Work With Us

The Woman Who Built A $1.2 Billion Software Empire Without Writing A Single Line Of Code

Let me tell you about the business model that's minting millionaires:

Software holding companies.

While founders are pitching VCs and burning cash trying to build the next Salesforce, smart operators are doing something completely different.

They're buying profitable micro-SaaS businesses for 2-3x revenue and rolling them into portfolios worth 8-12x.

Christina Ross did this 100 times.

Never raised venture capital. Never wrote code. Never "disrupted" anything.

She just bought small, boring, profitable software companies.

Exit in 2018: $1.2 billion to Constellation Software.

From zero to unicorn in 8 years.

By buying, not building.

The Investment Banker Who Cracked The Code

2010. Christina Ross is 32 years old, working in M&A at a mid-tier investment bank.

She's closing deals for tech companies and notices a pattern:

Massive software companies are built by acquiring smaller ones.

Oracle didn't build everything. They bought 130+ companies.

Salesforce didn't build everything. They bought 65+ companies.

Microsoft didn't build everything. They bought 225+ companies.

She asks herself:

"If billion-dollar companies grow through acquisition, why can't I?"

Most people would've stopped there. "I don't have billions." "I can't compete with Oracle."

Christina asked a different question:

"What if I bought the software companies that are too small for Oracle to care about?"

The First Deal That Started Everything

Christina quit her banking job with $85,000 in savings.

She started cold-emailing founders of micro-SaaS businesses:

• Revenue: $50K-$500K annually

• Profitable: At least 20% margins

• Bootstrapped: No VC, no debt

• Founder-operated: Owner wants out

Her first acquisition: A project management tool for construction companies.

The numbers:

• Annual revenue: $180,000

• Annual profit: $95,000 (53% margin)

• Asking price: $380,000 (2x revenue)

• Her offer: $350,000 (1.9x revenue)

Her structure:

• Down payment: $70,000 (20%)

• SBA loan: $180,000 (51%)

• Seller financing: $100,000 (29% paid over 3 years)

Total cash out of pocket: $70,000

Within 12 months, she'd:

• Automated customer onboarding (reduced support costs 40%)

• Raised prices 15% (customers didn't churn)

• Added annual billing option (improved cash flow)

New annual profit: $145,000

Her original investment: $70,000

Cash-on-cash return: 207% per year

Most people would've stopped there and lived off $145K/year.

Christina asked:

"If I can do this once, why can't I do it 100 times?"

The Holdco Model That Prints Money

Here's what Christina figured out that most people miss:

Small software businesses are perfect acquisition targets.

Why?

1. High margins: 60-80% gross margins, 20-40% net margins

2. Recurring revenue: SaaS = predictable monthly cash flow

3. Low overhead: No inventory, no facilities, minimal staff

4. Scalable: Can grow without linear cost increases

5. Founder burnout: Solo founders desperate to exit

Between 2010 and 2018, Christina went on a buying spree:

• 2010-2012: Bought 8 micro-SaaS companies

• 2012-2014: Bought 22 more companies

• 2014-2016: Bought 35 companies

• 2016-2018: Bought 35 more companies

Total by 2018: 100 software companies

Combined revenue: $85 million

Combined EBITDA: $32 million

Portfolio valuation: $1.2 billion (based on Constellation's purchase price)

The Acquisition Criteria That Made It Work

Christina had one rule that she never broke:

Only buy businesses that are already profitable.

Her exact acquisition criteria:

Financial:

• ARR: $50K minimum, $2M maximum

• Profit margin: 25%+ required

• Churn: Under 5% monthly

• Revenue growth: Flat or growing (declining = pass)

Operational:

• Founder-operated or small team (under 10 people)

• No technical debt requiring major rebuild

• Documented processes (or documentable)

• Stable customer base (B2B preferred over B2C)

Strategic:

• Niche vertical software (accounting, construction, healthcare, etc.)

• Low competition (not fighting against Salesforce)

• Pricing power (can raise prices 10-20% without major churn)

• Sticky product (hard to switch away from)

Purchase price:

• 2-3x annual revenue (for profitable SaaS)

• 4-6x EBITDA (depending on growth rate)

She passed on 95% of deals she looked at.

But the 5% she bought all followed this exact profile.

The Post-Acquisition Playbook

Here's what Christina did with every acquisition:

Days 1-30: Quick Wins

• Implement annual billing (improves cash flow 40%)

• Raise prices 10-15% (test price elasticity)

• Cancel wasteful software subscriptions

• Eliminate non-essential contractors

Days 30-90: Operational Improvements

• Automate customer onboarding

• Implement self-service knowledge base

• Standardize customer support (reduce response time)

• Cross-train team members (reduce key person risk)

Days 90-180: Growth Initiatives

• Launch basic SEO strategy (content marketing)

• Implement referral program (incentivize word-of-mouth)

• Test paid acquisition channels (if CAC < LTV)

• Identify upsell/cross-sell opportunities

Average profit improvement: 35-50% within first year

This is how she turned 2-3x revenue acquisitions into portfolio companies worth 8-12x.

Not through innovation. Through optimization.

The Math That Makes This Inevitable

Let me show you the arbitrage Christina exploited:

Individual Micro-SaaS Business:

• Revenue: $200K annually

• EBITDA: $80K (40% margin)

• Valuation: 2-3x revenue = $400K-$600K

• Purchase price: $500K (2.5x revenue)

Portfolio of 100 SaaS Businesses:

• Combined revenue: $20M

• Combined EBITDA: $8M (after optimization)

• Valuation multiple: 10-15x EBITDA (holdco premium)

• Portfolio value: $80M-$120M

The arbitrage:

Buy individual companies at 2-3x revenue (4-6x EBITDA).

