Bringing In $2.3 Million A Year Negotiating Car Deals
Tomi Mikula, founder and CEO of Delivrd, explains how he built a $2.3 million remote car negotiation business after a pivotal moment in 2023 when eight customers told him they 'hate buying cars.' His company handles all aspects of car deal negotiation for clients while using an anti-sales model and live streaming as primary lead generation. He aims to scale to 700-800 deals per month and ultimately reinvent the car buying industry.
Summary
Tomi Mikula is a 33-year-old entrepreneur based in Charlotte, North Carolina, who founded Delivrd, a remote car negotiation service that generated $2.3 million in gross revenue in 2025. The business model centers on handling every aspect of a car deal — price, trade-in, add-ons, and accessories — for clients who want to avoid the stress and anxiety of dealership negotiations. Delivrd charges a flat fee regardless of whether the client is buying a Toyota Corolla or a BMW X5, reflecting the founder's belief that the core negotiation concepts are largely universal.
The company's origin traces back to January 3rd, 2023, when Mikula was working as a finance manager at a dealership and had eight customers in one day all say the same thing: 'I hate buying cars.' This moment crystallized for him that the problem couldn't be fixed from within the industry. He resigned that same day and started Delivrd. He spent ten months refining his process before charging a single client, conducting free deals and paying participants $100 each for two-hour third-party interviews to deeply understand his customer base. He funded the early phase from roughly $120,000 in personal savings accumulated from years of inexpensive living in Iowa.
Mikula's brother, who helps build businesses professionally, owns 25% of Delivrd without having invested any money, contributing primarily on the operational side. The business has no outside investors. Early traction came from a viral TikTok video that brought in three paying clients, followed by 20 deals the next month. Lead generation is now driven almost entirely by live streaming across TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitch, averaging 6,000 to 8,000 concurrent viewers across platforms. Mikula uses an 'anti-sales' approach, openly telling potential customers reasons they might not need his service, which he believes builds trust in an industry known for deception.
Mikula currently works 14 to 16 hour days, five days a week, with 4 to 5 hours on weekends. He is still personally involved in a large portion of negotiations but is proud that this number is declining as his team grows. The company has built a scalable internal process they call the 'conveyor belt,' which they believe can handle up to 400 deals per month without Mikula's direct involvement. Goals include reaching 500 deals per month by end of summer and 700 to 800 by year's end, followed by a Canadian expansion and eventual diversification into boats, RVs, and planes.
On the subject of legacy, Mikula expressed that his ultimate motivation is not a financial buyout but rather being recognized as the person who fundamentally changed how an entire country approaches car buying — a goal he describes as more valuable to him than any acquisition offer.
Key Insights
- Mikula traces the founding of Delivrd to a single day — January 3rd, 2023 — when eight consecutive dealership customers all independently said 'I hate buying cars,' which convinced him the problem could not be solved from within the industry.
- Mikula spent ten months doing car deals entirely for free before charging clients, and paid each participant $100 to undergo a two-hour third-party interview, describing this customer research investment as 'one of the best things I ever did for this business.'
- Delivrd uses an 'anti-sales model' where Mikula actively tells prospective customers why they shouldn't hire him, arguing that this transparency resonates in an industry where consumers are accustomed to deception.
- Mikula is unconcerned that growing public recognition will hurt his negotiating effectiveness, explaining that dealerships can recognize him but cannot recognize the multiple other team members now conducting negotiations on Delivrd's behalf.
- Mikula states that his ultimate goal is not a financial buyout but a Wikipedia page crediting him with reinventing the car buying experience for an entire country, describing that legacy as worth more to him than any acquisition number.
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] You could buy a Chrysler for under $3,000. I want people to stop saying I hate buying cars. Hey, I just want to see if you guys have a car available. I'm openly talking about how to fix this industry. So if a dealership is claiming that they can order one, they are a liar. I'm building a business that hopefully puts itself out of business. No, you're not disappointing. You just said it's a tough conversation to have. Like, do you want me to go have the conversation for you? I can certainly like, if you want to give me to the manager, I'll have the conversation. If you're not brave enough to do it. My name is…
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