Co-Founder @ Measure Studio 📈 AI-Powered Social Media Insights

I’m a 3x entrepreneur and M&A advisor who helps founders sell their businesses.

👋 WHY ME?

After I sold my first startup (Paladin), several founder friends reached out to me. They wanted to know what it was like and what I learned in the process.

A few of them were thinking about selling their companies and asked if I would help. After all, I understood the industry and probably knew most of the potential buyers.

So I agreed to help a few of those friends and found myself with a new side hustle as a boutique investment banker.

After cutting my teeth on a few deals, I realized how much I love working with entrepreneurs, so I made it official and launched my own M&A advisory practice: Quartermast Advisors.

🤝 WHAT I OFFER:

I help my clients manage the entire M&A process from start to finish, which includes:

✭ Preparing your materials (management presentation, financials, etc.)
✭ Identifying and getting in touch with the right buyers
✭ Negotiating the deal structure and economics
✭ Coordinating with legal and tax experts to protect your interests
✭ Asking thoughtful questions and providing useful advice along the way

🤔 WHY WORK WITH AN M&A ADVISOR?

Research shows that hiring a banker results in ~25% higher valuation premiums, on average.

It also frees founders up to continue operating the business and hit their targets. There's nothing worse than poor company performance during a sales process, so it's often more valuable for the team to focus on delivering good results rather than managing M&A discussions.

👨‍💻 WHO I HELP:

I stick to what I know: digital media, tech, and the creator economy. I’ve helped sell influencer agencies, talent management firms, enterprise SaaS companies, and more.

If you’ve been approached or are just thinking about selling your company now or in the future, shoot me a note. I’d be happy to chat and answer any questions.

If I’m the right fit, I’d love to help you out. And if I’m not, I’ll gladly point you in the right direction.

💬 I'VE BEEN FEATURED IN:
- Business Insider
- Digiday
- eMarketer
- Forbes
- Net Influencer
- New Economies
- PRWeek
- Scalable
- The Information
- The Publish Press
- TheWrap
- They Got Acquired
- Tubefilter
…and more

📢 I'VE SPOKEN AT:
- 1 Billion Followers Summit
- Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
- Digital Entertainment World (DEW)
- Digital First
- Digital Hollywood
- DMEXCO
- Social Media Week
- VidCon
- Youth Marketing Show (YMS)
…and more

James Creech

Avinash "Avi" Gandhi

Building Creator Logic, the Bloomberg of the Creator Economy. Join 28,000+ Creatorpreneurs becoming their own managers through interviews, frameworks, and case studies at CreatorLogic.com. DM to partner.

My mission is to build the Creator Middle Class by helping Creators and Companies win together. 

I've spent 15 years helping Creators and companies build businesses hand in hand, as a talent agent, manager, producer, and executive at companies like WME, Wheelhouse, and Patreon. I've seen nanoinfluencers make six figures and watched million-scale Creators go bankrupt. The difference between the two is how they approach their businesses - their "Creator logic"!

Our first offering is the Creator Logic newsletter, which currently reaches 28,000+ Creators.

We also produce written and short-form video across social (@thecreatorlogic) and have brought together over 500 Creators to date at events and meetups in Southern California, New York, Baltimore, and London.

We offer 15 years of Creator-native knowledge and experience as Advisors to companies serving Creators but not native to the Creator Economy, helping them better build for, sell to, and succeed with Creators. Past and present clients include Discord, TubeBuddy, and Point72 Ventures. 

Soon we are launching paid community and product offerings to help Creators better monetize, through education and access to otherwise gatekept opportunities. 

If you're interested in exploring ways we can work together, please don't hesitate to message me or reach out via email - avi@creatorlogic.com.

Thanks!

Avi Gandhi (Creator Logic)

I've made 1400 pieces of content since August 2025...

and I think I'm done.

- Hundreds of videos. 
- Millions of words. 
- Over $1 million in revenue from consulting clients, referrals, and brand deals.

Before 2022, I led teams to produce podcasts, YouTube videos, short-form series...but I had never really created anything by myself. 

But after two and a half years, I can confidently say:

I'm not very good at this. 

- I can't stick to a content strategy. 
- I refuse to say the same thing 50 different ways ("repurposing")
- I'm unwilling to produce for the sake of algos and engagement.

And yet, all of that is critical to the ongoing growth and longevity of successful Creators.

So, why am I writing about this? 

Am I quitting being a Creator?

No...and yes.

I'm not quitting creating content. 
- Writing on LinkedIn
- Programming a newsletterr
- Occasionally making a video. 

These things are par for the course now for any entrepreneur. 

If you're building a business and you're not broadcasting it somehow, you are hamstringing yourself. 

But I AM quitting something.

I'm quitting being a "thought leader"...

