Building a Purpose-Driven eCommerce Business After Burnout With Chris Farkas

Chris Farkas is the President of EmergencyKits.com, a company that provides high-quality emergency preparedness kits and supplies for individuals, families, schools, businesses, government organizations, first responders, and the US Military. In January 2025, as Manager of Second Mountain Holdings, LLC, Chris led the acquisition of EmergencyKits.com, aiming to support its growth and innovation in the emergency preparedness sector. Under his leadership, the company continues to operate from its headquarters in Simi Valley, California, maintaining its commitment to quality and customer service.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[2:21] Chris Farkas recalls his childhood struggles with ADHD and a traumatic classroom experience
[10:29] Innovations in early mobile devices and lessons Chris learned from working at Handspring
[12:29] Understanding supply chain forecasting and managing seasonal inventory cycles
[14:51] Building data-driven tools to streamline purchasing and pricing decisions
[16:56] The dangers of staying opportunistic without a focused business strategy
[22:45] Validating market fit through customer discovery and real-world feedback
[27:15] Using acquisition entrepreneurship to reduce startup risk and accelerate growth
[35:38] Evaluating e-commerce opportunities based on simplicity, scalability, and purpose
[40:09] Leveraging inventory management expertise to unlock hidden business value

In this episode…

Leaving behind a long-time business can feel like a failure. But sometimes, it’s the first step toward alignment. After nearly two decades building a consulting firm, one entrepreneur chose to walk away, not because it wasn’t successful, but because it no longer lit him up. What happens when you decide to start over and build something that reflects your values and vision?

According to Chris Farkas, a seasoned entrepreneur with deep roots in supply chain and software, starting over meant buying a business that aligned with both his skills and sense of purpose. He highlights how acquiring an e-commerce company with a mission gave him the chance to apply his operational expertise to a meaningful product. This approach not only revitalized his energy but also offered scalable opportunities for impact. Chris explains how being burned out pushed him to seek simplicity in business models, and how owning a product-based business gave him the hands-on control he had been missing. His story is a blueprint for reinventing your career on your own terms.

In this episode, John Corcoran sits down with Chris Farkas, President of EmergencyKits.com, to talk about building a purpose-driven e-commerce business after burnout. They discuss his transition from consulting to owning a product business, how he chose the right company to acquire, and the mindset shift required to step back from something you’ve built. Chris also shares lessons from past failures and how he’s using them to fuel his current success.Zelensky earlier in her career.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Quotable Moments

“Don’t hire anybody that you can’t fire.”
“If I’m not going to do it now, I’m never going to do it.”
“I wanted it to be something that I felt good about putting my name on.”
“I love that aspect of being able to experiment and test and really figure out what’s right.”
“To the extent that there are opportunities the owner didn’t pursue, that’s unrecognized value.”

Action Steps

Define your personal acquisition criteria early: Knowing what kind of business fits your values and strengths helps filter opportunities quickly.
Validate market demand before building: Talking to potential customers ensures you’re solving a real problem and reduces the risk of failure.
Prioritize simple, scalable business models: Choosing operationally straightforward businesses creates more room for experimentation and faster decision-making.
Leverage your unique skill set post-acquisition: Applying past expertise to optimize an acquired business creates quick wins and builds momentum.
Treat employees with transparency and respect: Building trust during transitions fosters team stability and smooth cultural integration.

Sponsor for this episode…

EO San Francisco

This episode is brought to you by EO San Francisco.

The Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) is a global, peer-to-peer network of more than 14,000+ influential business owners with 198 chapters in 61 countries.

If you are the founder, co-founder, owner, or controlling shareholder of a company generating over $1 million a year in revenues, and want to connect with other like-minded successful entrepreneurs, EO is for you.

The EO San Francisco chapter enables leading entrepreneurs in the Bay area to learn, grow, and achieve greater success.

The EOSF chapter was founded in 1991, and today we have over 100 members in industries ranging from marketing to agriculture to tech and professional services.

To learn how it works, or to come do a test drive come join us at www.eonetwork.org/sanfrancisco/.

This episode is also brought to you by my company, Pacific Crest Group.

Pacific Crest Group provides outsourced CFO, Controller, and bookkeeping services. You can learn more about us at https://www.pcg-services.com/

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