Acquiring Minds

Landon Mance bought a $1.7m tree business alongside a minority partner who's operated the business full-time from Day 1. Topics in Landon’s interview:Crossing paths with a financial criminalBuying a tree service business with his friend as operatorWhere “follow your passion” falls shortWhy the business had high margins at acquisitionNegotiating with the sellers over ZoomBurning through the capex budget in 90 daysThe importance of putting everything in the contractHis operator’s equity stake in the companyContinuing to run his financial planning businessHis 5-8 year vision for the companyReferences and how to contact Landon:landon@backboneplanning.comLinkedInBackbone Planning PartnersTrent LeeNevada Tree ServiceTrevor MiltonRyan TansomElizabeth HolmesMicro Business AcademyLearn more about Walker Deibel's done-with-you buy-side advisory:The Acquisition LabConnect with A-players who can run your business remotely:More StaffingConnect with Acquiring Minds: See past + future interviews on the YouTube channelConnect with host Will Smith on LinkedInFollow Will on Twitter

Neil Finneran, former hedge fund professional and CFO, talks about his career pivot to becoming a small business owner by buying a pest control business. He discusses the value of a supportive spouse, hiring and incentivizing blue-collar employees, retaining customers in a recurring revenue business, advantages of being part of a franchise, competitors in the pest control space, and decision-making for marketing spend.

The podcast discusses topics such as the challenges of buying a business during the pandemic, evaluating growth potential, the attractive aspects of the business, managing a seasonal business, optimizing the routing process, and the career transition from high finance to becoming spray technicians.

George Vallone discusses growing revenue 3x in 2.5 years and multi-city expansion. Topics: incentive program for quality contractors, pricing power through quality, sales process for apartment turnover services, geographic expansion, headcount & revenue growth, hiring VP of operations, power of growing market, building custom tech, organic expansion to new geographies, difficulty in property management.

Chad Hildebrandt shares his experience acquiring a business with no financial records, negotiating a deal for a candle manufacturer, and the challenges of the transition period. He discusses the importance of understanding financing, the three types of candle makers, and the process of reconstructing financial records. Chad also highlights the benefits of independence, the importance of systems in manufacturing, and standing out in the candle manufacturing business.

A dental consultant found success in buying a local ice cream business with good profit margins and a local following. The speaker discusses their journey of discovering entrepreneurship through acquisition and the benefits of buying a business. They share their experience finding off-market deals and working with brokers. They also talk about expanding the ice cream shops nationally, optimizing current locations, and the importance of passion and excitement in business ownership.

Johannes Hock, a private equity professional, shares his journey of acquiring an artificial turf installer business and growing it from $5m to on track to exceed $15m in 2023. He discusses the differences between private equity and search, sources of deal flow, valuing and financing a fast-growing business, tracking data, and unexpected costs of sales commissions. He also emphasizes the benefits of having a partner in search and the challenges of financing a rapidly growing business.

Corey Veverka shares his experience of buying the business where he worked without doing a search, and how he convinced his wife and partner to do the deal. He discusses the risk mitigation of buying the business where he worked, the growth they've achieved, and the takeaways for people in similar situations. They also talk about the challenges of negotiating a business deal and the importance of trust in a seller-buyer relationship.

Sandy Paige shares how he raised funds for his search fund and grew EBITDA by 7x. He discusses the challenges he overcame, renting space to animal research labs, and hiring the right team. The podcast also covers the risks of real estate dynamics, selling to competitor Charles River Laboratories, and the importance of amenitizing a life science building.

Shane Ehrsam and Brandon Adams discuss hiring a GM, buying business #2, rewarding aspects of SMB life, and managing envy. Topics include benefits for employees, growing revenue post-COVID, reality of bumpy revenue in retail, owning a business bought as a stock sale, improving hiring for blue-collar roles, professionalizing a business, and the process of acquiring another business.