Lithuanian-based Starfish Academy is experiencing rapid growth, recently earning a “gazelle” award for the second time, recognizing its dynamic financial performance. The company, founded in 2015, has built a strong community-focused model centered around its “Inner Circle,” designed to help members achieve financial freedom through investment and entrepreneurship. With nearly 400 members across Lithuania and Estonia, Starfish Academy is now expanding its reach through franchising and a focus on continuous learning, driven by a belief that passion-backed businesses thrive.
Driven by a belief that passion-backed businesses have greater growth potential, Starfish Academy views its recent recognition as a natural outcome.
Inner Circle: A Community for Those Seeking Financial Freedom
Table of Contents
- Inner Circle: A Community for Those Seeking Financial Freedom
- A Focus on Continuous Improvement, Not Just Training
- Serving Lithuanians Abroad
- An Online Academy for ‘Wealth Hackers’
- The “Profit First” Accelerator
- Owner Steps Back from Operational Activities
- Preparing for Franchising and Competition with Estonians – Beneficial
- More Than One Business, But Only One Passion Project
At the heart of Starfish Academy is the Inner Circle, a community connecting individuals striving for financial independence.
Members of the Inner Circle aim to create income of a different quality – generating regular revenue not only from employment or entrepreneurship, but also from investments and systematized businesses.
Jurijus Clavas refers to Inner Circle members as “wealth hackers,” explaining that good hackers are curious, constantly learning, and finding unexpected solutions to build financial well-being.
“When we set out 10 years ago with a mission to help others achieve financial freedom – not one by one, but based on the principles of community and collaboration – that has been our focus ever since,” says Clavas.
To that end, Starfish Academy has developed a community-based format operating in Lithuania and Estonia, along with practical tools to help members understand their current financial standing and what steps they need to take to accelerate their journey toward financial freedom.
A Focus on Continuous Improvement, Not Just Training
The Starfish Academy team has created at least 10 remote learning programs, but doesn’t define itself as a training company.
“We are focused on developing a community of financially literate people. Training is typically limited in duration, whereas our approach is a regular series of meetings and a lifelong journey,” explains Clavas.
While participation in training programs is required to join the Inner Circle, these programs serve as foundational groundwork, laying a common mindset and providing a base level of knowledge. Once a member of the Inner Circle, learning becomes a continuous process of improvement.
“It’s a format of support, learning, and application. Our members learn one day, apply that knowledge the next, and then share their experiences. They then receive feedback and support. It’s not just about learning, but also about application, correction, and growth,” Clavas emphasizes.
He notes that the benefits of the community are clear, with each member having achieved some form of breakthrough and created passive income streams. Furthermore, the community fosters genuine relationships, with members spending significant time together, building trust, and opening up new opportunities for collaboration.
Serving Lithuanians Abroad
Currently, Starfish Academy operates in two countries – Lithuania and Estonia – with nearly 400 members in the Inner Circle. In Lithuania, in-person community meetings take place in Vilnius (with five groups), Kaunas (two groups), and Klaipėda, as well as a remote group for residents of smaller towns and Lithuanians living abroad.
Approximately half of the Inner Circle members are business owners, while the other half are employed, representing a diverse range of professions. The average age of members in Lithuania is 41, and 46 in Estonia.
The company has cultivated a strong feedback culture, with roughly half of all ideas originating from Inner Circle members – regarding relevant learning and practical topics, challenges they struggle to solve independently, and ways to improve the community’s operating format.
The key element driving growth for the “Gazelle” award-winning Starfish Academy is the Inner Circle community, whose members believe in the mission of fostering a financially literate society.
An Online Academy for ‘Wealth Hackers’
Recognizing that Inner Circle members possess varying levels of knowledge and pursue different strategies and financial instruments on their path to financial freedom, Starfish Academy provides tailored support.
In addition to the Inner Circle community, Starfish Academy operates two supporting elements: the “Wealth Hackers Online Academy” and the “Profit First” accelerator.
“The material in these online programs is also beneficial to people who are not Inner Circle members, but it is primarily designed to serve as a valuable knowledge library for community members,” explains Clavas.
“The Wealth Hackers Online Academy” focuses on stimulating investment activity – from personal finance management to investing in securities, real estate, and more. The “Profit First” accelerator is geared towards business issues, helping Inner Circle members’ businesses become more profitable and enabling them to invest in other asset classes.
