Remember March 2020, The S&P 500 dropped 34% in just 33 days. Or how about 2022, when the market erased $8 trillion in value, and even the “safe” index funds fell 18%?

Here’s what most investors don’t realize, while you’re watching your portfolio swing wildly based on Fed announcements and economic reports you can’t control. There’s a group of smart investors quietly building wealth in a completely different way.

They’re not buying stocks. They’re buying businesses. And the returns? We’re talking 25% to 40% annual returns, sometimes more. In this article, I’m going to show you why business acquisitions, specifically in e-commerce, might be the smartest investment move you’re not making yet.

The Shift From Stocks to Business Ownership

Let’s talk about something that’s been happening quietly among high-net-worth individuals and sophisticated investors. They’re moving away from traditional stock market investing and shifting capital into business acquisitions. And there’s a very good reason why.

Richard Branson once said, “Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.” And he’s built his entire empire on that principle. Virgin Group doesn’t invest in the stock market, they acquire and build businesses. Over 400 companies across multiple industries. That’s not stock picking, that’s business ownership at scale.

Think about it. When you buy a stock, what are you really getting? A tiny fraction of ownership with zero control. You can’t improve the operations. You can’t hire better management. You can’t pivot the strategy. You’re completely at the mercy of a CEO you’ll never meet and market forces you can’t influence.

But when you own a business, everything changes.

According to a report by BizBuySell, the median ROI for small business acquisitions in the US is around 33%. Compare that to the S&P 500’s historical average of about 10% annually. We’re talking about triple the returns.

And it’s not just Richard Branson. Look at private equity. The entire private equity industry, which manages over $5 trillion globally, is built on one simple concept: buying existing businesses, improving them, and selling them for a profit. Firms like Blackstone, KKR, and Apollo have made their investors billions doing exactly this.

Here’s what makes business ownership so powerful: control and cash flow.

With stocks, you’re hoping the price goes up. That’s it. But with a business, you’re generating actual cash flow from day one. Real money hitting your account monthly. Money you can reinvest, use to acquire more businesses, or simply enjoy.

Plus, you have control. If revenue is down, you can test new marketing channels. If costs are too high, you can negotiate with suppliers. If the product line is stale, you can innovate. You’re the captain of the ship, not a passenger hoping the captain knows what they’re doing.

Why Ecommerce Specifically?

Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Okay, buying a business sounds great, but I’m not trying to buy a restaurant or a manufacturing plant. I have a full-time career, a family, other investments. I don’t have time to run a physical business.”

And you’re absolutely right. That’s exactly why e-commerce has become the golden child of business acquisitions.

Let me paint you a picture. It’s 2025. Global e-commerce sales are projected to hit $6.3 trillion this year, according to Statista. By 2029, we’re looking at over $8 trillion. This isn’t a trend, this is a fundamental shift in how people shop.

But here’s the beautiful part unlike a brick-and-mortar business, e-commerce businesses are incredibly flexible. There’s no physical storefront to manage. No lease to worry about. No geographic limitation. You can run an e-commerce business from your laptop in Lagos, London, or Los Angeles.

Think about the traditional barriers to business ownership: location, inventory management, physical presence. E-commerce removes almost all of them.

And we’re not talking about starting from scratch here. That’s the old way of thinking. Starting an e-commerce business from zero is hard. You need to validate the product, build the brand, figure out marketing, establish supplier relationships, work through all the operational headaches. It could take years before you see any meaningful profit.

But buying an existing, profitable e-commerce business? That’s a completely different game.

You’re buying something that’s already proven. It already has customers. It already has revenue. It already has systems in place. You’re essentially buying a money-printing machine that someone else built and debugged.

According to Flippa’s 2024 report, established e-commerce businesses typically sell for 2.5 to 4 times their annual profit. So if a business is making $100,000 in annual profit, you might acquire it for $250,000 to $400,000. That means you’re looking at a 25% to 40% annual return on your investment, assuming the business maintains its current performance. And if you can grow it even slightly, Those returns get even better.

Let’s put this in perspective. If you put $300,000 into an S&P 500 index fund and get the historical 10% return, you’re making about $30,000 a year. If you put that same $300,000 into buying an e-commerce business making $100,000 in profit, you’re immediately tripling your return. And unlike stocks, you have the power to improve those returns through better operations, marketing, and strategy.

But here’s where most people get stuck.

The Real Barriers (And Why They’re Not As Big As You Think)

“I don’t know how to find a good business to buy.”

“What if I get scammed and buy a lemon?”

“I don’t know how to run an e-commerce business.”

“I’m too busy with my career and family.”

These are real concerns. And honestly? They’re valid. The business acquisition space can feel like the Wild West if you don’t know what you’re doing. There are bad deals out there. There are inflated numbers. There are businesses that look good on paper but are actually held together with duct tape.

This is exactly why due diligence is so critical. You need to verify everything: revenue, profit margins, customer acquisition costs, supplier relationships, operational systems. You need to understand why the owner is selling. You need to look at traffic sources and make sure they’re not dependent on one unstable channel.

