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BigDeal by Codie Sanchez

Side Hustle King: 3 Easy Businesses Anyone Can Start | Chris Koerner

My new book, Own Or Be Owned, is all about building a business so good it doesn't need you. It's out September 18, grab your ticket to the launch event here: - cs

Chris KoernerguestCodie Sanchezhost

Aug 28, 20251h 17mWatch on YouTube

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CHAPTERS

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Chapter summaries

Sleeper Businesses: The Pizza Oven and Asking Questions
Codie asks Chris what business he's obsessed with, and he describes a couple selling pizzas from a $700 oven in a hardware store parking lot in Cameron, Missouri. They run through the economics and note that people rarely charge you rent or refuse to share their numbers.
- •A couple clears about $700 a day at 80% margins using a $700 oven and a pop-up canopy
- •They pay nothing to use the hardware store lot
- •Codie's math puts it near a $30,000 a month business
- •Codie says about 95% of owners will tell you their revenue because they're proud of it
Business-to-Business Stump Grinding Experiment
Chris explains why tree trimming is a binary-outcome business and how stump grinding is a pain point for tree trimmers. He tested the idea by having a virtual assistant cold call tree trimmers in Houston, and about 20% would outsource it. One person who acted on it made $300,000 in the first year.
- •Tree trimming is a binary outcome: the tree is gone or it isn't
- •Stump grinding means renting, hauling and gassing a machine, which is a hassle
- •A virtual assistant called every tree trimmer in a comparable city with a few questions
- •About 20% would outsource stumps, and one person earned $300,000 in year one at 60-70% margins
Starting a Tree Trimming Business with Constraints
Chris describes how he started his tree trimming business with a truck, a young operating partner and subcontractors who do the work. He explains the formula for starting with little money: be humble, curious, and answer your questions immediately.
- •Constraints equal creativity; Chris has never been VC-funded
- •Subcontractor quotes are marked up 100%, and the business does about half a million a year
- •The operating partner was a 23-year-old with no industry experience
- •You can't have no money and pride
- •Pairing curiosity with immediate action builds a bias for action
What Makes a Great Business Partner
Codie asks what a young person should show to earn a 50% stake. Chris says he looks for hunger, humility, gratitude and an entrepreneurial gene, and Codie ties this to a Munger quote about gratitude. Chris also suggests liquidating overstock pallets for people short on time, and both say to learn a business before outsourcing it.
- •People who go all out to get Chris's attention tend to perform better later
- •He looks for humility, gratitude and an entrepreneurial gene
- •Codie recommends optimizing for hunger and gratitude over sophistication
- •Chris suggests buying returned-item pallets to resell on the side
- •Codie says it's hard to hire well until you've done the work well yourself
Three Underrated Side Hustles
Chris names three side hustles: decorating porches with pumpkins, renting out used washers and dryers, and cleaning HVAC coils. He highlights the unbundling framework of finding what businesses hate doing. Codie adds that a business that's too small for one person can be perfect for another.
- •Porch pumpkin decorating charges $600-$1,300 and the visual content markets itself
- •A Utah man rents used washers and dryers for $100-$200 a month and makes six figures working about five hours a week
- •HVAC coil cleaning is a task contractors hate, and one provider reportedly makes $500-600K a year
- •Find what a business hates doing and unbundle it
- •Codie notes that a business's size fit depends on the owner
Businesses to Avoid: Complexity and Thin Margins
Chris says the businesses he would avoid lack binary outcomes. He cites his third-party logistics business, house cleaning and custom home building. Codie adds that you need enough margin to absorb mistakes.
- •His 3PL business did $400,000 a month with no profit because so much could go wrong
- •House cleaning is low-ticket and complex
- •Custom home building brings permit, weather, subcontractor and insurance problems
- •Chris says homes may become worthwhile at multiple millions
- •Margin lets you absorb headaches, and reps help you spot bad businesses
The Buc-ee's Merch Heist
Chris tells how he noticed Buc-ee's had no online shop and tried to land the company as a fulfillment client. After getting no response, he launched an online store of their merchandise and emailed reporters. It went viral with $200,000 in sales in month one and now does millions a year.
- •Buc-ee's website had no shop button
- •Chris bought about $3,000 of merchandise and hired a photographer for $200
- •A dozen news outlets covered the launch
- •The business does millions a year, with an understanding but no official partnership
- •His philosophy is to do things where the worst case is a good story
Marketing, Cringe and the PINKS Calendar
The conversation turns to creating content, doing interesting things and the PINKS window cleaning company. Chris proposes a free calendar mailed to ideal customers, using lifetime value math. They discuss how boring most marketing is and the value of getting past cringe.
