This Week’s Breakdown (in 10 Seconds):
Ryan spent his career as a CPA, climbing the corporate ladder through finance and medical sales.
But he was tired of having to ask permission to take days off, and knew it was now or never before the golden handcuffs got even tighter.
So he searched for a year and a half, until he found a boring 30-year-old shutter manufacturing business.
To buy it, he borrowed 78% of the $5.5M price and signed a personal guarantee, putting everything he owned on the line.
He was only able to go all in because of the specific way he reviewed the deal first.
Three years later, he's grown it more than 50% at 32% EBITDA margins, and breaks down the exact playbook he used to get there.
Today, his business is on track to making $4.7M/yr
And for our audio-only listeners, jump in and listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!
But if you want to learn a bit more, let's dive into the story...
Hello SMB Deal Hunters!
How many of you have built a successful career, but you still don't get to control your own time?
And every year you stay, those golden handcuffs only get harder to take off.
Ryan lived in that exact spot for over a decade.
He started as a CPA, then built a career in corporate finance and medical device sales. But, he resented needing permission to take time off.
Growing up, he'd watched his dad run his own business and never miss a single soccer game.
Deep down, Ryan always knew he'd work for himself one day.
The problem was he could never land on a business idea worth risking everything for. When he went to Wharton for his executive MBA, he stopped looking for an idea at all, and realized he could just buy a business that was already printing cash.
He searched for a year and a half until he found a boring 30-year-old shutter manufacturing business in South Carolina.
To buy it, he signed a personal guarantee on a nearly $5 million loan.
And with young kids at home, that meant putting everything he owned on the line.
So why was he willing to risk it all?
Because of a few strategies he used to do diligence on the deal and bring him confidence in his acquisition plan before he ever signed.
And that confidence paid off. In three years, he grew a $3 million business into $4.7 million, at 32% margins.
But he didn't get there by just chasing new customers. Instead, he used a specific playbook most owners never think to run.
Member Spotlight
How He Bought a $965k Business WITHOUT Quitting His Job
For those who missed it, we also did an SMB Deal Hunter Pro alumni interview breaking down Mike's acquisition of a $965K medical transportation company in Michigan, with only 5% down.
Mike spent 10 years in corporate banking, helping large corporations get financing.
But with two small children at home, he wanted extra income on the side, so he spent his nights scrolling BizBuySell.
After months of zero progress, he joined SMB Deal Hunter Pro.
12 months later, he closed on a medical transportation company.
And he only had to put $57k down (5% of the deal).
Him and his wife run the whole thing remotely, working about 10hrs/week each.
Today, the business makes about $300K/yr in cash flow.
"There was another member who owned an NEMT business in another state, and I reached out to him a number of times with due diligence questions. We spent a couple hours on the phone, and it was immense. He connected me to the insurance broker I work with now, and the dispatching software we use now. Having other like-minded people in the community there to help you was vital to me. That's something other advisory firms just don't have."
So, if you want me and my team to work with you to find, finance, and acquire a million-dollar cash-flowing business in the next 6-12 months, you might be interested in the Pro program.
👀 P.S. We just doubled our off-market sourcing team.
Mike lost his business to a higher bidder at first. He only won it when the deal came back around quietly, with no competition.
That's where our members keep winning. Over the past 12 months alone, they've closed $170M in deals, and our off-market deal platform was a big contributor. So we're doubling down.
The surge is already underway. Last week we added 34 new off-market deals, our biggest week ever.
Join before Q2 wraps and you'll be first in line as new deals drop. To get more buyers in before the next wave, we're adding a one-time bonus for anyone who joins in the next 14 days.
COMMUNITY PERKS
• Ready to buy and operate a $1M+ business? Get expert help at every step.
• Want to invest passively in SMB acquisitions? Get access to investment opportunities.
• Get a personal introduction to my preferred SBA 7(a) lender, non-SBA lenders, Quality of Earnings providers, or legal counsel
• Raising capital for your deal? I’ll connect you with investors from the SMB Deal Hunter Community.
• Interested in selling your business? I’ll help you connect with buyers from the SMB Deal Hunter Community.
THAT’S A WRAP
Want me to interview you for my podcast? Hit reply.
See you next week with some new deals!
-Helen Guo
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Disclaimer
This publication is a newsletter only and the information provided herein is the opinion of our editors and writers only. Any transaction or opportunity of any kind is provided for information only; SMB Deal Hunter does not verify nor confirm information. SMB Deal Hunter is not making any offer to readers to participate in any transaction or opportunity described herein.