# Selling The Peak for $5M, then buying it back · Worth Owning · Horizon

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![](/images/logos/the-peak-ivory.png)Worth OwningEp. 11

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Worth Owning · Episode 11

# Selling The Peak for $5M, then buying it back

Hosted by **Krystyn Harrison** · With **Brett Chang**, Co-founder and CEO, The PeakFeb 2026 · 37 min

0:0037:00

Watch or listen on[Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/brett-chang-sold-for-%245m-then-bought-it-back/id1830558138)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Jm6m5XaVzHaI9EiffVEdF)[YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DNxH5zUrg4)

## $2.3M in revenue at a 30% net margin, sold, then bought back

Overview

Brett Chang and his two co-founders started The Peak in early COVID, unemployed and running out of runway, with a plan to build a Canadian version of Morning Brew. At its high point the business newsletter had about 165,000 subscribers, $2.3 million in annual revenue, a 30% net margin and a team of 12. In 2023 they sold it to Zoomer Media for a reported $5 million, and later bought it back.

Brett walks through how they built it to sell: raising $350,000 from friends with a plain pitch of 30% for a shot at a $5 million business in 3 to 4 years, running on the Traction operating system so each person owned one to three priorities a quarter, and documenting every process so the company could run without the founders. He also reached out to the buyer himself, months before a deal was on the table.

Then the part most exit stories skip. Closing took 4 to 5 months while the three founders kept the sale secret and the business running. Two years as an employee taught Brett he prefers working for himself. Now he is rebuilding with AI to raise the ceiling, and planning to hold. His advice to owners: build a good business first, because that gives you the option to sell or to keep it.

Chapters

What you’ll learn

01How to pitch early investors on a realistic outcome

02Why systems that run without you make a business sellable

03What to expect between a signed LOI and closing

04How AI can raise output instead of cutting cost

Where does your business stand today?

[Get your Optionality Score →](/optionality-score)

## More on the episode

Episode 11Feb 2026 · 37 min

Note: Krystyn, Matt and their guests may hold interests in companies discussed in this episode. Worth Owning is not financial, legal, tax or investment advice, and is for informational purposes only. Do your own research and speak with your own professionals before making any financial decision.

[Where this shows up in your businessWant the choice to sell or to hold?The Exit Partnership builds a business you could sell tomorrow or keep for good, with a Partner who has done the deal.See the Exit Partnership →](/exit-partnership)

![Brett Chang](/images/guests/brett-chang.jpg)

Guest

Brett Chang

Co-founder and CEO, The Peak

Brett Chang co-founded The Peak, one of Canada’s most read business newsletters, and sold it to Zoomer Media in 2023 before buying it back about two years later. He runs it today with co-founder Taylor, with a plan to hold it for the long term.

[readthepeak.com](https://readthepeak.com)

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