Acquiring Minds

Jeff Thompson took over an unprofitable elevator company as GM, with a pre-agreed right to buy it in pieces.

Topics in Jeff’s interview:

• Why elevator companies attract private equity
• Turning operational chaos into repeatable processes
• Empowering employees to solve technical problems
• Improving pricing and expanding customer revenue
• Structuring a staged, three-year business acquisition
• Aligning incentives between buyer and sellers
• Building trust through transparency and fair dealing
• Growing revenue beyond $8 million annually
• Using hire-to-acquire to reduce acquisition risk
• Finding new acquisition opportunities in elevator services

References and how to contact Jeff:

• LinkedIn
• [email protected]
• Ben Rizzo on Acquiring Minds: How to Buy, Double & Exit a Turnaround (as a First-Timer)
• Mike Bourgeois on Acquiring Minds: First-Timer Buys a $15m Business in Distress
• Elias Youssef on Acquiring Minds: Take Over the Business Before You Buy It

Get a free review of your books & financial ops from System Six (a $500 value):

• Book a call with Tim or [email protected] and mention Acquiring Minds

Contact Jenny to learn how Engage can run people operations in your acquisition:

• Jenny Thear: [email protected]

Work with an SBA loan team focused exclusively on helping entrepreneurs buy businesses:

• Pioneer Capital Advisory

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Rahib Diwan started a short-term rental company, then bought another one 3x its size without having to use more cash.

Topics in Rahib interview:

• From healthcare to short-term rentals
• Building the business from scratch
• Choosing Nashville as the market
• Luxury properties as a niche
• Valuing the property management business
• Financing through an SBA expansion loan
• Sellers retaining 20% equity
• Preserving property-owner relationships
• Unexpected customer churn after acquisition
• Rebuilding operations and booking momentum

References and how to contact Rahib:

• LinkedIn
• Visit Nashville Now
• Matt Orley on Acquiring Minds: Buying for Brand (Then Growing 4x)
• Megan McGee on Acquiring Minds: No SBA Loan and $75k Out of Pocket

Get a complimentary IT audit for acquisition diligence or post-close transition.

• Visit inzotechnologies.com/eta.

The ecosystem for serious acquisition entrepreneurs—education, capital, community, and post-close support to buy and grow a business:

• The Acquisition Lab

Get complimentary due diligence on your acquisition's insurance & benefits program:

• Oberle Risk Strategies - Search Fund Team

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Jon Hyatt was under LOI on a dental practice when a late-night Craigslist search turned up one he couldn't resist.

Register for the webinar: 

• Structuring LOIs: Competitive Enough to Win, Bankable Enough to Close - TODAY!! - https://bit.ly/4s1pAWV

Topics in Jon’s interview:

• Using Facebook groups for industry research
• Why labor became a search constraint
• The abandoned dental roll-up thesis
• Discovering E.J. Willis on Craigslist
• Falling for a 138-year-old heritage brand
• Buying a tiny business
• Navigating an asset purchase and carve-out
• Selling bells to defense shipbuilders
• Building direct-to-consumer bell demand
• Reviving forgotten products and company history

References and how to contact Jon:

• LinkedIn
• E.J. Willis Co.

The ecosystem for serious acquisition entrepreneurs—education, capital, community, and post-close support to buy and grow a business:

• The Acquisition Lab

Get complimentary due diligence on your acquisition's insurance & benefits program:

• Oberle Risk Strategies - Search Fund Team

Get a free review of your books & financial ops from System Six (a $500 value):

• Book a call with Tim or [email protected] and mention Acquiring Minds

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Elias Youssef stepped into an unprofitable plumbing company as its GM, grew it 6x, then got an SBA loan to buy it.

Register for the webinar: 

• Structuring LOIs: Competitive Enough to Win, Bankable Enough to Close - Thu, Oct 22 - https://bit.ly/4B7XVHU

Topics in Elias’s interview:

• Dropping out of community college
• Stacking cash as an appliance salesman
• Early real estate joint ventures
• Breaking even on an assisted living acquisition
• Seeking out HVAC mentorship
• The brutality of cold calling
• Operating before buying
• Majority equity is majority work
• Buying is easy. Running it is the hard part.
• Getting out of operations

References and how to contact Elias:

• LinkedIn 
• Frost and Flow
• Elias’s announcement of Kyle’s acquisition

Work with an SBA loan team focused exclusively on helping entrepreneurs buy businesses:

• Pioneer Capital Advisory

Get a complimentary IT audit for acquisition diligence or post-close transition.

• Visit inzotechnologies.com/eta.

Contact Jenny to learn how Engage can run people operations in your acquisition:

• Jenny Thear: [email protected]

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Jay Boren bought a tiny grease tool business run out of a living room, then grew it into a brand with 250 products.

Register for the webinar:

• The Small Things That Sink First-Year Owners - TODAY!! - https://bit.ly/3VAOWiq

Topics in Jay’s interview:

• Choosing Vermont over Silicon Valley
• Solving geography through ETA
• Discovering LockNLube through Tuck
• Turning a grease coupler into opportunity
• Navigating a hostile South African supplier
• Buying LockNLube as an intern
• Structuring a heavily seller-financed acquisition
• Expanding from one SKU to 250
• Scaling through digital advertising and Amazon
• Exiting LockNLube and staying through integration

References and how to contact Jay:

• LinkedIn
• LockNLube
• Jarrett Burke on Acquiring Minds: When a Restaurant Is a Great Business to Buy

Contact Jenny to learn how Engage can run people operations in your acquisition:

• Jenny Thear: [email protected]

Get a free review of your books & financial ops from System Six (a $500 value):

• Book a call with Tim or [email protected] and mention Acquiring Minds

Get a complimentary IT audit for acquisition diligence or post-close transition.