So I can build something new!

For the last few months, I've been quietly working on a project that will create HUGE value for middle-class Creators by putting thousands of dollars back in their pockets.

I've already locked in over a dozen amazing partners -  top firms in the Creator Economy that serve millions of Creators through their products and services -  and while I continue to add dozens more, I'm currently building the hub for all of this value to be accessed by middle-class Creators around the world.

I'll remain publicly cryptic on this project for another few weeks, until I launch pre-orders, but I'm happy to chat privately - just send me a DM. 

I don't need money from anyone, but I will always be looking for more partners who want to reach and provide value to serious Creators.

So...interested in learning more?

📸  No more "thought leader" suit. Now I'm a builder.

Building the Creator Middle Class...new project coming soon.

"Podcasting is a <$1B business. Why would we invest that?"

A former Hollywood studio President I worked for a few years ago said that to me. 

It was pre-COVID, and Spotify had not yet but was about to make its landmark $200 million deal with Joe Rogan. 

I was pitching partnering with Creators to launch podcasts.

He thought it was a waste of time and money. 

Then COVID happened. Podcasts went to the moon. I ended up launching half a dozen podcasts with a team of 15 people. Spotify bought some of those podcasts, others won Streamy Awards, and the rest is history. 

Shortly after, I went to Patreon where we ended up doing big deals with even more podcasts. 

And today, Spotify revealed that it has invested over $10B in the podcasting sector over the last five years. 

They renewed their deal with Joe Rogan as a non-exclusive sales partnership worth over $250M. 

I think they will make a profit on it. 

Meanwhile, Stephen Bartlett, another major podcaster, raised money for his company at a $450M valuation. 

This is actually the second time I've watched this cycle play out. 

I had the very same conversation with a big-shot Hollywood agent back in 2012. 

Today, YouTube has paid out more than $50 billion to Creators over the last three years. 

And MrBeast is worth over a billion dollars. He won't be the last YouTube Creator worth that much.

I guess what I'm trying to say is: 

If you believe in a certain future, don't worry about the opinions of people whose livelihoods are invested in the past. 

Just keep moving towards that future you believe in. 

📸 Me holding a future I believe in at 3am when he won't sleep

Avi Gandhi laying on the couch with his baby son in his arms, with some excellent artwork on the wall behind him. 

I'm launching my new business in April, and I need your help. 

We've got a dozen fantastic companies like beehiiv (Tyler Denk 🐝), Fourthwall (Will Baumann), and Nas dot io (Nuseir Yassin) signed on with special offerings for our customers...

And I want MORE.

Here are some of the companies I'd love to have:

Anthropic / Claude
Canva
CapCut
Descript
Riverside
Squarespace
Wix
Shield App
Taplio
Upwork
Fiverr
Fireflies dot ai
Granola
Notion
Airtable
HubSpot
Later
Repurpose dot io
Shutterstock
Storyblocks
Visa
Tella
Loom
Google Workspace

And any other companies with products Creators pay for to build and run their businesses!

Do you know executives or marketers / product marketers at these companies? 

I'd love to connect with them to tell them more about what I'm building.

And if you want to know more yourself, I'm not posting about it yet but DM me and I'll give you the details.

So...know anyone?

"This is VidCon's last year" - someone told me at a party recently.

Wrong.

Just had a great convo with Jacques Keyser and I could not be more excited about VidCon, this year and going forward!

Updates I'm stoked for:

- This is VidCon's last year...competing with Cannes. New dates are set for 2027.

(I'll probably still only go to VidCon, but if your company is paying for your travel, congrats on being able to attend both)

- Complete shift in programming approach, from informational to interactive. Forget panels where experts tell you what they've done. Starting this year, we'll have workshops where you bring your laptop and the experts guide you through doing it live. 

(I'm going to put together a Creator Partnerships and Acquisition workshop, so stay tuned for that)

- New emphasis on networking. They'll still have the evening happy hours, but they'll also add interest-based meetups and group discussions, so if you want to talk about Creator Economy M&A with other buyers and sellers, you can do that. 

(That's a hypothetical, but maybe James Creech and Chris Erwin will actually host it)

And there's a whole lot more cool stuff in the works. 

I'm stoked. I've already started thinking about my programming, and soon I'll start thinking about my events and strategy. 

VidCon is, after all, my Super Bowl.

What do you think of the new direction?

📸 The legendary Grumpy Cat @ VidCon (Bret Hartman / AP Images for Friskies via the LA Times)

The late Grumpy Cat photographed at video creators conference VidCon 2014 in Anaheim, Calif. (Bret Hartman / AP Images for Friskies)

CALLING ALL INFLUENCER TALENT MANAGERS:

Have these types of posts where someone says they have a campaign and gets all your contact info ever actually yielded a deal for you?

