Business Buying Strategies from The Dealmaker's Academy

Interview with Phil Hunt

In today's episode, I'm joined by Phil Hunt. Despite having a full-time job as an HR director of a city bank in London, this hasn't stopped Phil from following the Dealmakers Academy program and making his first two acquisitions. Phil has recently acquired two hairdressing salons, and he joins us to share his experience, highs and lows, and some of his best tips on acquiring one's business.

Key highlights from the call

[01:06] About Phil Hunt

[02:50] Freedom of owning a business

[03:28] When you were watching my videos, what was going through your head?

[04:11] Likable moments in Fasttrack Program

[08:28] How many conversations did you have before you found your first business acquisition target?

[11:33] Did you use a lawyer?

[12:10] How long did it take to complete the transaction?

[12:41] Negotiation strategies

[14:35] Hunt's second acquisition

[16:25] Tell me why this was a share purchase

[19:08] Phil's plans

[19:49] What is the profit margin in this sector?

[25:48] Advice to listeners

Notable Quotes

• The perfectionism then comes when you engage with the accountant and the lawyer to make sure that the deal is what you need it to be.
• I think there's very little risk here. So it's definitely worth doing the courses that you provide because they give you it's not just the confidence, you've got to have that internally, but they kind of unlock the confidence if it's a little bit backward going forward.
• Just go out there and do it. What on earth do you have to lose here, and nothing you lose affects business?
• I'd spent the first nine months trying almost not to send the letters out; I was thinking, well, that word won't be right. And I've got the right address? And what about if the person doesn't like to be addressed like that? And I thought, you know, if they don't like it, they're not going to reply.

Resources

If you are looking for a lawyer in the UK to help you get the deal over the line, then use my guy John Andrews. You can phone his office on +03452412494 or email him at johandrew.dolawyers.jmw.co.uk.

To join the Fasttrack Program, you can connect with Jonathan Jay on Dealmakers Academy, follow him on LinkedIn, or get his videos on YouTube.

Interview with Jamie Simpson

In this episode, I talk to Jamie Simpson. When I first met Jamie he had been interested in buying a business for some time, but nothing has taken shape yet. Since then, Jamie bought three businesses without risking his own cash. Jamie joins us to share his journey and how he has managed to buy his businesses. He also shares some inspirational tips for those who want to buy their own business and haven't started yet.

Key Highlights

[01:01] About Jamie Simpson

[01:36] When did you think buying a business was a good idea?

[03:14] What do you feel different about the deal hanging around for four years and what you have done in four months?

[03:48] Would you have approached it differently knowing what you know now?

[04:25] Did you lose that money, though?

[05:36] When did you do your Fasttrack program?

[07:10] How long did you take to feel as though you were speaking confidently to business owners?

[13:15] Some of the things learned from Jonathan Jay that helped in business acquisition

[15:00] Strategies used to talk to business sellers

[16:18] Are you doing your work?

[19:45] Lessons learned about business buying

[21:00] About the Numbers game

[25:38] Parting tips to listeners

Notable Quotes

• I feel like I've got two options here. I can be like the tortoise in the shell. If you put your head out of the shell and something goes to bite, you can stay in the shell for the rest of your life or put your head down.
• I was hearing people say oh, we send 200 letters out, and we'll test the water and see what happens. And I was thinking they were my competition. So if they're going to test the water on, I'm just going to blitz the water. And I sent out about three to four thousand letters straightaway.
• A lot of people feel like they need to do their homework on the industry before they start sending letters. But actually, I found the sellers to be one of the greatest sources of information about the industry.
• Training to collect the data, trying to send the moves out in bulk like it's just not practical. So outsourcing to the experts is the way forward because it frees up your time to focus on what you want to do and where your skill sets lie.
• I would say follow the steps given in the FastTrack program. Don't feel like, you know, better.
• If you don't know the industry, or you've never purchased the business before, you learn as you go.

Resources

If you are looking for a lawyer in the UK to help you get the deal over the line, then use my guy John Andrews. You can phone his office on +03452412494 or email him at johandrew.dolawyers.jmw.co.uk.

To join the Fasttrack Program, you can connect with Jonathan Jay on Dealmakers Academy, follow him on LinkedIn, or get his videos on youtube.

