Acquiring Minds

Heather Shattuck-Heidorn was a tenure-tracked professor, but wanted out. Buying a business offered freedom & security.  Topics in Heather’s interview: What she loved about academia Why she initially resisted franchises How she found a custom closet franchise Being her husband’s employer Her thoughts on capitalism How small business ownership differs from academia What she likes about owning a...

Having only ever managed a few people when he bought his business, Alex Glasner shares how the trial by fire is going.  Topics in Alex's interview: The difference between searching and operating The challenge of improving processes How rapid growth affected the company Running the business with a partner How the economy impacts his industry Having the British government as his sole customer Ideali...

Ben Bortner couch-surfed, drove Uber, and racked up credit card debt while finding a pool business to buy. It went well.  Topics in Ben’s interview: Buying a pool service business, putting in only $100 of his own money for equity Changes he made to employee compensation (and why) Acquiring a second pool business Why Ben became certified to do pool maintenance himself How Ben improved company cultu...

9 months after Jesse Safir bought a printing biz, Covid cratered it. 3 years later, sales are nearing pre-Covid levels.  Topics in Jesse’s interview: Finding ABG Printing by sending direct mail The value of having a “forgettable” business Renegotiating his deal before acquisition The changes he made in the first 9 months Cutting 80% of his staff during COVID Managing cash flow after revenue plunge...

2 searchers, Kaustubh Deo & Kevin Bibelhausen, share how they found investors to provide money to buy their businesses.  Topics in Kevin and Kaustubh’s interview: How Twitter helps searchers learn and network How Kevin found investors after his funding fell through How they selected investors What a good pitch meeting looks like How they communicate with investors post-acquisition The power of...

It CAN be done: Matthew Saskin recently acquired a big towing business, hiring an operator to run it from day 1.  Topics in Matthew Saskin’s interview: Why he chose a towing company Putting in an operator from day one Improvements he made right away Why he kept his day job (and how he manages it) His COO’s compensation package What is phantom equity (and how it’s different from true equity) How re...

Caroline Chapdelaine seized opportunity when a biomed company needed to sell a $2m unit that made special defense tech.  Topics in Caroline’s interview: About the defense contracting industry Buying a business in the defense industry (and why it’s hard) Buying a carve-out business The unusual terms of a carve-out deal Unforeseen costs after purchasing a carve-out The benefits of having partners As...

Despite dire warnings against it, Reg Zeller bought a foundry. He's since bought 6 more & sees a clear path to $100m/yr.  Topics in Reg Zeller’s interview: Why he bought a foundry (against everyone’s advice) The famous fetal position story The importance of a peer group His journey from one acquisition to a holdco Why searchers should spend 2 years operating the business they buy Reg’s plan to...

Adrian Pinto returns to reflect on his 1.5 years as owner of a landscaping business that he's grown from $3m to $6m/yr.  Topics in Adrian’s interview: Buying and growing Georgia Scapes Growth through acquisition in landscaping  Doubling revenue in 18 months His B2B sales process Competition in landscaping Commercial vs residential landscaping Maintenance work vs project work Due diligence for a la...

Michael Horowitz was looking to buy an independent business when a different path opened up. Today he owns 20 Wingstops.  Topics in Michael’s interview: Pros and cons of searching within franchises Why Michael was attracted to QSR’s (quick service restaurants) Buying 7 Wingstop locations in Ohio Writing an operating agreement for 3 co-owners Development agreements with franchises Operating QSR’s d...

Kaustubh Deo reflects on his first year as the owner of a tree business versus his former life in NYC private equity.  Topics in Kaustubh’s interview: Buying a tree service business Buyer’s vs seller’s discretionary earnings Reflecting on 13 months as a business owner Possibility for roll-ups Being an outsider in the tree industry Change management His thoughts on holdcos Measuring success for his...

Adam Duggins had 650 meetings to find his first business in 2013, not expecting he'd buy 3 more over the next 10 years.  Topics in Adam Duggins’s interview: Meeting with 650 people (in person!) during his search How Adam found his partner & structured their ownership How Adam became a holdco without meaning to How motivating blue collar workers versus white collar careerists is different Why A...

Bruce Vann returns to update us on his manufacturing business, and a thesis around the roll-up of window blinds stores.  Topics in Bruce Vann’s interview: Buying a stage curtain/shades business Profitability of the business Their curtain and shades products Acquiring a blinds company Integrating his businesses Bruce’s vision for expansion The possibilities for search in window treatments The feast...

