HoldCo Builders How I Quit My 6-Figure Job and Bought 9 Companies
Dec 9, 2025
David Dowda, Founder and CEO of Dowda Holdings, jumped from a grueling insurance career to purchasing a $30k beach business using seller financing. He talks about rolling up various small businesses into his portfolio, including a surf shop turnaround into a coffee hotspot. With no construction experience, he successfully flipped a remote company for a 300% return. David emphasizes the importance of team-building, financial oversight, and nurturing trust while scaling businesses, advocating for sustainable growth over quick profits.
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From Six-Figure Job To $1.8M Roll-Up
- David quit a six-figure insurance job to run a $30k beach chair rental and spent summers barefoot on the beach while scaling via local acquisitions.
- Over five years he bought competitors, added services, and grew revenue from $30k to $1.8M through roll-ups and conversions.
Learning Construction To Flip 300% Return
- David bought a North Carolina custom log cabin construction company six hours away with no construction background and obtained a GC license on the fly.
- He flipped that business in 18 months for roughly a 300% return after learning operations and keeping the seller involved.
Fix Systems Then Scale Revenue
- Audit systems, processes, and KPIs first to identify scaling blockers like missing sales funnels and absent SOPs.
- Fix finances, operations, and leadership in that order to enable sustainable growth and rapid revenue increases.
