
How2Exit: Buy, Don't Build - M&A of Small Businesses
E271: How This Dealmaker Closes a Business Acquisition Every Week—WITHOUT Using His Own Money!
Mar 5, 2025
57:51
Watch Here: https://youtu.be/31r3dCWdUtA
About the Guest:
Rob Richmond is a dealmaker, strategic advisor, and founder of Synergy Groups. With decades of experience in technology, business acquisitions, and rollups, Richmond has developed a reputation for structuring creative and sustainable deals. His ability to optimize businesses before acquisition, leverage vendor financing, and create high-value group exits has positioned him as a thought leader in the space.
Summary:
In this episode of the How2Exit podcast, host Ronald Skelton sits down with Rob Richmond, a seasoned dealmaker and founder of Synergy Groups. Richmond shares his experience in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), detailing his innovative strategies for structuring deals, including vendor financing, virtual rollups, and work-in-buyout (WIBO) models. With a track record of completing a deal nearly every week, Richmond offers valuable insights into how business buyers can creatively structure acquisitions, avoid common pitfalls, and maximize value. The conversation also delves into the psychology of sellers, the importance of profiling employees, and how to build scalable business groups.
Key Takeaways:
--------------------------------------------------
Contact Rob on
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-richmond/
Website: https://morewaysgroup.com/
--------------------------------------------------
💰If you’d like additional ways to support this podcast, you can become a paid subscriber here: https://how2exit.substack.com/
►Visit Our Website: https://www.how2exit.com/
📧For Business Inquiries: Me@4sale2sold.com
Don't Forget to SUBSCRIBE to the How2Exit channel and press (🔔) to join the Notification Squad and stay updated with new uploads.✨
👇🏻SUBSCRIBE HERE
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_ONnhwaKSTPFt2nOxKoXXQ?sub_confirmation=1
𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬...?
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
👍 Like the video (it helps a ton!)
💬 Comment below to share your opinion!
🔗 Share the video with anyone you think might help :) ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
📱Stay Tuned On Our Social Media :
» Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronskelton/
» Twitter - https://twitter.com/ronaldskelton
» Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/How2Exit
» Newsletter - http://deeper.how2exit.com/
🎬SUGGESTED VIDEOS
Don't forget to watch 📽 Our other videos. Please check them out :
▶️Previous Episode: E270: From Landscaping Hustle to Tech Empire: Bryan Clayton’s $90M GreenPal Revolution - https://youtu.be/e3HHrrIc4Hc
▶️E135: Sam Rosati On His Journey From Being A Lawyer To Becoming An Entrepreneur In The ETA Space - https://youtu.be/D2qJOidptRA
▶️E100: CEO Of Flippa Blake Hutchison Discusses Innovations In Buying And Selling Digital Assets - https://youtu.be/R1D5guQU9Z0
#How2Exit # # 💖Thanks for watching! 💖
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/how2exit-buy-don-t-build-m-a-of-small-businesses--4859429/support.
About the Guest:
Rob Richmond is a dealmaker, strategic advisor, and founder of Synergy Groups. With decades of experience in technology, business acquisitions, and rollups, Richmond has developed a reputation for structuring creative and sustainable deals. His ability to optimize businesses before acquisition, leverage vendor financing, and create high-value group exits has positioned him as a thought leader in the space.
Summary:
In this episode of the How2Exit podcast, host Ronald Skelton sits down with Rob Richmond, a seasoned dealmaker and founder of Synergy Groups. Richmond shares his experience in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), detailing his innovative strategies for structuring deals, including vendor financing, virtual rollups, and work-in-buyout (WIBO) models. With a track record of completing a deal nearly every week, Richmond offers valuable insights into how business buyers can creatively structure acquisitions, avoid common pitfalls, and maximize value. The conversation also delves into the psychology of sellers, the importance of profiling employees, and how to build scalable business groups.
Key Takeaways:
- Vendor Financing as a Deal-Making Tool – Richmond explains how structuring deals with seller financing, instead of traditional bank loans, helps align interests and often results in better terms for both buyers and sellers.
- Work-in-Buyout (WIBO) Strategy – He outlines how entering a business as an advisor or operator before a formal acquisition can lead to stronger deals, minimizing risk and increasing value for all parties.
- The Power of Virtual Rollups – Richmond discusses his success with virtual rollups, where companies in similar industries collaborate, scale, and eventually exit together for higher valuations.
- The Importance of Value Creation – Instead of simply acquiring businesses, Richmond emphasizes improving them through strategic changes, sales optimization, and operational efficiency.
- Overcoming Seller Expectations – Many business owners overvalue their companies. Richmond’s strategy is to shift the conversation from an unrealistic sales price to the actual post-sale cash in the seller’s bank account.
- Employee Profiling for Growth – By analyzing staff skill sets, businesses can reposition employees for better performance without the need for external hiring.
- The Right Business Mindset Matters – Smaller business owners often struggle with valuations, unrealistic goodwill expectations, and an inability to scale, while those with $10M+ in revenue tend to be more pragmatic and open to creative deal structures.
- The Fastest Way to Exit? Management Buyouts. – Richmond highlights management buyouts (MBOs) as one of the quickest and most effective ways for business owners to transition out while ensuring business continuity.
--------------------------------------------------
Contact Rob on
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-richmond/
Website: https://morewaysgroup.com/
--------------------------------------------------
💰If you’d like additional ways to support this podcast, you can become a paid subscriber here: https://how2exit.substack.com/
►Visit Our Website: https://www.how2exit.com/
📧For Business Inquiries: Me@4sale2sold.com
Don't Forget to SUBSCRIBE to the How2Exit channel and press (🔔) to join the Notification Squad and stay updated with new uploads.✨
👇🏻SUBSCRIBE HERE
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_ONnhwaKSTPFt2nOxKoXXQ?sub_confirmation=1
𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬...?
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
👍 Like the video (it helps a ton!)
💬 Comment below to share your opinion!
🔗 Share the video with anyone you think might help :) ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
📱Stay Tuned On Our Social Media :
» Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronskelton/
» Twitter - https://twitter.com/ronaldskelton
» Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/How2Exit
» Newsletter - http://deeper.how2exit.com/
🎬SUGGESTED VIDEOS
Don't forget to watch 📽 Our other videos. Please check them out :
▶️Previous Episode: E270: From Landscaping Hustle to Tech Empire: Bryan Clayton’s $90M GreenPal Revolution - https://youtu.be/e3HHrrIc4Hc
▶️E135: Sam Rosati On His Journey From Being A Lawyer To Becoming An Entrepreneur In The ETA Space - https://youtu.be/D2qJOidptRA
▶️E100: CEO Of Flippa Blake Hutchison Discusses Innovations In Buying And Selling Digital Assets - https://youtu.be/R1D5guQU9Z0
#How2Exit # # 💖Thanks for watching! 💖
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/how2exit-buy-don-t-build-m-a-of-small-businesses--4859429/support.
Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts
Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.