Rand Larsen
@RandBusiness
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I build peer groups for SMB Owners. Hosting SMB/ETA Meetups all around North America. Previously @wilsoncompanies .
Join the fun 👉
Joined December 2018
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Last Seen Profiles
Pinned Tweet
ANNOUNCEMENT:
I just bought this camper van to travel the country and host small business meetups everywhere I go.
Earlier this year I took an impromptu road trip across the New England and Midwest regions of the US, hosted 13 meetups for business owners and acquirers over just
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I interviewed another towing company owner about how he retains big customers
Here's the tactic:
"I have thank you cards that my wife and I send out.
We mail out ~30 thank you cards a day and spend ~$10,000 a year on them.
Customers LOVE them and they build a ton of good will
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Talked with a buddy who runs a $20M+ distribution co yesterday.
“The real price of a Ferrari is $1,000,000,
$300k for the Ferrari
$50k in maintenance
$650k in employee turnover, recruitment costs, new hire training, and productivity loss when people find out I own a Ferrari.”
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Fort Capital has acquired over $559MM in Industrial and Flex CRE all over Texas.
They currently do ~13 deals every year with a hyper-efficient team of analysts, Managers, and executives
Here is
@fortworthchris
's 12 step process to acquisitions
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Ben Little does $55,000,000 in annual revenue with his 14 restaurants.
Something you all need to learn from Ben is that while he's successful today, his journey has not been easy
In his words, here's his first 18 years of revenue from his first restaurant:
05': $698,201 (lost
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I've been studying twitter lately. specifically the content that goes viral.
Here's two interesting points, on two interesting people.
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Today I discovered RVs will commonly be financed for 20 years.
This is insane.
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I just spent 20 hours driving to Orlando for
@SMB_ash
.
Here's an intro to 99% of the attendees on twitter and 27 timeless lessons from the best SMB OG's.
Grab a coffee, recline the seat of your private jet, and bookmark this All Star rolodex I'm giving you.
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@fortworthchris
has raised $150,000,000+ of capital from investors.
Here's his entire pitch philosophy and deal template (screenshots)⬇️
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I recently pitched a few investors on my first SMB M&A deal.
I have 0 experience in financial modeling, but I built a minimum viable model within a day that helped me raise $550K.
Here’s how you can do it:
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Curious how a Texan CRE firm underwrites $25,000,000+ industrial CRE deals in less than 1 day?
Use
@fortworthchris
's 13 step framework to underwriting $559MM+ in deals👇
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I interview SMB CEOs for a living.
Their stories can’t be shared publicly.
But, I can act as a surrogate.
Here are 6 realities of buying businesses that you will never hear about on Twitter…
Big a** thread:
1. Recession fears: real and perceived…
Some folks are going
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So
@theSamParr
and
@ShaanVP
just hosted
@tailopez
on their
@myfirstmilpod
podcast...
Here is a long form breakdown of their entire conversation, where Tai shines, and where he's crooked.
THREAD👇
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Just made my 1st earnest money deposit for my 1st investment property
Baby steps💪
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@quinnjmiller
makes $10,000/mo PROFIT from vending machines.
Here's his entire playbook and story ⬇️
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Reg Zeller runs a $30M Holdco.
The number 1 piece of advice he gives to new SMB owners is…
“Find a peer group.”
Here’s why…
In early 2017,
@RegZeller
bought his first foundry.
$2.7M revenue
$500k SDE
6 months after the acquisition he’d end up in the fetal position of his
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I just bought my first rental property (living in one unit)
Currently sitting in my car under a covered gas station as I wait for a thunderstorm to pass so the mattress on top of my car doesn't get soaked.
No utilities yet but I can't wait to spend my first night there.
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Biz buys sell listing I just read on reason for selling:
“I am 70 years old. I am old, Rich, and pretty. Time to enjoy the rest of my life.”
How awesome is that?
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I have NO IDEA whether I am a good business person or not.
I have NOT been through any Great Financial Crisis.
I don’t know what it’s like.
What I DO know is that I will be road tripping through these cities over the next 2 months, throwing free SMB/ETA meetups.
