Think Big, Buy Small
von Harvard Business School
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Building an HVAC Roll-Up in France
Building an HVAC Roll-Up in France
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Are you looking for an alternative to a career path at a big firm? Does founding your own startup seem too risky? There's another compelling path open to you: acquiring a small business and running it as CEO. Co-hosted by Harvard Business School Professors Richard Ruback and Royce Yudkoff, the show is an extension of their courses on small firms, including Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition, which has been taken by thousands of MBA students, and their highly-regarded book, HBR Guide To Buying A Small Business, which has sold more than 65,000 copies. In this series, Rick and Royce guide listeners through the different milestones of the journey to acquiring an enduringly profitable small business, sharing insights on how to evaluate prospects, raise capital, and ultimately determine if this path is right for you.
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- Building an HVAC Roll-Up in France · 52 Min.Entrepreneurship through acquisition is increasingly becoming a global phenomenon, and in this episode Rick and Royce speak with Louis-Clair Francois-Poncet, an HBS alum who…
- Navigating the Legal Process of Buying a Small Business · 57 Min.Buying a small business involves much more than simply agreeing on a price. To explore the legal process of getting a deal across the finish line, Rick and Royce are joined in…
- When Search Doesn’t End in an Acquisition · 45 Min.What happens when a searcher doesn’t find a company to buy? In this episode, Rick and Royce talk with Kristin Wihera, a Navy veteran and HBS graduate who spent nearly two years…
- From Entrepreneur to Acquisition Entrepreneur · 49 Min.Entrepreneurship through acquisition doesn't always begin with a formal search. In this episode, Rick and Royce talk with Aaron Wyatt, an entrepreneur who built his business…
- From Searcher to Seller: The Long Road to a Successful Exit · 48 Min.Bruce Isaacson spent two years searching for a company to buy before acquiring a decades-old marketing research firm in 2005. Since that time, he has transformed the business…
- Reflections On the Evolution of ETA · 57 Min.Jeff Stevens, one of the earliest searchers and a longtime investor in the ETA ecosystem, joins Rick and Royce to discuss how search has evolved over the past thirty-five years…
- Should Searchers Look More Seriously at Franchises? · 55 Min.Michael Horowitz is a former searcher who acquired, scaled, and ultimately sold a portfolio of Wingstop franchise restaurants before becoming an investor in the ETA ecosystem. In…
- The Role of Culture in Scaling an ETA Business · 52 Min.After a self-funded search led to the acquisition of Ally Waste in 2020, James Crawley grew the company more than thirty-five-fold. What did it take to scale the business from a…
- The Rise of Long-Term Holding Companies in ETA · 53 Min.In Season Two, Kent Weaver, one of the most experienced operators and investors in the search ecosystem, joined Rick and Royce for a wide ranging conversation about…
- Season Three Questions and Answers with Rick and Royce · 47 Min.Hosted by producer Katie Zandbergen, Rick and Royce return for their end-of-season dive into listeners’ most pressing questions – those that many aspiring acquisition…
- Partnership, Purpose, and the ETA Path to Concierge Medicine · 53 Min.Partners in search, Nick Kerr and Shaquille Walker, join Rick and Royce to share their journey from risk-averse upbringings to acquiring HealthBridge, a concierge primary care…
- Navigating Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition as a Family · 38 Min.In this special “Friends and Family Night” episode, Rick and Royce speak with Meghan Orzetti about the experience of entrepreneurship through acquisition from the perspective of…
- Reshaping One’s Career Through Acquisition Entrepreneurship · 42 Min.Ike Ukawuba was a self-funded searcher whose path to entrepreneurship began far from the boardroom. Raised in a single-parent household in Chicago, he began his career in…
