My guest today is Justin Ishbia. Justin is the Founding Partner of Shore Capital. Shore is a private equity firm that invests in microcap businesses within industry niches. With $7 billion in capital deployed but an average transaction size of just $12 million, Justin has worked to build a system to drive success for hundreds of businesses through replicable operating procedures and championing young professionals.

The firm has created a moat around volume with nearly 600 acquisitions over the last three years, some of the highest numbers in the world. We discuss identifying growth prospects, constructing a meaningful board, and the business mentality behind "main street," not wall street, as Justin puts it. Please enjoy my conversation with Justin Ishbia.

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For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

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Show Notes:

(00:03:10) - (first question) - “The system is the star” and how it applies to Shore Capital

(00:07:10) - Shore Capital’s origin story

(00:12:48) - What the perfect type of deal looks like for Justin

(00:16:34) - The historical rates of return for their deals

(00:18:12) - Shore Capital’s defensibility and strategic advantages

(00:22:13) - Their board system and incentive structure

(00:28:20) - Why they focus on the industrial subsector

(00:31:21) - Overview of thesis evaluation and generation

(00:37:24) - What they’re looking for during the diligence stage

(00:40:45) - The bad reputation of levered rollups

(00:43:57) - What he’s learned about negotiations

(00:46:39) - The weak points of Shore Capital’s system

(00:48:59) - The Innovation Stack; Thinking about stacking unfair advantages

(00:52:11) - Selling a business and what buyers are looking for

(00:55:08) - Heavy focus on operations and their portfolio performance group

(00:58:00) - Why nobody above an associate level has ever left Shore Capital

(00:60:46) - Lessons learned becoming the owner of a major sports franchise

(01:03:56) - What’s surprising about how the league functions

(01:05:05) - Key people and firms he’s learned the most from

(01:07:17) - Where Shore Capital’s system could improve the most

(01:11:06) - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for Justin

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