This episode features an in-depth conversation with business advisor and author Jason Hendren about his extraordinary exit journey. Jason shares the raw, real-life experiences behind his book, detailing how he scaled his energy-efficient lighting company, ILP, from a small venture to a highly valuable asset.

The discussion covers:

The initial risk of buying out his original partners using personal assets in 2009.

The power of partnering with private equity, which provided capital, operational expertise (continuous improvement), and mentorship that accelerated his company's growth far beyond what he could have achieved alone.

The crucial difference between being an "add-on" versus a "platform" investment in the eyes of PE.

The financial nuances of "taking multiple bites of the apple"—selling the company twice to different PE firms for increasing valuations.

His biggest regrets and lessons learned, including wishing he had better utilized leverage (debt) to maximize his personal proceeds in the second sale.

Timestamps

00:09,"Introduction: Host Vince Perri introduces Jason Hendren and his influential book, Things I Wish I Knew Before I Sold to Private Equity."

03:22,Company Origin: Jason details his background in manufacturing and starting the energy-efficient lighting business.

05:12,First Buyout (Recapitalization): Jason explains the decision and risk of buying out his original partners in 2008/2009 using personal assets.

09:03,Value of Mentorship: How his advisor helped structure the complex debt financing for the initial buyout.

19:58,First Big Lesson: Jason's regret about being too debt-averse and not using money to invest in growth earlier.

25:27,The Growth: Company grew from $7M in sales (2008) to almost triple that by 2012.

28:08,First PE Approach: The phone starts ringing with investment bankers and PE groups.

30:45,Add-on vs. Platform: Jason learns the crucial difference after the first PE prospect backs out.

34:37,The First PE Deal Closes (2012): The anti-climactic nature of the closing process.

43:03,Life with Private Equity: Jason describes the relationship and the deep operational resources and mentorship provided by the PE firm.

46:17,"""Winning is Fun"": Jason reflects on how the PE partnership accelerated growth (quadrupled EBITDA) through strategic investment and continuous improvement."

53:19,Deciding to Stay: The conversation about whether Jason would stay on as CEO for the second sale.

56:51,"The Equity Structure: Explanation of how the reinvestment and multiple ""bites of the apple"" (multiple exits) work financially."

59:46,The Final Exit: Jason discusses stepping away from the company after the second PE deal.

01:03:16,Final Lesson: Jason's biggest takeaway: wishing he had used more leverage in the first PE deal to maximize the proceeds in the second.

01:04:11,Current Practice: Jason highlights his current role as an exit advisor at Hendren Business Advisors.

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