The "Ugly" Website That Quietly Built a $700 Million Empire

Meet Craig Newmark, the founder of Craigslist, the most simple, plain, and "ugly" website on the modern internet…. and yet, one of the most profitable

A Side Hobby That Accidentally Became a Revolution

Craigslist didn't start as a startup.

• It didn't start with funding, strategy decks, or a growth plan.

• It started in 1995 as something incredibly small

Craig’s personal email list to which he sent out local event updates to friends in San Francisco.

That’s it.

• No business vision.

• No monetization.

• Just community service.

But then people started asking him to add more:

• Jobs.

• Garage sales.

• Gigs.

• Services.

• Rentals.

• Missed connections.

• Buy-and-sell posts.

Instead of overthinking, Craig just added what people wanted. Craigslist was never designed to It evolved naturally: one user request at a time.

A Website That Broke Every Rule And Still Won

Craigslist is the definition of "ugly."

1. No colors.

2. No smooth UI.

3. No animations.

4. No ads.

5. No algorithm.

6. No personalization.

Just a white page with blue links.

Even in 2025. But Craig understood something that the rest of Silicon Valley didn't:

• People do not want fancy.

• People want useful.

While billions were spent on design, branding, UI/UX, and marketing… Craigslist kept its 1990s look and still crushed them all. Because simplicity scales.

Utility remains. And trust wins.

$700 Million a Year. 60 Employees. Zero Marketing.

Craigslist became one of the most profitable internet companies in modern history by being the opposite of everything "trendy."

Here is the kicker:

• It makes over $700 million per year.

• Has only 60 employees

• Spends zero on marketing

• Has no social media presence

• Doesn't run ads

• Doesn't chase viral trends

• Doesn't complicate anything.

It is the most efficient firm within the digital globe. While Silicon Valley burns cash, Craigslist prints it

When Craig Said “NO” to $11 Billion

At one point, Craig Newmark was offered $11 billion to sell Craigslist.

Most people would have taken it in a heartbeat. Craig didn't.

Why?

• Because Craigslist wasn't designed to maximize profit.

• It was built to serve people.

He felt that to sell it would ruin its simplicity, integrity, and purpose. And he was right: Craigslist today is still the same no-frills platform because its creator protected it from commercialism.

The Genius Behind Craigslist's "Ugliness"

The world laughed at the design. But the world also couldn't stop using it.

Why?

Because Craigslist is:

• Fast

• Free (mostly)

• Honest

• Community driven

• No-nonsense

• Low cost

TRUSTED Widely trusted Craig's "ugly" design wasn't a failure-it was a strategy. Simple things scale. Useful things survive. And trusted things dominate. Craigslist defeated the competition not because it was beautiful. It won by being reliable.

The Real Lesson Behind Craig's Success

The Craigslist story is a slap of truth for creators, entrepreneurs, and dreamers: Your idea does not need to be pretty. It needs to work. You don't need big teams or big funding. You need big value. You don't need ads or hype. You need trust. Great empires aren't always designed; they're discovered. Craig Newmark didn’t chase fame or glory. He pursued utility. And built a $700 million empire with a website that looks like it was made on day one of the internet.

The real message

Stop waiting for perfection. Start building with what you have. Your "ugly" idea just may be the next global giant. as long as it serves to solve a real problem and honestly serve people.