Cleveland
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Tomorrow I will cold email pitch Marcus Lemonis, CEO of camping world.
I want him to supply me with an RV so I can travel the U.S. building local SMB Communities everywhere in the U.S.
I’ll publish the cold email pitch right here on X for the world to see.
Stay tuned.
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⚠️Attention
@holdcoconf
attendees!!!
I, Rand Larsen, am giving free VIP airport pickups for friends and Conference attendees this Saturday and Sunday.
Come ride in the Rand-Van
Here's what you get with this luxury experience:
SNACKS:
You’re gonna be hungry after a long
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Last week I talked with 19 SMB CEOs doing between $1M and $40M.
We talked about me building business owner peer groups for them.
Here’s how they work…
- We meet every 3 weeks for 1 hour
- I match SMB owners with other owners who have similar problems
- I do this by
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Anyone can do it bro
Buy 10 AirBnBs and boom you're done.
Buy 2 apartment buildings and boom you’re done.
Surf in Maui for the rest of your life baby.
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My mission has begun
And the journey starts today
Over the next 3 weeks, I am visiting 12 cities, most I have never been to, hosting free SMB Meetups for the SMB Community.
This is the path I’m taking, visiting all of these cities…
1. Pittsburgh (hosted last thursday)
2.
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Most awkward part of these events are right before they start
- Me, alone
- Wearing a nametag by myself
- quickly scanning the list of attendees
I definitely get some weird looks, but that’s always happened
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Everyone asking me why I’m doing this crazy road trip.
Here’s why.
1. Everyone loves coming to these SMB/ETA meetups… “being the host” is fun, and for whatever reason, few people are hosting these in their cities.
So F*** it, I’ll do it.
2. I am young, single, have time, and
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80 people
Amazing things happening in Dallas
Thanks to all of you who continue to support me
I can’t wait to do this all over the USA
🇺🇸
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The next 2 weeks of my life are going to be kind of fucking insane.
Right now I am boarding a plane from Cleveland to Dallas
Tomorrow I am interviewing a multi-location comedy club business owner - and touring one of his locations
The day after that I am interviewing a guy who
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🚨ANNOUNCEMENT🚨
I am launching a program to help other people in the SMB Community launch local meetups in their city.
I will be doing a shit load of work, 100% for free.
All to unite the SMB/ETA community.
I love this community and I’m inspired as hell right now.
If you
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Just sold all my DOGE
I made $10K+ from $1,000.
My strategy was seeing how GameStop got whipped around a few months ago...
And putting money in the next "logical" "asset" choice that will get whipped for no reason.
I'm buying my 1st rental with this.
Invest in hard assets.
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Guy who does $25,000,000 in annual sales just joined one of our peer groups.
That one peer group now has ~$149,000,000 in total Annual revenues across all of the members
Average revenue ~$18.5M per member.
We’re launching an internal community podcast only accessible if you’re
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I just summarized
@myfirstmilpod
#187
Here's what you'll learn!
1. WTF Are MEGA Trends?
2. New *Paparazzi* App - The Next IG?
3. Making ~$200,000 Owning Vending Machines
4. Biz Idea: Edible Arrangements of DoorDash
⬇️
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Happy new year, SMB Twitter!
2023 had its highs and lows here
too often, it felt low.
So, I'm doing something fun to start 2024 right!
I made over 100 caricature AI images of our favorite SMB Twitter influencers
they are hilarious
Descend into madness with me!
👇👇👇
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In 5 minutes 20 small business owners in Cleveland will be greeted by this smiling face.
Can’t wait to see everyone!
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I just did a tally for all the people who attended an SMB Community event on my Rand Run.
~350
🤯
Here’s to building in-person relationships in SMB / ETA 🍻
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This week, I attended the best conference on earth.
@HoldCoConf
At this event, I offered strangers rides in my car from the Cleveland airport to their hotel.
I gave 12 free rides to 12 amazing people.
At the end of the conference, I asked them for their biggest takeaways
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I’m in Costa Roca right now, enjoying a beer.
I wanted to share with all of you a little cultural quirk of this country.
