In this episode, Peter Lehrman sits down with Sam Rosati, founder of Pursuant Capital and the original sponsor of Perimeter Solutions Group (PSG), to explore his approach to scaling a single commercial fencing business in the Tampa, FL region and scaling growth across the sunbelt stages through five acquisitions and meaningful organic growth.

Sam gets into the unique dynamics of the commercial fencing industry, the importance of aligning with strong operational teams, and Sam’s orientation to back management teams rather than retiring owners. Sam also reflects on his experience partnering with Chris Kliefoth, his co-founder and operating partner, and the role of thoughtful deal sourcing in shaping PSG’s success. The conversation dives into add-on acquisitions, the challenges of scaling a service-based business, and the value of getting face-to-face with sellers ASAP in the deal-sourcing funnel.

The conversation finishes up with Sam talking about his search for a new lower middle market acquisition in 2025 and how he is thinking about this next big chapter.

Discussion Points:

Sam Rosati’s background and his transition from big law to small business M&A
The inception of Perimeter Solutions Group (PSG) and the decision to focus on commercial fencing
Key advantages of commercial fencing, including its project lifecycle and customer relationships
Sourcing the deal in Tampa, and how it came into focus
Building a successful partnership between an operating partner and a dealmaker
The importance of a strong team in scaling operations and managing growth
Strategic acquisitions to expand geographic reach and service capabilities
Maintaining a balance between growth and operational excellence
The impact of a recapitalization on PSG’s future growth plans
Evolving strategies for deal sourcing, including inbound, outbound, and relationship-building
The potential for younger management teams to drive success in blue-collar services
The future of independent sponsors and the opportunities for young operators in the lower middle market
The significance of long-term partnerships with family offices and flexible capital providers

Masters in Small Business M&A (sign up for podcast drops here) is produced by its host Peter Lehrman and the team at Axial (www.axial.com). Axial makes it easy for small business owners to confidentially explore growth capital and exit transactions with top-ranked lower middle market M&A advisors and professional capital partners. In every episode, we explore the dynamic world of small business M&A, interviewing a mix of proven and emerging owners, operators, acquirers, and M&A advisors whose strategies and methods are being put to the test.

If you’d like to go deeper, head to Axial.com, where we make available the Axial member directories, downloadable tools for dealmakers, the Axial quarterly lower middle market investment banking league-table rankings, the SMB M&A pipeline report, and other useful information. If you’re a business owner, professional acquirer, or M&A advisor, you can start using Axial for free at Axial.com.

Resources

Sam Rosati LinkedIn

Sam Rosati X

Chris Kliefoth LinkedIn

Peter Lehrman LinkedIn

Peter Lehrman X

Pursuant Capital Website

Perimeter Solutions Group Website

Axial Website

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