35 business acquisitions in 3 years

In the latest episode of Business Buying Strategies, we speak with serial business buying entrepreneur Darren Jacobs who has bought 35 business in the last three years.

Despite the rapid growth of his business, Darren does not spend any time working in the businesses he acquires. He leaves it to his management team, freeing him up to work on his growth strategy which is – buying more businesses.

In this episode, he reveals why he first chose hair salons as a target for his acquisitions, how he closed so many deals so quickly and how his group head office operates to allow him the time and space to grow the business.

Darren also reveals his future growth plans and why he has expanded the business through acquisition to include marketing and food.

Here are the key highlights:

01:24 – Darren explains his business buying journey so far

02:20 – How a surprising offer to buy a coffee van led to Darren’s first catering acquisitions

04:28 – How Darren’s IT background and attempts to grow his business have shaped his acquisition strategy

05:21 – How Darren identified and sourced his first acquisition deal for a salon

07:35 – Why hair salons became a target for Darren’s acquisition strategy

11:45 – What motivates a salon owner to sell? (Hint: the answer isn’t always money…)

18:36 – How Darren built his management team and how his group head office runs the business

20:12 – Why Darren has started making acquisitions in a different sector

23:46 – What does the future hold for Darren in 2024?

31:05 – Darren answers common questions levelled at business buyers

In this episode of Business Buying Strategies, you will discover…

• How Darren used the (true) story of searching for a hair salon for his step daughter proved deal sourcing gold
• What he learnt from the first acquisition for his step daughter that convinced him to forge ahead with building a hair salon group
• Why understanding the buyer’s motivation for selling is key to a great deal
• Why every deal except one were for businesses that were not listed for sale
• How the group head office is set up to manage the 120+ staff across the group without any involvement from Darren
• How Darren leveraged government funding to complete multiple “no money down”deals
• Why Darren has broken the mould when buying smaller businesses, i.e. hair salons
• How he is able to take months off and only needs to turn up at board meetings every month
• The exact number of deal sourcing letters Darren sent out to generate 300 enquiries and complete 21 deals (this number will shock you)
• How only two out of his 35 acquisition have required Darren to use his own money (it was just over £10k and he made it back within weeks of closing the deal) 
• Why money is not the most important factor for many business owners who are motivated by others factors
• Why Darren has acquired two marketing agencies and a printing firm to support the group
• How he successfully saved £110,000 on a deal for a sandwich van business turning over £250,000/year
• Why his experience in business acquisition allows Darren to ‘flex’ the rules 

Memorable quotes from the episode

“I've not met any business owner that is not optimistic about next year.”

“The most powerful thing you can ever do in any negotiation is know that you can walk away and say no and mean it.”

“When I look at a business, if it creates any kind of job or responsibility for me then I’m not interested, no matter how good the deal is.”

** Looking for a great acquisition lawyer in the UK? Use mine! **

If you are looking for a lawyer in the UK to help you get the deal over the line, then use my own lawyer, John Andrews. You can phone his office at (0345) 2412494 or email him at johnandrews.deallawyer@jmw.co.uk.

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