How Eddie Eastman Built a 6-Figure Business Selling Ready-Made Online Stores

How Eddie Eastman Built Startup Streams: Shopfiy Stores for the New Entrepreneur

When you think of tech founders, a survivalist isn’t the first image to pop up. But Eddie Eastman doesn’t fit the mold. Trained in physical and mental endurance, Eddie was preparing for the British Armed Forces. Only a nut allergy kept him from the army. Instead, those lessons in resilience and adaptation shaped his approach to business—and are baked deep into Startup Streams, his surprisingly efficient turnkey digital store business.

From Survival Prep to Serial Entrepreneur

Eddie’s business DNA runs back to his teens. At 12, he was printing custom skateboard stickers on his home PC, selling at school and beyond. Stints followed in launching side hustles, including helping his brother’s athletic jeans brand land investment from a Richard Branson fund. But what really got Eddie hooked was his first big solo project: turning experience in mental and physical fitness into sellable audio books. Yet it wasn’t long before the day-to-day dragged him down. Marketing didn’t excite him—creating did. So he sold his first site on Flippa and pocketed the proceeds.

Recognizing What Actually Drives You

Eddie knew what he loved—dreaming up ideas, building appealing websites, inventing brands, writing catchy copy. Operations and marketing, though? He’d get bored quickly. That self-awareness became the engine of Startup Streams. Rather than running stores, he builds them—then flips them to hustlers looking for a new income stream.

The Startup Streams Model: Digital, Scalable, Streamlined

• Shopify stores selling evergreen digital assets (like eBooks) as one-product, one-page sites.
• Zero inventory or fulfillment headaches—everything is digital and downloadable instantly, so no supply chains to worry about.
• Design and branding are sharply targeted: sites are visually rich, flow seamlessly, and are easy for a new owner to customize for SEO or marketing.
• Process is streamlined: Eddie has documented, repeatable steps, so he can build and list new stores on Flippa nearly every week. He treats site-building like clockwork.

Rapid Growth Through Focused Execution

Once he committed fully, things snowballed—112 deals closed in just over half a year. Sales were almost all from Flippa, with some stores even receiving multiple offers. And customer satisfaction? Flawless at 100% at the time. Focusing on US customers, Startup Streams priced sites in USD and kept designs accessible for Americans starting out. Eddie found a rhythm: continually coming up with fresh concepts, building new store sites, and handing them off to buyers eager for turnkey solutions.

A Customer-First Philosophy and the Right Buyer

Eddie’s clients are mainly first-time entrepreneurs—people with marketing chops but no design or development skills. They’re not looking to build from scratch. Most are US-based, looking for a simple way to own a business, try new marketing strategies, or flip for a profit later. The stores are "starter" stores, not passive income generators. Buyers get a support pack: tips for managing a Shopify store and how to market it, helping beginners get their footing.

Free and Creative Marketing Tactics

Eddie encourages customers to target Instagram micro-influencers. Since the product is digital, there’s no cost to deliver freebies for promo. With hundreds of thousands of influencers out there—many happy for a free product—this sort of grassroots marketing can deliver early sales, even when ad budgets are tight. Sites fit a range of niches: from keto diet eBooks to travel guides to personal development. The flexibility of digital products and instant delivery is key here—no delays, no warehouse headaches, no ethical debates about "essential workers" during global shutdowns.

Surviving—and Thriving—Through Covid Uncertainty

The pandemic put Eddie’s own fortitude to the test. Quarantined in an Indonesian hospital suspected of Covid (it turned out to be bronchitis), cut off from wifi and home, he missed his Flippa targets for the first time in months. The whole world paused. But Eddie noticed something: people were suddenly asking if it was ethical to order physical goods during lockdown. The advantage of all-digital businesses clicked—no one’s at risk, there’s no delivery, and everything is safe. Startup Streams updated its sales copy, highlighting the Covid-safe nature of its model. Sales quickly rebounded as buyers realized these stores weren’t just practical—they were also ethically sound during a pandemic.

Automating Growth and Staying Inspired

• Eddie’s system is process-driven and replicable.
• He works with designers, developers, and copywriters as needed, but mostly, he’s a solo operator—his true strength is coming up with ideas and launching stores quickly.
• Onboarding buyers includes education and support materials for Shopify management and marketing, ensuring a higher chance buyers stick, not churn.
• Innovation is built in by launching new niches every week, helping him avoid burnout and continuously serving fresh offers to his audience.

Lessons for Aspiring Founders

Startup Streams’ story drives home: focus on your strengths and systematize your work. Know exactly which parts you enjoy and which you’d rather delegate. Don’t cling to the dream of passive income—everything worth doing takes some effort. If you can get the first stages handled, there’s always an audience looking for a simpler on-ramp to online entrepreneurship. Eddie’s smart pivots, streamlined production, and ability to spot buyer needs at a moment when the world suddenly cared about digital-first business gave him an edge and kept the business healthy through Covid uncertainty—and beyond.