The One Remarkable Lesson from a 4000% Surge in a Year That Will Make Your Small Business More Profitable Without Increasing Customers

The Incredible Growth Story

Today, I want to share an amazing business story. A company called Sezzle saw its stock price jump by more than 4000% in just one year. Their market value went from $56 million in November 2023 to $2.6 billion in November 2024. Even more impressive, their profit grew from $4 million to $53 million in just one year. But here’s the surprising part: their sales only went up by 50%, from $110 million to $170 million, and they didn’t even get new customers.

What is Sezzle?

Sezzle is a U.S. company that offers “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) services. They let shoppers split their purchases into four payments over six weeks, with no fees. Sounds too good to be true? Well, the secret is that stores, not shoppers, pay Sezzle for this service. Stores like this because it helps them sell more to customers who prefer paying in installments.

Understanding the Customer Base

By 2021, Sezzle had reached its natural limit for growth. Let’s break down their potential market:

  • There are about 100 million Americans aged 18-45 who are the main users of BNPL online shopping services
  • About half of them don’t use credit cards
  • Suppose 30% of these people like BNPL options
  • Suppose 20% of them would prefer Sezzle’s solution

This means their maximum potential customer base is around 3 million people. That’s why their user numbers actually dropped from 3.4 million in 2021 to 2.7 million in 2024. Trying to get more customers would just waste money on marketing.

The Genius Solution

So how did Sezzle increase their profits when they couldn’t get new customers? They came up with a brilliant idea. Originally, customers could only use Sezzle with specific partner stores. But what if customers could use Sezzle everywhere?

They launched a subscription service that lets members use BNPL at any store. This was a huge success for several reasons:

  1. They didn’t need to find new customers
  2. They could tell their existing customers about the new service without spending on marketing
  3. They used their existing technology, so they didn’t need to hire more people
  4. The extra sales went straight to profit, leading to that amazing 10x profit increase

The Big Lesson for Your Business

You too can increase your profits by filling gaps in your service offerings. The key is to create new products or services that perfectly complement your existing ones. These shouldn’t be small add-ons, but rather substantial offerings that are as valuable as your original products or services. The best part is that you can use resources you already have, which means you won’t face significant cost increases. When you sell these new offerings to your existing customers, you can see your profits surge dramatically.

What’s Next?

Let’s brainstorm how you can apply this lesson to your business. What new service could you offer your existing customers?