They have this saying called “Pura Vida”
It means “Pure Life” and it’s the motto of Costa Rica
It’s literally everywhere, half of the businesses I pass use
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Preparing for an event.
I’m getting deeper in the RV life…
Much deeper
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I officially need business cards
Some people who show up to my events have no idea who I am
And it’s odd to tell them “just follow me on twitter.
But I’d rather not have a boring card.
Does anyone have good examples of awesome business cards?
Or a vendor I should work with?
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Having friends who own/run companies doing $2M+ in sales and 10+ employees is awesome.
But right now I feel like I need more people to share the $100k - $500k journey with.
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Main Street Summit is in LESS THAN 5 DAYS!!
Who else is going??
Well, a dozen other people have asked that question on this app
So, I crawled through every post mentioning
@MainStSummit
to bring you this:
The full list of SMB Twitter Peeps who will be at Main Street Summit 🤠
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The Rand Van has showed up in Columbia for Main Street Summit
If anyone wants a tour, just open the door, I’m leaving it open.
Feel free to grab some food, kick up your feet, and make yourself at home.
¡Mi casa es Su casa!
On 10th and E Broadway, down the street from the
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@BillDA
My belief is that it’s just trendy.
Everyone wants one because everyone else wants one.
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Survivorship bias in SMB acquisitions is very real.
You always hear about the people crushing it, growing 100% per year every year.
You never hear about the guys losing their shirts or going bankrupt.
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People who have bought businesses, how did you find your first attorney?
How do you handle cost management?
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Justin Turner runs Traction Capital Partners, a small Permanent Equity firm in Seattle.
Justin and his team have acquired a few businesses:
- SeaWestern Fire Fighting Equipment
- Swag Tool Company (Metal Fabrication Tools and Offroad Equipment)
- Tony Lind Paving
- Stumptown
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Holy SMB Twitter Trinity:
- porta potty rental
- drain cleaning
- septic pumping
Beautiful
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I owe Nunzio Presta a massive “THANK YOU”
Unknowingly to me, he pushed MY MEETUP to his audience without me even knowing about it until I showed up in Toronto.
We had 40 people show up.
That’s 40 people who are closer to meeting their local tribe
40 people who are closer to
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We just wrapped up the Boston SMB meetup!!
Here are 12 observations I’ve had from doing 6 of these events in the past 2 weeks:
—
1. Bullshit conversations are more fun than business conversations
I love biz talk, but when someone is obsessed with their exercise routine or
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In Columbus now.
Before most of these events I send photos of me so everyone knows at least one friendly face they can say hi to when they arrive.
(Also I need to give them a name tag - it’s protocol)
I’m not sure why, but it tickles me that I just sent this photo to 30
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Had the urge to take a selfie when giving a local laundromat a review today.
Idk why but I find it funny and will be doing more of this.
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Speaking at SMBash is a big personal milestone for me.
Incredibly humbled and thankful for the opportunity.
Thank you
@Sam_Rosati
,
@KHendersonCo
,
@ChandlerReedSMB
,
@TwoTeesSMB
.
Big things to come 🚀
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Can I get some feedback from the SMB community on this problem I got from an SMB owner I got today?
The problem:
“I struggle to decouple my own emotional ups and downs with the business’s ups and downs.”
“Does anyone else struggle with this?”
Does anyone have any advice?
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My first podcast appearance EVER happens in 2 hours.
It will be video taped in a podcast studio and uploaded here on X for the entertainment of you fine people.
Me and
@SBA_Matthias
will be talking about my “Rand Run,” SMB peer groups, and what happens AFTER you buy a business.
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Lesson from this drama:
Get off Twitter, touch grass.
So last Friday, myself and 12 other business owners did that...
We toured this awesome van-life manufacturing company called Remote Vans
They build $200,000 - $250,000 adventure vans with the best tech out there.
We
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Lots of new followers
Let me re-introduce myself 👇
My name is Rand
In 2019 I started a business called “DocuFamily”
I was making documentaries about senior citizens to preserve their life stories and legacy for future generations of their family
If you’re >40 years old and
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While I wait to move in to the house I just bought, let me reflect on my journey or the past 6 months.