• Visit inzotechnologies.com/eta.

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Brendan Guerin was 21 when he and 3 friends bought a dog daycare on the side. Today: 6 Midwest locations.

Register for the webinars: 

• Debt Financing Your Deal (SBA & Independent Sponsor) - TOMORROW!! - https://bit.ly/4rRpQaY
• The Small Things That Sink First-Year Owners - Thu, Oct 15 - https://bit.ly/4idBtVx

Topics in Brendan’s interview:

• He bought his first doggy daycare at 21
• The first acquisition was a deliberate starter deal
• Four partners split ownership and responsibilities.
• The $1.1M deal included real estate
• EBITDA margins approached 50% before rent
• Buying real estate protects long-term business control
• Midwest real estate makes their model work
• Covid unexpectedly supercharged dog daycare demand
• Brendan eventually left finance to operate full-time
• Today, Argos spans six Midwest locations

References and how to contact Brendan:

• LinkedIn
• [email protected]

Get complimentary due diligence on your acquisition's insurance & benefits program:

• Oberle Risk Strategies - Search Fund Team

Work with an SBA loan team focused exclusively on helping entrepreneurs buy businesses:

• Pioneer Capital Advisory

The ecosystem for serious acquisition entrepreneurs—education, capital, community, and post-close support to buy and grow a business:

• The Acquisition Lab

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Tyler Hoffman has bought 4 telecom companies with no outside equity, and works 15 hours a week to get to $50m.

Topics in Tyler’s interview:

• Lessons from being fired repeatedly
• Finding and acquiring Metro Wireless
• Filling experience gaps with charisma
• Financing the $4.5 million acquisition
• Navigating a difficult ownership transition
• Discovering hidden operational problems post-close
•  Losing half of earnings — and surviving
• Rebuilding Metro Wireless through operational improvements
• 3 tuck-in acquisitions
• Balancing business growth with personal autonomy

References and how to contact Tyler:

• LinkedIn
• Hoffman Capital
• Metro Wireless
• Jeff Homer’s webinar: Architecture of an Entrepreneurial Roll-Up

Get a free review of your books & financial ops from System Six (a $500 value):

• Book a call with Tim or [email protected] and mention Acquiring Minds

The ecosystem for serious acquisition entrepreneurs—education, capital, community, and post-close support to buy and grow a business:

• The Acquisition Lab

Work with an SBA loan team focused exclusively on helping entrepreneurs buy businesses:

• Pioneer Capital Advisory

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Colin King and his 50/50 partner have paid themselves little since 2018, reinvesting profits back into their businesses. 

Topics in Colin’s interview:

• Growing Circle City Capital’s business portfolio
• Don’t call them private equity
• Why Colin stopped wanting operational roles
• Why critical mass matters for holdcos
• He still earn less than operators
• Holdco strategy versus industry-specific rollups
• The fox versus hedgehog framework
• Learning through hands-on operating experience
• Why chasing money can make things harder
• Costly mistakes and failed acquisitions

References and how to contact Colin:

• [email protected] 
• LinkedIn
• Colin King’s first appearance on Acquiring Minds: How to Build a $28m Holdco (in 6 Years)
• Circle City Capital Group

Get a complimentary IT audit for acquisition diligence or post-close transition.

• Visit inzotechnologies.com/eta.

Contact Jenny to learn how Engage can run people operations in your acquisition:

• Jenny Thear: [email protected]

Get complimentary due diligence on your acquisition's insurance & benefits program:

• Oberle Risk Strategies - Search Fund Team

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Patrick Dunphy acquired a low-seven-figure interpreter agency, then halved its collection times in year one.

Topics in Patrick’s interview:

• From Army aviation to business ownership
• Why Patrick chose ownership over corporate success
• Three years searching while working full-time
• Turning red flags into acquisition opportunities
• Why intrinsic value matters beyond financial returns
• Building a scalable, contractor-driven service business
• Structuring an SBA acquisition without seller financing
• Cutting payment times in half through better invoicing
• Preserving trust through a quiet ownership transition
• Growing through new markets and government contracts

References and how to contact Patrick:

• LinkedIn
• JS Languages

Work with an SBA loan team focused exclusively on helping entrepreneurs buy businesses:

• Pioneer Capital Advisory

Get a complimentary IT audit for acquisition diligence or post-close transition.

• Visit inzotechnologies.com/eta.

Contact Jenny to learn how Engage can run people operations in your acquisition:

• Jenny Thear: [email protected]

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

Jack Rauch left politics for a niche Florida business no bank would finance. He's doubled revenue twice since.

Register for the webinar: 

• Sizing an SBA Loan to the Cash Flow - TOMORROW!! - https://bit.ly/4hrFwge

Topics in Jack’s interview:

• From the White House to entrepreneurship
• Discovering an overlooked private provider niche
• Customers helped save the business
• How private inspections accelerate construction projects
• Expanding beyond the seller's tiny territory
• Navigating licensing requirements without industry experience
• Financing the deal without SBA backing
• Raising prices and finding unexpected growth
• Doubling revenue during each ownership year
• Joining industry leadership to reduce regulatory risk

References and how to contact Jack:

• LinkedIn
• Tew & Taylor

The ecosystem for serious acquisition entrepreneurs—education, capital, community, and post-close support to buy and grow a business:

• The Acquisition Lab

Get complimentary due diligence on your acquisition's insurance & benefits program:

• Oberle Risk Strategies - Search Fund Team

Get a free review of your books & financial ops from System Six (a $500 value):

• Book a call with Tim or [email protected] and mention Acquiring Minds

Connect with Acquiring Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn
• Follow Will on Twitter

Edited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron