According to Forbes, 90% of startups fail. With those kinds of odds, you may be left wondering why anyone tries to start a business. However, not all startups are doomed to failure. In fact, some go on to become multi-billion-dollar businesses. These five successful businesses that have surpassed 1 billion dollars in sales in less than 10 years.
Le-Vel Thrive
The direct sales market is fiercely competitive and plagued by controversy, however, that didn’t stop Jason Camper and Paul Gravette from founding Le-Vel Thrive in 2012. This successful health and wellness company has generated over 2 billion dollars in sales in the past 7 years. Their core product is an 8-week lifestyle plan which is designed to help users achieve their peak physical and mental levels. Le-Vel has avoided the pitfalls suffered by many MLM businesses by placing their focus on selling high-quality products and experiences that enhance their customers’ lives and they’ve done it all while operating without a single office. Aided by their proprietary cloud management system, Le-Vel utilizes a remote workforce that handles everything from customer support to shipping and tracking orders.
Vox Media
It’s hard to believe that the company responsible for the popular sites The Verge, Curbed, SB Nation, Vox.com and Eater has only been around since 2011. Now valued at over 1 billion dollars, Vox media has the backing of NBCUniversal. This new media giant has become a major player in the world of sports and entertainment news, while also attracting top talent to the field of hard news and op-ed pieces. With the 2020 election cycle ramping into high gear, the future looks bright for Vox to continue to expand.
DraftKings
This multi-billion-dollar company was founded in 2012. DraftKings is a fantasy sports site that allows users to bet real money on sports teams. DraftKings has been at the forefront of a push to legitimize sports betting. With ads that run during the Super Bowl, they have successfully brought sports betting into the mainstream and continue to grow at a rapid pace. They frequently run special promotions to attract both hardcore and casual sports fans to their user-friendly site, which makes betting on sports from the comfort of your couch a reality.
Blue Apron
When Blue Apron was founded in 2012, there was really nothing else like it on the market. Since then, the market for meal delivery kits has exploded and with it has come dozens of competitors, some of which are direct competitors to Blue Apron and others focus on more niche markets like veganism or weight loss. Despite the competition, Blue Apron is still going strong. The service, which delivers pre-portioned and prepared ingredients complete with step-by-step instructions, now sells over 3 million meals a month. With consumers trying to balance the health benefits of home-cooked meals against the time pressures of modern life, the market for this service that makes home cooking more accessible is likely to continue to expand.
Instacart
Instacart is another business capitalizing on the time pressures faced by families. Founded in 2012 and valued at over 2 billion dollars, Instacart takes the work out of grocery shopping. Shoppers can pick out the products they want to purchase from one of Instacart’s participating grocery chains and for a small fee, Instacart will have one of their personal shoppers shop for all of the grocery items, go through the checkout process and then deliver those items to the customer’s door. This service appeals not only to time-pressed families but to individuals with mobility issues or lack of transportation that may make grocery shopping difficult for them. Much like Blue Apron, Instacart faces stiff competition from competitors but continues to show growth.
Starting a successful new business is no easy task, but it’s not an impossible one. These five successful startups have demonstrated that with the right idea and market conditions, start-ups can not only thrive but launch multi-billion-dollar industries.