Most individual investors don’t have the expertise to do this properly. And that’s okay, because you don’t have to do it alone.

Think about it like this: when you invest in real estate, you don’t go it alone. You have real estate agents, inspectors, lawyers, property managers. The same principle applies to business acquisitions, except most people don’t realize there are experts who specialize in this exact process for e-commerce.

The smart move isn’t to avoid business acquisitions because they seem complicated. The smart move is to partner with people who do this professionally.

Different Paths for Different Investors

Here’s something most people don’t realize, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to owning an e-commerce business.

Some investors want to be completely passive. They want to allocate capital, get strong returns, and have someone else handle everything. Think of it like owning rental property with a property management company, except the returns are typically much better.

Other investors want to be more involved. Maybe you’re someone who’s been climbing the corporate ladder for 15 years, and you’re ready to transition into entrepreneurship, but you don’t want the risk of starting from scratch. Buying an existing business and scaling it yourself might be the perfect path.

Then there are investors who want something in between. Maybe you want to stay in your high-paying career but be involved in strategic decisions, with a team handling the day-to-day operations.

The point is, your approach to e-commerce business ownership should match your capital, your lifestyle, and your goals. A busy executive with $500,000 to invest but only 5 hours a week to spare needs a very different strategy than an entrepreneur with $100,000 and 40 hours a week to dedicate.

And this is where most investors make a critical mistake, they jump in without understanding which path actually fits their situation. They either take on too much and get overwhelmed, or they stay too hands-off and miss opportunities to maximize returns.

The Solution: A Structured Approach to E-Commerce Acquisition

We built TrendHijacking for investors, entrepreneurs, business owners, and high-earning professionals who see the potential in e-commerce acquisitions but need the right expertise, infrastructure, and team to do it properly.

Because buying a profitable online business shouldn’t feel like a guessing game.

We handle everything. And we mean everything.

Preliminary assessment:
We vet every business verifying financials, analyzing traffic, and assessing operational health. We’ve walked away from dozens of deals that looked perfect on paper but had red flags hiding underneath.

Acquisition:
We handle negotiations, structure the deal, and oversee the entire legal process so you can invest confidently.

Operations:
Once you own the business, our team can manage day-to-day operations from customer service and fulfillment to marketing and inventory management.

Scaling:
We implement proven growth strategies, optimize conversions, expand to new channels, and increase margins for long-term profitability.

Exit:
When the timing’s right whether it’s two years or ten  we help you plan and execute a profitable exit.

But here’s what truly sets TrendHijacking apart: everything we do is customized around your goals and lifestyle.

That busy executive with just a few hours a week?
We build a fully passive structure where they act as a capital partner while our team runs the business.

That entrepreneur transitioning out of corporate?
We can acquire a business together, giving them an active role in scaling while we handle operations and growth strategy.

We use a detailed investment assessment to identify your ideal acquisition path, factoring in your capital, time availability, risk tolerance, experience, and long-term goals. Because the truth is, acquiring a business that doesn’t fit your life isn’t a win. It’s a burden.

We’ve made a few of our available businesses public, but these represent less than 5% of the total opportunities within our network.

The majority of our deals are off-market acquisitions profitable, vetted businesses that never make it to public marketplaces.

To access them, you’ll need to book a private meeting with our acquisition team. In that session, we’ll walk you through your best-fit opportunities, discuss your investment profile, and map out a clear acquisition strategy tailored to your goals.

The Bigger Picture

Look, the stock market isn’t going anywhere. I’m not saying you should liquidate your entire portfolio and go all-in on business acquisitions. Diversification still matters.

But what I am saying is if you’re a high earner or an established investor and 100% of your investment capital is in stocks, bonds, and index funds, you’re leaving massive returns on the table.

The wealthiest people in the world don’t get rich from stock market returns. They get rich and stable from owning businesses.

You don’t need to build the next Amazon. But you can own a profitable piece of the e-commerce economy that’s growing every single year.

And unlike stocks, where your success is tied to factors completely outside your control, business ownership gives you leverage. You can improve operations. You can test new marketing. You can expand product lines. You can increase your returns through skill and strategy, not just luck.

The opportunity is sitting right in front of you. The question is: are you going to keep doing what everyone else is doing, or are you going to make the move that sophisticated investors have been making for decades?

Take the Next Step

If this resonates with you,  if you’ve been thinking about diversifying beyond the stock market or exploring how e-commerce acquisitions fit your portfolio, we’ve made it easy to take the next step.

You can now explore a small selection of e-commerce businesses currently for sale through TrendHijacking.

These listings represent less than 5% of the opportunities available in our network. The vast majority of the businesses we work with are exclusive, off-market deals, profitable brands you won’t find on any public marketplace.

To access those private opportunities, you’ll need to book a meeting with our acquisition team. In that call, we’ll walk you through your best-fit deals, evaluate your investment goals, and map out a clear acquisition strategy tailored to your situation.

Because the wealthiest investors don’t wait for opportunities, they position themselves where others can’t.