- Pioneering Search in Frontier Markets · 53 Min.In this episode, Rick and Royce sit down with Rob LeBlanc, Co-Founder at Ambit Partners, to explore the evolution of search fund investing beyond traditional markets. Rob traces…
- CEO Success in Operating Small Business Acquisitions · 44 Min.Michael Aubrey, having walked the path from searcher to successful operator and investor, draws on his wealth of experiences to offer a masterclass in small business growth. In…
- Bonus Episode: The Art and Strategy of Negotiation, with Jim Sebenius · 29 Min.In this bonus episode, hosted by Adam Outland, we're featuring a conversation from our friends at The Action Catalyst, a top-rated leadership and entrepreneurship podcast. While…
- Climbing the Revenue Ladder: Understanding Quality in Business Acquisitions · 47 Min.In this episode, Rick and Royce are joined by A.J. Wasserstein, Senior Lecturer at the Yale School of Management, for a deep dive into one of the most critical – and often…
- The Journey From Engineer, To Entrepreneur, To Exit · 58 Min.Rick and Royce sit down with a former student of theirs, Paige Sopcic, an engineer turned entrepreneur, to discuss her inspiring entrepreneurship through acquisition journey…
- An Experienced Lender’s Perspective on Acquisition Financing · 53 Min.In this episode, we’re joined by Bruce Marks, a veteran SBA lender with decades of experience and well over 1,000 business acquisition deals under his belt. Bruce draws on his…
- You Don't Need an MBA to Pursue ETA · 46 Min.It's always fascinating to hear the journey of someone who doesn't have a conventional MBA background but still finds their way to ETA, identifies high-quality acquisition…
- A Bird’s Eye View of ETA · 50 Min.Will Smith, Partner at Minds Capital, has been host of the Acquiring Minds podcast for over four years and, during that time, has had the opportunity to speak with hundreds of…
- The Value of Roll-Ups As Seen Through the Lens of Music Schools · 53 Min.Jeff Homer is the founder of Ensemble Performing Arts, an organization that provides back-of-house support to music schools, allowing teachers to focus on what’s most important…
- Where Are They Now? A Conversation with Nick Wheeler · 25 Min.Last summer when, after a self-funded search, Nick Wheeler was only a few months into his new role as President at Tra-Cal, Rick and Royce had a chance to speak with him about…
- Questions and Answers with Rick and Royce · 53 Min.At the end of each episode, Rick and Royce ask listeners to reach out with any questions they may have related to entrepreneurship through acquisition. In response, we’ve heard…
- A Successful Model for Roll-Ups in Automotive and Beyond · 56 Min.A few years ago, Logan Leslie began his search with the goal of rolling up smaller, same-industry enterprises under the umbrella of one company. Fast forward to today and Logan…
- The Journey and Impact of a Mission-Driven Searcher · 53 Min.In the last three years, Adriana Garcia Ceja graduated from Harvard Business School, became a mother and, after a funded search, acquired an aging life care management business…
- Learnings From a Former Searcher, Current Investor, and Industry Wise Man · 46 Min.Kent Weaver was an early participant in the world of search, completing a self-funded search that led to his acquisition of a healthcare company in 2002 and then, four years…
- Acquiring Outdoor Recreation Programs as Co-CEOs and Spouses · 54 Min.Connor McCarthy and Caroline Matthews are not only a married couple and new parents, but they’re also funded searchers turned co-CEOs at Canyonlands Camps. The outdoor recreation…
- The Acquisition, Transition, and Operation of a Technology Solutions Company in Texas · 58 Min.William Young became CEO of Aerowave Technologies in January of 2021. While he has no regrets about his pursuit of the ETA path, his journey to the company’s helm was a difficult…
- Insights From a Recurring Investor in Self-Funded Searches · 1 Std. 0 Min.Sam Rosati is a former searcher turned active equity investor in self-funded searches and, given his experiences, an important focus of this conversation is on the evolution of…
- The Purchase, Carve Out, and Transformation of a Remote Software Company · 52 Min.Betsy Harbison, CEO at Softrip, successfully completed a funded search in 2021. Her story, however, is rather unique in that the business she acquired is a remote, vertical…