The “Profit First” Accelerator
Starfish Academy not only delivers the “Profit First” methodology to Inner Circle members, but has also become the official implementation partner for the program in Lithuania, contributing to the company’s growth in 2025. This began several years ago when Clavas read Mike Michalowicz’s book, “Profit First.”
„Projektų rengimo biuras“: kai architektų sprendimai tampa NT projekto sėkmės pamatu
Nekilnojamojo turto (NT) rinka šiandien juda sparčiau nei bet kada anksčiau. Vystomi ambicingi verslo centrai, sudėtingi visuomeniniai objektai ir modernios gamybinės erdvės. Investuotojai siekia projektų, kurie būtų racionalūs, funkcionalūs ir darniai įsilietų į miestų struktūrą. Šių tikslų pagrindas formuojamas projektavimo etape, kuris lemia visos investicijos rezultatą.
“The idea behind this book is very similar to the well-known concept in the finance and investment world – pay yourself first. I easily understood and applied it in all my businesses. I was convinced it works. To convey this idea to others, I met the author and became certified “Profit First” methodology partners,” says Clavas, who views business as one of the tools for building financial freedom.
During discussions with the book’s author, Clavas learned that regardless of where a business operates – in Lithuania or the U.S. – the principles are the same, and businesses face the same problems, with 80% of small businesses suffering from a lack of working capital due to an incorrect perspective on finances.
“The Profit First methodology ensures cash flow stability, focusing on increasing the profitability and value of businesses. It’s already being used by over 1 million businesses worldwide.”
Owner Steps Back from Operational Activities
Having elevated the business to a higher level, Jurijus has stepped back from it, recognizing that he would otherwise become a bottleneck. He also realized that the business grows faster when tasks are delegated to professionals in their respective fields.
“If a business owner is too involved in operational matters, they don’t have time to think about how to further improve the business and develop the business model itself. I focus on ensuring that the growing Inner Circle has additional offerings and that we improve processes. My task is to maintain quality while ensuring growth,” shares Clavas.
To allow the leader to step back from day-to-day operations, the necessary groundwork had to be done: a strong team built, the company structure established, and processes documented. Starfish Academy did this from the beginning, and later took legal steps to protect its business model, patenting the “Starfish Academy” trademark in Lithuania and the European Union.
Preparing for Franchising and Competition with Estonians – Beneficial
Another important factor driving Starfish Academy’s growth in recent years has been looking at the business as if it were ready for franchising.
“By hiring franchise consultants, we saw where we still needed to make a qualitative leap in processes, systems, format, and all descriptions to prepare for franchising. This provided significant benefits not only in preparing for franchising, but also within our existing business in Lithuania and Estonia,” says Clavas, adding that the company will soon begin searching for partners in foreign countries.
Since its founding in 2015, the company has operated in both Lithuania and Estonia, with ongoing competition between the two countries proving beneficial.
“We have a constant internal game with the Estonians – which country will generate higher revenue, and each year it alternates between Lithuania and Estonia. Competition drives positive growth, as innovations tested in one country are adopted in the other, allowing us to move into the next stage of growth. We certainly have a lot to learn from the Estonians. Regarding jokes about Estonians being slow, I can say that they just take a while to get going, but once they start running, you have to work hard to catch up,” Clavas jokes.
More Than One Business, But Only One Passion Project
In addition to Starfish Academy, Clavas and his partners have other businesses – IT services and real estate development companies. He knows how to make money with these, but only Starfish Academy is considered a passion project.
“The IT business is something I’m good at, and it’s profitable, but I don’t have a passion for it. Therefore, I either systematize such businesses or delegate them to others to develop, so I spend as little time as possible in them,” explains Clavas.
Meanwhile, working with the Starfish Academy Inner Circle community will always be interesting to him, and he will remain actively involved as long as he has the energy.
“It’s the same with investing: there are asset classes that make money, but they aren’t our passion – then we need to leverage them, but perhaps through consultants or passively, dedicating as little time as possible. But we should put our heart into the asset classes we enjoy and want to spend more time in,” explains Clavas.
Over the past three years, Starfish Academy’s revenue has more than doubled, reaching €787,000 in 2025, with €497,000 of that coming from Lithuania.
“Businesses and investment instruments based on passion have a greater internal potential to grow faster, because we put more of ourselves, more energy into them. When difficult moments arise in such a business, we don’t think about giving up, but always find the strength and desire to overcome them,” says the founder of Starfish Academy, which has been recognized as a “Gazelle” company for the second time.