- •If you want to be interesting you need to do interesting things
- •Chris's PINKS math: about $7,000 lifetime value against roughly $20 to print and ship a calendar
- •Codie says finance taught her not to market and most marketing is boring
- •Chris is an extreme introvert who says there's a whole world on the other side of cringe
- •A mentor told Codie that less capable people can out-earn you because they're willing to sell
Pet Cremation Logistics Business
Chris explains how a friend's inside look at pet cremation deals led him to buy a refrigerated van instead of expensive burners. They act as middlemen between vets and cremation facilities, and Codie notes that breaking a business down to the chunk you can afford is clever. They also cover typical pet cremation prices and Codie's story about her dog Elvis.
- •Pet cremation deals showed 92% gross margins and the business rides several trends
- •Burners cost $100,000-$300,000 each, so they started with a $15,000 refrigerated van
- •They solve sales and logistics, the pain points facilities named
- •Selling to owners with an existing pain point and cash is easier than creating an industry
- •Pet cremation costs $250 to $500
RV Park Economics and Red Flags
Codie introduces low-people businesses and Chris explains how he moved from single-family homes to small mobile home and RV parks. He covers returns, why the opportunity persists, and what to avoid, including on-site wastewater treatment and the middle of the amenity spectrum.
- •Chris explains tenants own the unit, so owners only maintain the land and infrastructure
- •Small parks cost $100,000 to $1.5 million with 30-60% cash on cash returns
- •Private equity targets $10 million parks and ignores smaller ones
- •On-site wastewater treatment is a major red flag
- •Aim for either no amenities or all the amenities, not the messy middle
Pitching John McAfee on a Crypto Prediction Model
Chris tells how he built a hype-to-market-cap formula for predicting crypto prices and worked to reach John McAfee. After McAfee's colorful reply demanding a live demo, Chris flew to Tennessee, won him over and started a business together. The coin hit a $30 million market cap before the crypto crash killed it.
- •The formula divided a coin's social media hype score by its market cap
- •Chris guessed McAfee's email address until one message showed as opened
- •McAfee demanded a live demo and threatened to throw him out
- •He flew to Lexington, Tennessee, and McAfee agreed after hearing the pitch
- •The coin reached a $30 million market cap and a community of 70,000 before fizzling
Traits of Millionaire Founders: Speed, Trials and Chips on Shoulders
Codie asks what sets everyday millionaire founders apart. Chris says an insane bias for action, curiosity and impatience, and explains his 30-day trial method for hiring. They discuss how anger and slights fuel building.
- •Chris says millionaire founders have a bias for action and are curious and impatient
- •Loving the work may drive speed
- •He gives employees 30-day trials and says on day one there's about a 30% chance it works out
- •Both say anger and being doubted can be powerful fuel
- •Codie warns to be careful what fuel you give others
Worst Betrayals and Lessons on Partnerships
Chris describes the worst thing that happened to him in entrepreneurship, when two partners cut him out of a $50 million opportunity. Codie shares her own experience of being defrauded by a friend and says partnerships should be few and carefully structured.
- •Two of Chris's partners ripped up the operating agreement and cut him out of a $50 million deal
- •He says his life has been better ever since
- •Codie says entrepreneurship won't kill you but you will get hit
- •Codie advises being careful with unknown partners and setting expectations for a breakup
How to Find Your First Business and Start Before Regret
Chris explains how to start: decide whether you love entrepreneurship or just the idea, test it by selling things on Facebook Marketplace, and use ikigai to pick something that fits your skills. He cites regret minimization and says most people don't need to quit their jobs.
- •Figure out whether you love entrepreneurship or the idea of it
- •Sell items from your house on Facebook Marketplace to test
- •Start with what you know using the ikigai principle
- •People regret what they didn't try, and few need to quit their job to start
- •Chris says his ADHD works because he focuses on his superpower of marketing and ideation, not on one business
Missions, Rejection and Closing Thoughts
Chris says the main barriers to entrepreneurship are ego and pride, and that you can follow your energy. He explains how his two-year mission in Hungary, with roughly 24,000 rejections, shaped his confidence. Codie shares a story of helping an appraiser, and they close with where to find Chris.
- •Chris names ego and pride as barriers, and says following energy helps you find work you love
- •Knocking on doors in Hungary meant about 24,000 rejections and 11 conversions
- •The experience convinced him he could do anything in America
- •Codie helped an appraiser move to luxury appraisals and he doubled his business
- •Chris's podcast is The Koerner Office

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