🧵
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Hot take:
Breweries are better coworking spaces than the ones you pay $250/mo for.
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Behind me is the first piece of RE I ever bought.
Prior to buying this duplex I was living in a shoe box apartment the size of a single Ford F150
Paying $500/mo
Now, my monthly mortgage payment is $600 after rental income.
And my unit is approximately the size of 6 F150s.
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Tragedy struck this week
Last Tuesday I had the privilege of interviewing Shane Ehrsam
Shane acquired a multi-location trailer dealership doing ~$10.5M a year in sales
We walked through his shop, he gave me the inside baseball of his acquisition, and we spoke deeply on the
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My take on most SMB buyers I talk to:
I see a lot of people pitching the idea that buying a small business with proven cash flows is a great way to escape the rat race and increase your personal income.
“Less risky than starting a business from scratch” they say…
This is 100%
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Does anyone have an RV they want to sell me so I can do the Rand Run full time?
Or maybe connect me with an RV dealer/manufacturer who’d sponsor me?
I’ll create awesome videos showing me living in it and promote it to my audience of wealthy business owners.
Or if you want to
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Yesterday I gave almost 100 people tours of my $42,000 vanlife van.
This thing is the greatest B2B marketing tool anyone has ever invented.
Don’t question it
Now, I just need actually wrap the darn thing.
I feel like it would look great with a NASCAR style design but with SMB
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OVER 40 PEOPLE SHOWED UP.
Yesterday someone asked me,
“What is the most underrated city for SMB/ETA?”
Cincinnati is definitely a front runner.
This turnout rivaled Toronto’s meetup.
The 4th largest city in North America versus 64th largest city in U.S.
shocking.
This
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Almost exactly 1 year ago, I hosted my first acquisition entrepreneur peer group.
It started when I visited a buddy who had just acquired a $10M+ HVAC business.
At the time, he was NOT doing well.
- Company starts to bleed money.
- He’s holding a massive PG on the debt.
-
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Pittsburgh SMB/ETA meetup is underway!!
Quote of the night so far from
@RealJohnMaher77
“Winning in business is all about who can eat the most shit the longest”
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Setting quarterly goals tonight, following the
@girdley
method in the pic below.
Does everyone have any other tips/self reflection questions/advice?
@RegZeller
,
@joshuamschultz
,
@kelceylehrich
,
@thegeneralmills
,
@SMB_Attorney
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1.
@alexgarcia_atx
has grown his following from about 3k followers to 12k in two weeks... Here's how
If you've read the book 'Contagious' by Jonah Berger, one main element in viral content is Practical value.
People love sharing content that is helpful.
News others can use!
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This photo was taken 30 seconds before I asked everyone to stand up from their seats and play “follow the leader” to a different area of the bar.
It’s a funny thing I’ve learned from hosting all of these events.
Rectangular tables are kind of shitty.
Once you sit down, you can
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Big shout out to
@laughridge
, if it wasn't for your pinned tweet I would have never been inspired to learn about ETA.
I also would've never moved across the country to join
@WilsonCompanies
.
That tweet literally changed the course of my life for the better.
Thanks!
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Some anecdotal insights on the current SMB M&A marketplace:
- heard from 2 searchers stopping their searches and move into consulting, they’re having a tough time buying or getting traction
- one of our peer group members feels the market for even <$1M EV businesses has
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On Thursdays I host entrepreneur support groups for people who own businesses between $2M and $20M in sales.
Every week I hear new SMB Ops stories.
But the last 2 weeks have been absolutely fucking nuts.
- Met a guy whose business was disrupted by beavers in Ukraine.
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@moseskagan
I job shadowed a property manager CEO with ~3,000 units 2 years ago when I was trying to buy his company.
He had a live phone call and put it on speaker for me to hear.
Employee called with big problems from a tenant and the CEO very quickly told them:
A. Do what you think is
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@BrentBeshore
This is true in almost every trade.
Plumbers, HVAC techs, electricians. tough hiring across the board.
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20 RSVPs for the Raleigh SMB meetup
25 RSVPs for the Charlotte SMB meetup
30 RSVPs for the Atlanta SMB meetup
My schedule through September getting booked up.
