Sam Parr (The Hustle) and Alex Lieberman (The Morning Brew) discuss building $100 million dollar newsletters

Sam Parr (The Hustle) and Alex Lieberman (Morning Brew) recently broke down how they turned simple email newsletters into massive media companies. Once both sold, they could finally talk numbers—and they’re insane.

Key Marketing Takeaways

Start small and focused (both began as niche student projects).
Copy what’s working, but add your own twist (The Hustle saw The Skimm, then niched it for entrepreneurs).
Hire underrated talent early (Morning Brew’s early hire Tyler Denk changed the game).
Maintain an “underdog mentality” even after early wins.
Double down on growth loops—referrals, great ads, and consistent quality.

Real World Examples

The Hustle grew from $400K in 2016 to $13M in 2019.
Morning Brew went from 100K subscribers in 2017 to over 1M by 2018.
Both sold in 2020 for multi-million exits.

Lesson: Newsletters aren’t small businesses—they’re media empires in disguise.

Key Marketing Takeaways

Start small and focused (both began as niche student projects).
Copy what’s working, but add your own twist (The Hustle saw The Skimm, then niched it for entrepreneurs).
Hire underrated talent early (Morning Brew’s early hire Tyler Denk changed the game).
Maintain an “underdog mentality” even after early wins.
Double down on growth loops—referrals, great ads, and consistent quality.