Articles on Practicing Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition
“Nothing’s wrong… it just feels like I’ve hit a ceiling.” I hear some version of that all the time. It usually comes from someone who’s doing really well on paper. They’ve built a solid career, they’re well compensated, people trust them, and they’ve taken on
When it comes to buying businesses, there’s the textbook version of how it’s supposed to go… And then there’s reality. One of the things I love about my co-founder at Acquisition Lab, Chelsea Wood, is
Electronic Arts recently agreed to be acquired in a $55 billion leveraged buyout. That’s not a typo. One of the largest gaming companies in the world, publisher of FIFA, Madden, and Battlefield, is going private
Part of being a successful acquisition entrepreneur is learning to look into a crystal ball. We’re not psychic, but we do want to know if the business we’re buying will still be thriving ten years
When people start thinking about buying a business, they go looking for information everywhere. Some of it’s solid. A lot of it isn’t. The truth is, the best lessons don’t come from gurus or Twitter
Every time I buy a business, revenue goes down the next year. Every. Single. Time. Sounds like I’m bad at this, right? That’s what people usually think when I tell them. But here’s the kicker:
When people get into acquisition entrepreneurship, they obsess over the deal… but over the wrong things. You’re chasing cash flow, negotiating with brokers, trying to get your SBA lender on the phone, and digging through
I know, I know… I’m the “Buy Then Build” guy. I even wrote the book on it. After buying a string of companies, I decided to publish Buy Then Build to show others a smarter,
Have you ever noticed that some people seem to be playing a totally different game when it comes to building wealth? I’m not talking about the ones chasing the next hot trend on Twitter. I’m
Not every business is a good business to buy. I know… that’s not what you hear on the internet. Online, every business is a money-printing machine just waiting for you to swoop in, slap on
When people think about buying a business, they tend to fixate on the deal. Finding one. Financing it. Getting through diligence without losing your mind. Closing. But then what? After the adrenaline wears off –
What if I told you that you don’t have to buy another business to build more wealth? I’ve bought ten companies outright – eight of them over the first decade. And I’ve made good money
You know the “turnkey” businesses when you’re competing with 25+ other buyers on the same deal. Most businesses that look “turnkey”… aren’t. They’re often held together by the seller’s personal involvement – and once they
I’m going to show you how to break your company on purpose, on paper. Why? Because the only thing worse than your deal falling apart before closing is when your business falls apart after it.
When I look back across the buyers who actually close and then survive ownership, they almost always fall into one of two camps. Both camps are different in temperament and skill set, but they share
When I talk to first-time buyers about why they want to acquire a business, they invariably say they want freedom, control, and income. I get this sentiment, but I can tell you from decades of
“I just want to feel more confident before I pull the trigger.” It’s one of the most common things I hear from first-time buyers. It sounds reasonable. Responsible, even. But it’s also backward. In ownership,
What if the least impressive seller is actually sitting on the best deal you’ll see all year? Most first-time buyers walk into deals with a mental model of what a “good seller” looks like. You
I get asked all the time how I evaluate deals in the private capital markets. Not just businesses I plan to operate, but LP investments in real estate, private credit, and private equity. How do
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