Surviving Search, Closing the Deal, and Scaling a Business for the Long Haul

In this episode of The Intentional Owner, Sam Rosati and Kaustubh Deo dive deep into the journey of buying and running a small business—specifically, Kaustubh's experience acquiring and growing Blooma Tree Services.

Kaustubh shares how his path from private equity to entrepreneurship was shaped by a desire for ownership, control, and long-term equity building. He opens up about the reality of searching for and buying a business, including the setbacks of a failed deal, the learning curve of running a trades business, and the unexpected challenges of owner dependency in a company where the sellers were still climbing trees daily.

Other key insights include:

• What it's really like to transition into an owner-operator role
• The importance of hiring and structuring a team post-acquisition
• Navigating the growing pains of shifting from survival mode to scaling
• Why location and community connections matter more than you think

Whether you're considering entrepreneurship through acquisition or are in the trenches of running a small business, this episode is packed with real-world lessons from an owner who's lived it firsthand.

Links:

Kaustubh on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaustubh-deo/

Sam on X - https://x.com/Sam_Rosati

Topics:

(00:00:00) - Intro

(00:02:03) - Kaustubh's journey to ETA

(00:13:50) - Going under LOI on a business and losing it

(00:20:39) - Expectations vs. Reality in the day to day of running an acquired business

(00:27:53) - Discovering owner dependency

(00:32:21) - The importance of control in ETA

(00:35:19) - The Whack-a-Mole method

(00:40:47) - Sustainability is a false pretense early in ownership

(00:46:17) - Life owning a small business in your hometown

(00:52:37) - Tactical tips