Build portfolio that trades at 10-15x EBITDA.

Instant 2-3x multiple expansion on every acquisition.

Christina's actual numbers:

• Total invested: ~$150M (across 100 acquisitions)

• Combined revenue at exit: $85M

• Combined EBITDA at exit: $32M

• Exit price: $1.2B

• Exit multiple: 37.5x EBITDA

ROI: 700%+ over 8 years

The Micro-SaaS Goldmine In 2026

Christina proved the model in 2010-2018.

The opportunity is 10x bigger now.

Why?

The numbers in 2026:

• 50,000+ profitable micro-SaaS businesses in existence

• 40% of founders are burned out and want to exit

• Average asking price: Still 2-4x revenue (massive arbitrage)

• SaaS multiples at exit: 8-15x revenue for portfolios

Categories ripe for acquisition:

Vertical SaaS:

• Construction management tools

• Healthcare practice software

• Legal case management

• Real estate CRMs

• Salon/spa booking systems

Workflow Automation:

• Industry-specific automation tools

• Data integration platforms

• Reporting/analytics dashboards

• Document management systems

Micro-Tools:

• Chrome extensions with subscriptions

• Zapier alternatives for specific use cases

• API tools for developers

• Social media scheduling tools

Every single one follows Christina's pattern:

• Small niche

• Profitable

• Recurring revenue

• Founder wants out

• Selling for 2-4x revenue

The Lifestyle Reality Of SaaS Acquisition

Here's what changes when you own 100 software companies:

Time investment:

• First 5 companies: 60 hours/week (learning operations)

• Companies 10-25: 40 hours/week (systems in place)

• Companies 50+: 20 hours/week (executive team runs it)

• Companies 100: 10 hours/week (portfolio management only)

Income scaling:

• 1 company: $80K profit = nice side income

• 10 companies: $800K profit = life-changing money

• 50 companies: $4M profit = generational wealth

• 100 companies: $8M+ profit = you win

Exit optionality:

• Sell individually at 3-5x revenue

• Sell portfolio to holdco at 8-12x EBITDA

• Sell to strategic at 10-15x EBITDA

• Take public via SPAC at 15-20x EBITDA

Christina built a $1.2B empire from her laptop.

No office. No huge team. Just smart acquisitions.

The Constellation Software Blueprint

The company that bought Christina's portfolio? Constellation Software.

Their playbook:

• Founded 1995 by Mark Leonard

• Strategy: Buy small vertical software companies

• Acquisitions to date: 500+ companies

• Current market cap: $70+ billion

• Annual revenue: $7+ billion

Their acquisition criteria:

Exactly the same as Christina's.

Small, profitable, vertical software companies.

They're still buying them today. Every single week.

And they're not alone:

• Tiny Capital: 40+ acquisitions, $200M+ deployed

• MicroAcquire buyers: 1,000+ acquisitions annually

• Acquire.com buyers: 500+ SaaS acquisitions per year

• Individual operators: Thousands buying 1-10 companies

The micro-SaaS acquisition market is exploding.

And 2026 is the perfect time to enter.

What Winners Did On January 1st

Most people yesterday:

• Researched "SaaS business ideas"

• Started building MVPs

• Wrote business plans

Winners yesterday:

• Contacted 10 SaaS founders about acquisition

• Structured their first SaaS purchase offer

• Mapped their holdco strategy for 2026

The difference?

One group is planning to build from scratch. The other is planning to acquire strategically.

Christina Ross didn't become worth $1.2 billion by coding.

She did it by buying profitable software companies and scaling systematically.

The playbook is proven. The market is massive. The timing is perfect.

Your Continental Edge

Here's what Christina had in 2010 that you need now:

Access to profitable micro-SaaS companies before they hit public marketplaces.

In 2010, Christina cold-emailed founders.

In 2026, you have something better:

Continental service gives you:

• $4+ billion in curated deal flow: Including profitable SaaS opportunities

• Off-market software listings: Companies ready to sell before public listing

• Complete Dealsheet access: Full MRR, churn, CAC, LTV metrics

• Holdco opportunity identification: Perfect acquisition candidates for portfolio building

While everyone else is building SaaS startups and burning cash, Continental members are acquiring profitable software companies with recurring revenue.

This is the deal flow advantage that built Christina's empire.

Your First Move In 2026

You have two paths this year:

Path 1: Spend 2-4 years building a SaaS product from scratch. Burn $200K-$500K. Hope for product-market fit. Maybe succeed (8% chance).

Path 2: Access $4 billion in pre-vetted deal flow. Buy a profitable micro-SaaS. Generate recurring revenue from day one. Scale to portfolio.

Continental service + full Dealsheet access is open right now.

This isn't theory. This isn't a course.

This is direct access to profitable software companies ready for acquisition.

Access Continental + Full Dealsheet Here →

The profitable SaaS companies are there. The founders want to exit. The financing is available.

The only question: Will you build from zero or acquire strategically?

Welcome to 2026.

Stop coding. Start acquiring.

P.S. - Christina's average acquisition closing time: 30-45 days from LOI to close. Continental members have access to micro-SaaS opportunities with similar timelines. The software companies are there. The founders are burned out. Access to deal flow is the only variable. That's what we solve.