The best way to build authentic relationships is to “share the wealth”.

“But Avi, I’m not wealthy!”

We’re all wealthy in some way or another - rich in hobbies, interests, and passions that keep us happy between the mundane and terrifying moments of a 21st century late-stage capitalist existence.

Share those.

Some personal examples:

- I love whisky and am a member of the Southern California Whisky Club. I’ve invited many many far more successful people than me to tastings with the club, at bars, or at my home. It’s the sort of thing people WANT to say yes to, even if they’re not sure about hanging out with you otherwise.

- I’m into high-craft clothing - think local and/or handmade heritage stuff like Japanese denim and french workwear. I don’t talk about it, but other people that are into that kind of thing recognize when they see me wearing Pure Blue jeans or a Le Mont Saint Michel jacket. This happened to me several times just last week, and it creates amazing opportunities for immediate conversation as well as follow up (sending links to products, discussing new finds, etc).

- I love manga and anime, and signal my fandom through subtle clothing and other products that only other fans would know. Inevitably, I meet other successful people who recognize, and we can geek out together in the moment as well as share new favorites and discuss ongoing series over time.

In all three cases, I take two approaches:

- Spear - I reach out and ask if they’re interested. This works particularly well for activities - just say “Hey, I’m doing XYZ next week, want to join me?” 

- Lure - I carry, wear, or place recognizable objects and symbols, so that people with shared interests will have something to latch onto and an opportunity to open the door themselves.

And, of course, this is all a two-way street.

If someone else asks you to do something they’re passionate about, say yes - even if you haven’t tried it or aren’t sure about it.

You may discover something new that you like, but more importantly, you’ll definitely build a much stronger relationship.

We’re all wealthy when it comes to our passions, so share the wealth and you will make more friends and build stronger business relationship relationships.

How have you shared the wealth?

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A TikTok star just became a billionaire overnight. 
If that sentence just made you go "WTAF?", keep reading...

Khaby Lame, the #1 TikTokker by following (160M on that platform alone, 360M+ across social) sold his name, image, and likeness rights through his company Step Distinctive Limited, in a deal that values his brand at $975,000,000. 

Yes, a TikTokker's personal brand is valued at close to $1 billion.

He sold 51% of the company for stock in Hong Kong-based Rich Sparkle Holdings, which is publicly traded as under the ticker ANPA.

Importantly, this means that while his compensation was in stock, it is liquid stock. He can sell it after some period of time - very different than receiving equity in a start-up that is not currently publicly traded, where the value is all locked up until somebody actually buys it or it actually goes public. 

If the total business was valued at $975M, let's be conservative and say it was the business valued at $975M. That means he received $497 million in stock. 

At the time of the deal, the stock price was around $25. Over the next few days, it spiked up to $150 before settling at its current price of around $65.

That means that his shares are now worth $1.3B, making him a billionaire.

A LIQUID billionaire. 

There are other digital native Creators like MrBeast and the Paul brothers, who might be billionaires on paper, but their money is locked up until their assets sell. 

If Khaby wants to buy a $100M island tomorrow, he can go to a bank and get a $100M loan against his stock. He can pay that loan off over the next decade without paying any taxes on that money.

But that's actually not the most important thing about this deal to the Creator Economy. 

The most important thing about this deal to the Creator Economy is that it completely disproves the prevailing wisdom that Creators need to have formats and IP outside of their individual personal brands in order to build significant enterprise value. 

Key man risk? What key man risk? 

The funny thing is that Hollywood should have already known this. 

Celebrity personal brands have had tremendous enterprise value for decades. 

George Foreman
Jessica Simpson
Martha Stewart

These are all celebrity NIL deals valued in the 9 figures, all from a time before social media when $100M was like $1B is today.

So, why is it so surprising that the biggest guy in the world with the most global audience on the most global platform has a personal brand worth so much?

The words "TikTok billionaire" with Khaby Lame wearing a tuxedo and Logan Paul, MrBeast, and KSI all looking shocked. 

My toddler is better than you at managing up.

She met a new cat at her Nana's, and what she said was exec-worthy.

When I picked her up, I asked what the cat's name was.

She said:

"Next time we go to Nana's house, we can find out the cat's name."

She didn't say "I don't know."

She didn't say "I never asked."

She didn't make something up.

Instead, she offered a forward-looking solution and moved on.

Next time a colleague, manager, or client catches you off guard, don't flounder.

Offer a solution and move on.

How would you have responded?

(By the way, unlike most of these stories on LinkedIn, this one is true, and I have my wife's permission to post it)

📸 future executive

I almost always respond to non-spam (i.e. not obviously mass templated message) email and LinkedIn outreach. 

But if you call my cell phone, I will hang up on you mid-sentence. 

HBU?

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