I love doing this!
If you’d like me to visit your city and throw an SMB/ETA meetup let me know
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Okay,
THE NYC SMB/ETA WAS A SMASHING SUCCESS.
I’m happy to meet so many awesome people, we had a great turnout of almost 30 people. And it was a really good mix of owners, operators, searchers, and one or two service providers.
I’m continuously befuddled at the caliber of
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@MattPaulsonSD
In my opinion he should have just hired an operator. Simple mistake for first timers.
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This photo is from last nights SMB/ETA event in Chicago
I don’t think I’ve ever smiled more in a 3 hour period
So many unique things happened
1. 2 machine shop acquirers showed up.
There’s only like 5 machine shop acquirers in the U.S. and 2 were in the same room (they didn’t
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Philly SMB meetup is AMAZING.
We got 6 people tonight, surprisingly small turnout for such a large city.
BUT it created an environment where everyone got to know each other on a deeper level. I love this.
Lots of laughs shared, can’t wait to do this again
@coombecaleb
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The idea that a group of 20-50 business owners/friends can get together for drinks on a Thursday and find a sponsor to cover their $1,000 bar tab is kind of mind blowing.
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New investment term I love:
ROBD…
Return on Brain Damage.
“Sure, we could make a lot of money rolling up Chuck-E-Cheese franchises, but what’s the ROBD?"😂
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Very bittersweet feelings today.
We have our first peer group member leaving today.
He acquired his business ~2.5 years ago and originally wanted to join a peer group purely to commiserate with others.
This was before I had a plan of what to do with a peer group, before I
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Last night’s Detroit event is a case study.
Of How free fun events can result in real value.
How to make something out of nothing.
Here’s 3 interesting things that happened last night.
—
1. I met a guy looking to invest in searchers who are acquiring manufacturing companies.
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Just 2X'd my power washing business adding car washes to my product line.
Window cleaning next then I'm a billionaire.
Thanks
@sweatystartup
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Chris Williams acquired System Six - a bookkeeping and accounting business - in July 2021.
Chris Williams runs payroll for 1,200 employees every month.
I met him in Seattle at the SMB/ETA meetup and asked him for his advice to searchers looking to acquire a company.
Here's the
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⚠️Toronto SMB Community⚠️
Dear fellow Canadians,
I am hosting an UNBELIEVABLE SMB/ETA meetup March 7th at Walrus Pub and Beer Hall
It's unbelievable because it will probably be the largest SMB/ETA meetup on this trip!
If you’re able to attend, please RSVP (link below)
It
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Just got off one of the best SMB peer group introduction calls ever.
Here’s what this SMB acquirer said was the reason they were looking for a peer group:
“Its WAY better to learn through other people’s experience.”
“Why waste time learning through failure?”
“You’ll run a
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Acquisition entrepreneurs are riddled with fear every day.
Recently spoke with someone going through some SHIT.
He has no one to talk to about weekly struggles with and said he’d love a small peer group to do weekly “trench therapy” sessions with for operators in the trenches.
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SMB meetup Buffalo!
You wanna know something?
3 people showed up (including me)
But the people who did were world class
It’s interesting to compare this event, where only a couple people showed up, to the event tomorrow in Toronto, where 40+ people are attending.
I will say
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@girdley
One time
@WilsonCompanies
sent an email blast to 10,000 people with a bullet point script that said...
"[Insert other things your customers like here.]"
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I LOVE Grease Trap Cleaning businesses.
- recurring revenues
- recession resistant
- heavy assets
What's not to love?
In Atlanta, I got to speak to Hunter Asip who owns a grease trap cleaning business with his father.
Their business has existed for over 27 years and has given
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In T-30 minutes this grungy family owned Atlanta bar will be filled to the brim with Georgia’s best and brightest small business owners, acquirers, and service providers
Thanks to the Meow team for sponsoring!
And thanks to all of you who continue supporting me ❤️
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I've now heard from two sellers that have denied to talk with me because of my Twitter.
Gonna have to take it dark everyone.
What's a good re-brand that will keep me off Google?
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