- From W-2 Job, To Startup Life, To Acquisition Entrepreneurship · 49 Min.In May of 2024, after a self-funded search, Brian Seeling became CEO of PGM Service, a Florida-based company that focuses on maintenance, service, and repair of commercial food…
- Practical Takeaways From A Seasoned Lender To Smaller Firms · 57 Min.Not only is Zach Duprey a highly experienced commercial lender to those seeking to acquire a small business but, in helping to create a national market for these loans, he has…
- The Acquisition of a Remarkable Recurring Revenue Business · 56 Min.After a brokered search, Jenn Braus became CEO at Systems Design West, a company that provides customized ambulance billing, emergency medical services billing, and accounting…
- Finding One's Way To ETA · 55 Min.In May of 2021, after a self-funded search, Nick Vandam became CEO of MCI, a telecommunications infrastructure company based in St. Paul, Minnesota. In this episode, he shares…
- Where Are They Now? A Conversation with Geoff Duckworth · 17 Min.Starting in early February, we’ll begin releasing new episodes of Think Big, Buy Small, season two. Rick and Royce are looking forward to sharing some fantastic conversations…
- Listeners’ Questions, Rick and Royce's Answers · 58 Min.Throughout the first season, Rick and Royce have asked listeners to reach out to them with any queries they may have related to entrepreneurship through acquisition. Now, in the…
- From Misfortune To Great Fortune · 59 Min.Despite growing up in unstable and challenging circumstances, Jerod Pierce changed the trajectory of his life by embracing educational opportunities, which helped him to thrive…
- A Seller and Business Broker’s Perspectives · 1 Std. 0 Min.In discussions of the entrepreneurship through acquisition journey, our attention is often drawn to the experiences of the searchers, those looking to acquire an enduringly…
- An Acquisition Entrepreneur’s First Months As CEO · 1 Std. 1 Min.In February of 2024, after a self-funded search, Nick Wheeler took the helm at NSCA & Tra-Cal, an enduringly profitable small business that’s been serving the electronics…
- Searching Where Few Have Searched Before · 52 Min.After years spent studying and working in the United States, Alexander Wallace recently returned to his native New Zealand to launch a self-funded search for an enduringly…
- The Fantastic Economics of SBA Loans · 47 Min.The Small Business Administration (SBA) loan program offers acquisition entrepreneurs an incredible opportunity to buy a company with little equity, and on very advantageous…
- Explaining The Success Of First-Time CEOs · 57 Min.How is it that so many searchers become successful CEOs, even when many have never run a company before and may not have the relevant industry experience? Personal…
- Why A Long Island Swimming Pool Company Was An Ideal Acquisition Target · 50 Min.As an acquisition entrepreneur, Jackie Kopcho is now CEO of Tortorella Swimming Pools, where she leads a team that engineers, builds, and services pools on Long Island, in…
- Acquisition Versus Working For Someone Else · 56 Min.Ari Santos and Allan Newman, about to graduate from business school, reflect on the choice between buying their own business or working for someone else. Though there are…
- Acquisition Versus Startup: Weighing The Risks And Rewards · 57 Min.In this episode, Daniella Bertolotti and Steve Goulas discuss the more traditional startup route versus entrepreneurship through acquisition. Just weeks ahead of their graduation…
- Buying A Seasonal Gift Basket Business In Canada · 35 Min.Ten years ago, Robin Kovitz became President & CEO of Baskits, now one of Canada’s leading gift services companies, by purchasing the company from its two retiring founders…
- The Self-Funded Journey From Searcher To Seller · 51 Min.Geoff Duckworth’s story is that of a self-funded search that transformed him from being an employee at a larger firm, to CEO of an enduringly profitable small business, to seller…
- Introducing Think Big Buy Small · 2 Min.Are you looking for an alternative to a career path at a big firm? Does founding your own startup seem too risky? There's another compelling path open to you: acquiring a small…