Moving beyond the mindset of organic growth

In this episode, I am joined by Aled Davies, who runs a printing and textile printing family business. Aled had been trying to grow this business organically before listening to this podcast and joining me on one of my business acquisitions, Fasttrack Programs, in 2020. Through this program, Aled got a whole new perspective on growing his business and has since made his first acquisition. In this episode, Aled shares how he came about and how he got to make his first acquisition. He also shares some words of wisdom with those interested in buying their own business.

Key Highlights

[01:03] About Aled Davies

[04:15] Motivation towards buying his own business

[05:18] When you heard other people do what you wanted to do, did that motivate you?

[06:09] Likable moments in the Fasttrack program

[07:34] How did you go about your first call with the business owner of the business you eventually bought?

[08:39] Would you have grown your business by 10-15% in the next 12 months?

[09:25] The negotiation process

[12:56] Were you interested in his website traffic, inquiries, and existing customer list?

[17:20] Signifier of the worth of a business

[18:33] Business acquisition principles used

[20:32] Plans for the future

[21:56] Tips to listeners

Notable Quotes

• It was surprisingly easy to do when you have started to get some idea of what you are doing.
• If a deal doesn't feel right or doesn't look like it's going to be the right one for you, you can always walk away if you don't want to do it anyway.
• The first step is to get started and give it a go because you never know what will come out of it.
• All we did was make a few phone calls, went to see the guy, agreed on everything, and that was it. It was as simple as that.

Resources

If you are looking for a lawyer in the UK to help you get the deal over the line, then use my guy John Andrews. You can phone his office on +03452412494 or email him at johandrew.dolawyers.jmw.co.uk.

To join the Fasttrack Program, you can connect with Jonathan Jay on Dealmakers Academy, follow him on Linkedin, or get his videos on youtube.

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 190 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast.

This week we meet Nigel Wilkinson, who set up a digital marketing agency in 2000. Nigel acquired one of his competitors in September 2019, and then joined my five day dealmakers academy training programme last year.

He has made a couple more acquisitions since, although as you'll hear it hasn't all been plain sailing.

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at:

www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 189 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast.

This week I talk with Graeme Carling, who we first met in episode 76 of the podcast – Now Graeme had spent a decade building a substantial property portfolio, before buying a well known Scottish construction company out of administration.

I asked Graeme to relay his story to a private audience in London earlier this month.

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at:

www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 188 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast.

Now this week I am talking with Jack Baker, who a year ago was working in construction, thinking that there must be more to life than this, and wishing he could be his own boss.

He started watching the business buying videos on my YouTube channel, listened to this podcast, and joined my Fast Track online training programme. And as a direct result, he has completed the acquisition of his first healthcare business, which has consistently delivered a £200K annual profit.

Here's Jack talking about his background leading up to when he started to get interested in buying a business …

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at: www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 187 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast.

Now this week I am talking with two of my private clients, catching up with their recent progress.

First we hear from Tony Egan, who is keen to acquire a number of veterinary practices. And then we talk with Nick Passmore, who has found his first acquisition through a chance conversation with a family friend. And it looks as though he might have struck gold. Let's find out more.

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at: www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 186 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast.

This week we're going to talk MONEY - The fact is that when I run one of my training programmes, I get asked about how to negotiate the price of an acquisition more than almost any other topic.

So here I am, talking to my audience about how to strengthen your negotiating position - How to reach agreement on the price of a business with the current owner - And the steps to follow to put a deal together.

I hope you enjoy it.

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at: www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 185 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast. 

This week, I talk with author, investor and entrepreneur Graham Rowan - about how I have built the fourth largest chain of children’s day nurseries in the UK in little more than two years. 

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at:   www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn
https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI

Hello this is Jonathan Jay - and welcome to episode 184 of the Business Buying Strategies podcast.

This week, we meet another of my mastermind clients, Hari Krishnadasan. Now Hari had actually bought a business a few years ago without realising that growing through acquisition could be a viable business strategy.

But when COVID forced Hari to diversify, he made two new acquisitions and is now fully signed up to the principal of buy and build.

Find more details of the next Fasttrack programme at: www.thedealmakersacademy.com/FAST Follow or connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S3Xzxw Watch our YouTube Channel The Dealmaker's Academy https://bit.ly/3b86OFI