John Ikalowych shares his traumatic journey of going all-in to buy a hail-repair business, then having to shut it down.  Topics in John Ikalowych’s interview: John’s background in commercial banking Buying a car hail repair business Losing half his staff just months after acquisition The disaster that tanked their finances Pivoting from B2C to B2B Shutting down the business How the business failur...

Morli Desai left corporate to scratch her entrepreneurial itch, using an SBA loan to buy an ecommerce biz with $1m SDE.  Topics in Morli Desai’s interview: Leaving her corporate job at 40 Joining the Acquisition Lab Purchasing an ecommerce business How to approach brokers Transitioning an ecommerce business Purchasing an Australian entity Marketing with PPC Assessing risk in ecommerce Proprietary...

Pawel Kosicki learned about buying small businesses in July. By January, he'd bought one himself with 7 figures of SDE.  Topics in Pawel Kosicki’s interview: Pawel’s background in engineering Valuation of a home theater/automation company Closing on his very first LOI Financing a deal in Canada His philosophy on risk in business The seller staying on as an employee Mitigating risk in a project-bas...

Damon Chlarson takes a job in tech sales, despite having improved the business he bought & surviving a tough year.  Topics in Damon’s interview: Damon bought Pacific Insulation Supply, an online wholesaler Difficulties in scaling the insulation business.  Overview of sales in the first year  Getting a regular W-2 job again  New systems he put in place at the business  Training his sales team T...

Brenden Van Buren is growing his fencing business, despite the industry's notorious cyclicality & project-based revenue.  Topics in Brenden’s interview: Brenden’s family history in the construction business Co-founding Generational Transfer Entrepreneurs  The pros and cons of having a pipeline when starting search Why the perfect relationship is better than the perfect business The risks assoc...

Justin Turner returns with details on 2 new acquisitions by his holdco Traction, plus updates on the existing 4 portcos.  Topics in Justin’s interview: Justin helps run investment firm Traction Capital Partners How Traction is different from Private Equity The risks of buying into a franchise network How he bought one of his vendors Lessons learned from buying 6 businesses Driving sales in a disas...

Michael Arrieta's holdco has made 3 acquisitions since 2020. Sales & culture, not tech, have proven to be the key levers.  Topics in Michael’s interview:        How he built the holding company Garden City Why he is drawn to service businesses His experience with fast-growth startups in Silicon Valley How he almost doubled EBITDA in less than a year The mistakes he made with his first acquisit...

After a rollercoaster year in his appliance repair business, John Schooler returns with scars, wisdom, and optimism.  Topics in John’s interview: John bought an appliance repair business 14 months ago How he runs a repair business without having repair skills The disaster that took away 20% of revenue overnight Why running a business is harder than a marathon The pros and cons of working with home...

Andrew Hitchings bought a $250k SDE cooling biz. It has grown 3x and will now fund a 2nd acquisition, with more to come.  Topics in Andrew’s Interview: Andrew and his wife bought a home ventilation business in April 2020 How 7 months on a motorcycle prepared them for running a business together His history in the Army, business school, and McKinsey & Company How his business partner Max improv...

Andrew Sieve saw his life implode after COVID. Buying a highly profitable 40-year-old restaurant turned things around.  Topics in Andrew’s interview:  Andrew’s family history of owning and operating restaurants Why he prefers smaller restaurants The tragedies of 2020 that led to him exiting his family’s business Moving from Minneapolis to Colorado to start over How a chance meeting led to him buyi...

Paul Quirk acquired a $800k EBITDA window & door business in the UK, continuing to live with his family in Switzerland.  Topics in Paul's interview: Paul’s experience with JP Morgan in Geneva 3 biggest differences between acquisition in the UK vs the US The variety of ways Paul reached out to businesses during search His decision to start the Buy and Build podcast How he decided to buy a windo...

Shortly after his first interview in June, Jason Andrews sold his business to a strategic buyer for a life-changing sum.  Topics in Jason's interview: Jason's recent exit of the group purchasing organization (GPO) he acquired in 2016 How he had grown the business 50-60% without increasing staff The downside of buying a super-niche business The advantages of acquiring a bigger business How his sale...