination.

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