Things rarely ever happen in life the way we plan them. I know that well, but that didn’t make this unexpected curve any less… unexpected.

I’ve spent the last seven plus years building The Contract Shop® to multiple 7-figures, and we served over 10,000 customers. But as of the end of 2022, I no longer own The Contract Shop ®. 

I have some exciting news to share, which you’ll find in the video below, or at the end of this post!

But first, I want to take a look back at The Contract Shop® and all the things we’ve accomplished over the years. 

The birth of The Contract Shop®

When I first got out of law school, I landed what I thought was my dream job. I was so excited to finally have a “real job” where I’d be making a decent income and benefits. But none of that was worth the existential dread I felt shortly after I started. 

I worked myself into a panic because it dawned on me that every single day for the next forty years would look the same. I felt trapped — and suddenly, that dream job turned into a total friggen nightmare. The kind that wakes up you at night cuz you’re sweating so much the blanket sticks to you.

So, I frantically searched for other options, even though at this point I had NO money because I was nearly $73K in credit card debt. That’s not even including my student loans. And all of this caused immense pressure to find something that would change my financial situation. 

H3: Personal challenges in those early days

After a few years of feeling doom and gloom, things in my personal life started to change too, and not for the better. In an effort to save money, I moved in with a toxic ex and then lost my best friend to an overdose, then found out one of my family members was in a coma. 

These are moments I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I was in a low place, grieving immensely, and struggling financially. It took me a while to get to a better place, and funny enough, as I started to crawl out of that hole, The Contract Shop® was born. 

H3: Starting a business is no joke

Starting a business is hard — period. But starting a business while going through personal trauma? Even harder. 

To this day, I’m still not sure how I managed to survive. I had a lot more going on than I realized, but I’m so thankful I had a business to focus on to help me out of such a dark time in my life. 

The big break that never came

Everyone always assumes that stories like these always have that “aha!” moment where the narrator FINALLY catches their big break…but…I think that stuff is more for the movies. Because really, it was a slow build up. 

I kept waiting and waiting for my big break. I waited desperately for that one moment that would change everything, but it never came. Instead, I woke up one morning and realized that I had built something sustainable for my life. And something that was helping other business owners do the same. And I was damn proud of it. 

How I grew The Contract Shop® to where it is today

One of the first big moments for me as the owner of The Contract Shop® was after a webinar I joined. I wasn’t paid — in fact, it was just a quick appearance where I dished out some legal ishh and tried to make it less excruciating by keeping the energy light. Of course, I did pitch myself at the end (it was really bad LOL) and somehow managed to sell over $3,700 worth of digital products. 

And then I hit the ground running. Over time, I started bringing in more money, but I was spending it just as fast. I was trying to uplevel as quickly as possible because I was afraid of being left behind.

So I spent all of my money on contractors and software trying to make that happen. 

Do I regret it? Not for a second! Everyone’s story is different, but mine helped me get to where I am today — living in a state I love while still getting to travel often, only taking client meetings once a week, and regularly chilling on the couch with my dogs and the best gluten-free snacks Whole Foods has to offer. 

Hitting another bump in the road

In Summer 2018, I hit my first ever $6K month. And you would think that would be a cause for celebration, but instead, it sent me on a mental health nose dive.

I found it hard to get out of bed in the morning. I was super unmotivated. So, I decided to see a therapist, which was a scary experience at first, but I’m glad I did. I thought I’d go in and get diagnosed with depression (because of my symptoms) but long story short…it was ADHD manifesting itself as depression. 

And that changed everything. 

Once I learned how to work with ADHD instead of against it or trying to fight it off, I was finally able to move forward with my business. 

I started outsourcing help and finding people to help me with the five million and one tasks I had on my plate, like operations help and customer support. I started shifting and slowing down, and it worked because I was finally able to step back into a CEO role instead of the do-everything-yourself role. 

And now…the big news

As you know, I also run the Christina Scalera brand. But leading two companies is a lot of work. It’s exhausting and I felt that nudge in me that it was time to move on, so…

I put The Contract Shop® up for sale through a brokerage. 

At first, I didn’t think much would happen. I thought if anything, I’d just make a cool YouTube series out of it so you could see what the process was like. But I ended up getting a fantastic offer I couldn’t turn down. 

So I, Christina Scalera, am no longer the owner of The Contract Shop®. 

What’s next

With that being said, I am so grateful, truly, to each and every one of you who have been along for the ride. I’m still in awe to this day that so many people want to hear what I have to say. That they come into The Contract Shop®/Christina Scalera mix and never leave. 

I’d love to have fancy brunch and mimosa with each of you (or just an OJ if that’s your thing). 

So…what’s next? 

Well, I’ll still be here, at your regularly scheduled time to drop knowledge on how to build your biz with digital products. The Christina Scalera Brand is not going anywhere! I’ve got YouTube videos dropping twice weekly, and I’d love for you to join me there!

JOIN ME ON YOUTUBE

And just so you can put it on your radar…I will be documenting the process of what selling a business is like on my YouTube channel. Look out for those videos in the next few weeks! I can’t wait to share this with you, it’s going to be a juicy series. 

Thanks again for being here!