The Grit Factor Podcast w/ Karl Jacobi | Episode 007: $1M Months, $1M in Debt, and a 7-Second Video That Changed Everything with Eric Bussey

Episode 007: $1M Months, $1M in Debt, and a 7-Second Video That Changed Everything with Eric Bussey

February 27, 2026 / 01:10:14/E7

Episode Summary

What happens when you hit a million-dollar month and then have to come home and tell your wife there is no paycheck?

Eric Bussey started selling coat hangers on Amazon out of storage units in 2012 while driving a pest control truck. He and his partners built a liquidation retail empire with multiple brick-and-mortar locations, 46 employees, and million-dollar months. But behind the highlight reel was a million dollars in debt, a vendor calling in hundreds of thousands overnight, an eBay account generating $250,000 a month in revenue getting suspended for months through zero fault of their own, and a sales floor that went quiet right before an election.

All three hit at the same time. The perfect storm.

Instead of folding, Eric pivoted. He picked up a cell phone, made a seven-second TikTok video, earned $7,000 from it, and got so freaked out he turned the whole thing off because he thought it was illegal. Turns out it was not. It was just the beginning. Today Eric earns north of $20,000 a month as a TikTok content creator and helps brands launch on the platform. His handle is Gear and Grit, and that name tells you everything you need to know.

If you have ever been buried in debt, scared to pivot, or convinced you are not a content creator, this episode is your permission slip to start anyway.

In This Episode, You'll Discover:

How Eric went from selling coat hangers out of storage units while working pest control to building a multi-location retail business
Why opening two retail stores during COVID in November 2020 was actually the best decision he ever made
The perfect storm that hit his business. Vendor debt called in, eBay suspended, and sales dried up all at the same time
What it feels like to go from a million-dollar month to telling your wife there is no paycheck
Why business partnerships are marriages and why 50/50 splits need a tiebreaker
The moment a seven-second TikTok video made him $7,000 and he shut it all down because he thought it was illegal
Why content is the next currency and how TikTok is simultaneously competing with Amazon and Facebook and winning
The one habit Eric is actively trying to quit that has held back more entrepreneurs than failure ever will

Key Takeaways:

Growth Equals Risk. Period. Every time Eric took on more debt, his business grew to the next tier. But growth also means more employees, more inventory, and more exposure. Not everyone needs a hundred-million-dollar business. Know what level of risk you are willing to carry and be honest about it.
Partnerships Are Marriages. Treat Them That Way. Eric's partnership lasted 14 years because they treated it like a relationship. Different strengths. Honest disagreements. A third partner who broke ties. His advice is to get an operating agreement before you have something to lose because trying to figure that out during turmoil is almost impossible.
Your Best Partner Thinks Nothing Like You. Eric's business partner pushed him into risk he would have avoided for a decade. Eric kept his partner from losing everything the next day. Without that tension, neither of them builds what they built. If your partner agrees with everything you say, you do not have a partner. You have an echo.
Retail Is a Cash-Eating Monster. Forty-six employees. A million dollars in inventory. No SOPs. No business school. Three guys who accidentally created a big business. The lesson is that systems and standard operating procedures installed early would have prevented half the pain.
Content Is the Next Currency. Eric built his retail store by filming raw Facebook ads on his cell phone. People treated social media like TV. They walked into the store and recognized him like a celebrity. That same skill now powers his entire TikTok business with almost zero overhead.
Fear and Excitement Are the Same Feeling. They are just opposite ends of the spectrum. Eric's challenge is to post 100 videos before you judge yourself. You are going to be bad at first. That is exactly the point.
Stop Saying Yes to Everything. When you develop a skill and want to help everyone, you end up spread so thin you become useless. The habit Eric is actively quitting is saying yes. The goal is not to find good opportunities. It is to find the right ones where you have the most leverage.
When You Hit a Roadblock, Keep Going. That is where someone else stopped. Eric's definition of grit is simply outlasting everyone. People fade away. If you just keep showing up with small improvements back to back to back, eventually you are the only one left.

Timestamps:

[00:00] Introduction
[01:30] Meet Eric Bussey. From pest control to Amazon OG
[04:30] The origin story. Selling coat hangers out of storage units in 2012
[06:30] How a liquidation store client sparked the retail pivot
[08:00] The garage full of chainsaws and the wife who said no more
[09:12] Opening two retail stores simultaneously during COVID
[11:00] Why authentic cell phone ads built a local celebrity brand
[13:30] The perfect storm. One million in debt, vendors calling it in, eBay suspended
[17:55] Coming home and telling his wife there is no paycheck
[19:38] Getting desensitized to debt vs. staying scared at every level
[21:30] Business partnerships are marriages. Here is why
[25:43] Everything is easy until you have something to lose
[27:07] Why 50/50 partnerships need a tiebreaker or a third person
[28:17] Your best partner should think nothing like you
[30:35] Get an operating agreement before it means anything
[33:57] We accidentally created a big business. The SOP lesson
[36:15] Hiring at 70 percent of your ability is still worth it
[39:14] The pivot to TikTok content creation
[42:30] Making $7,000 from a seven-second video and thinking it was illegal
[44:01] Why content is the next currency
[45:34] Overcoming the fear of creating content. Post 100 times before you judge yourself
[51:15] Fear and excitement are the same feeling
[55:13] The TikTok affiliate playbook. How to get started today
[58:25] Eric's definition of grit. Just keep going because that is where everyone else stopped
[59:32] The habit Eric is quitting. Saying yes to everything
[01:01:12] Small improvements back to back to back
[01:02:18] The mistake Eric had to forgive himself for
[01:05:06] The Marty McFly question. Would you change anything? Not a thing
[01:06:51] The car accident at 19 that changed everything