Think Like an Owner

Launch Series Ep.4: Managing Seller Relationships with Jim Vesterman - Ep.182

Aug 1, 2023

Jim Vesterman, an expert in managing seller relationships, shares insights and experiences in this episode. Topics include ideal sellers for search fund acquisitions, managing relationships in a business, negotiating numbers, and the importance of maintaining relationships with advisors in mergers and acquisitions.

41:49

Episode guests

Jim Vesterman

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Building rapport and trust with sellers is crucial in the sales process to enhance the relationship and increase negotiation success.

Finding a single seller who is the founder and wants to retire simplifies the negotiation process and aligns with the goals of a search fund entrepreneur.

Deep dives

Building Rapport and Trust with Sellers

Building rapport and trust with sellers is crucial in the sales process. Establishing a good natural rapport can enhance the relationship and increase the chances of successful negotiations. Trust and transparency are key characteristics to look for in sellers. Follow consistency in their responses to gauge their trustworthiness. Face-to-face meetings build rapport more effectively than virtual interactions. Establishing rapport helps overcome valuation gaps and other challenges in the deal process.

Introduction

2min

Introducing Jim Vesterman and Managing Seller Relationships

6min

Ideal Sellers for Search Fund Acquisition

5min

Managing Seller Relationships in a Business

13min

Managing Seller Expectations and Negotiating Numbers

2min

Managing Seller Relationships and Advisors in M&A

13min

Successfully Keeping Sellers in a Business

2min

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Ep.182: Alex (@aebridgeman) is joined by Jim Vesterman (@jim-vesterman).

This episode is the fourth in our Launch Series, a partnered episode series with Trilogy Search Partners and Pacific Lake Partners, on the stages leading up to becoming a CEO via the search fund model. Today’s conversation with Jim Vesterman focuses on seller relationships during the deal process. Jim shares his own experience working with the seller of Raptor Technologies, a company he ran as CEO and is now a board member of, as well as other experiences he had with sellers during his search.

This is a discussion packed with insights on building great relationships with sellers and is a perfect complement to our earlier Launch episodes on industry research, starting up a search, and managing a due diligence process. Please enjoy this Launch Series episode on seller relationships with Jim Vesterman.

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Links:

Raptor Technologies

Pacific Lake Partners

Trilogy Search Partners

Timestamps

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:04:01) Jim’s career and experience Searching

(00:07:26) Identifying the right characteristics for a seller in a Search Fund acquisition

(00:11:45) Navigating a multi-founder acquisition and replacing a seller’s role within the business

(00:14:55) Finding the seller with the right mindset