What I Learned Last Week 4.26.2024
Curating the best M&A, SMB, and EtA-related content since 2020.
Hello Friends!
In this week’s issue of What I Learned Last Week:
📰 Articles
🧵 Best of X (Twitter)
🤔 Other - PMI Challenges, Kanbrick Annual Letter
🗓️ Events
⚒️ Tools & Resources
💡 How I Can Help
This issue of The Business Inquirer is sponsored by:
Maximize Value, Minimize Costs: M&A Legal Solutions Tailored to Your Budget
At Sterrett Law, we offer Manhattan and Boston experience at Vermont prices (And yes, we're based in Vermont). Specializing in deals under $10 million, we're your go-to partner for navigating the complexities of mergers and acquisitions without the hefty price tag.
Ready to make your next move? Schedule your free consultation today!
📰 Articles
Acquisition Entrepreneur: The Business Model Canvas
The article from Silverwave provides guidance on utilizing the Business Model Canvas for evaluating potential business acquisitions. Originally created by Alexander Osterwalder, this framework helps map out a company's strategy, showcasing how it creates, delivers, and captures value through nine key components: customer segments, value propositions, channels, customer relationships, revenue streams, key resources, key activities, key partnerships, and cost structure. Each element is analyzed to understand the business's current operations and areas for potential growth or improvement.
Key insights include:
The importance of understanding customer demographics and buying behaviors.
How the business delivers value through its operational channels.
Identifying primary revenue sources and analyzing the business's cost structure.
Evaluating the relationships and networks, such as key partnerships and customer relationships.
The critical need for analyzing the scalability and condition of key resources.
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The SMB Growth Playbook: Part I
The SMB Growth Playbook, presented in "Local Legends," provides a strategic approach to enhancing small business growth. The article outlines key principles for developing a robust business strategy, including understanding and addressing customer pain points, creating detailed buyer personas, documenting sales processes, and identifying effective marketing and sales channels. These principles are intended to help business owners establish a repeatable and sustainable growth model by deeply understanding their market and streamlining their operations for maximum efficiency.
Key insights include:
Importance of deeply understanding customer pain points for tailored solutions.
Creation and utilization of buyer personas to focus marketing and sales efforts.
Documentation of sales processes to identify and remedy inefficiencies.
Strategic engagement in platforms where target customers are most active.
Investment in growth initiatives to fuel business development.
🧵 Best of X (Twitter)
EtA is not one-size fits all and there are many ways to win…
Tips on crafting a succesful LOI…
Good discussion on the controversial topic of earnest money deposits…
Tips on growing a local business…
View on rolling-up insurance brokers…
Understanding debt coverage…
🤔 Other
Post closing integration challenge vs fatFIRE
In this Reddit post, a 40-year-old entrepreneur, recently having sold his company to a large corporation, shares his challenges with the post-sale integration process. He describes feeling disenchanted due to a lack of understanding from the new owners and a significant drop in motivation now that he has received most of the sale proceeds. He is contemplating reducing his hours despite potential repercussions on the company's performance and is concerned about a minority shareholder who relies on the business. The entrepreneur seeks advice on managing these post-sale transitions while considering a move to a financially independent lifestyle.
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Kanbrick 2023 Annual Letter
Kanbrick is a HoldCo formed by Warren Buffett’s protege. The Kanbrick Annual Partner Letter for 2023 discusses the resilience of the U.S. economy amidst challenges like inflation and geopolitical tensions, drawing historical parallels to show recurring cycles of crisis and recovery. It emphasizes a long-term optimistic outlook, advocating for strategic, purpose-driven actions at both corporate and national levels. The letter also highlights Kanbrick's commitment to building sustainable businesses through strategic partnerships, focusing on empowering people and enhancing corporate cultures. The narrative concludes with a homage to the late Charlie Munger, reflecting on his philosophies of learning and rational, long-term thinking.
🗓️ Events
INSEAD ETA Conference (May 11) - Fontainebleau Campus, France
M&A Launchpad Conference (May 11) - Houston, TX
IBBA 2024 Annual Conference (May 11-12) - Louisville, KY
Capital Camp (May 21-24) - Columbia, MO
Midwest Deal Summit (May 29-30) - Chicago, IL
Southeast EtA Conference (Sept 6-7) - Washington D.C.
Self-Funded Search Conference (Sept 30-Oct 1) - Dallas, TX
Main Street Summit (Oct 9-10) - Columbia, MO
Annual M&A Institute (Oct 10-11) - Dallas, TX
McGuireWoods Independent Sponsor (Oct 15-16) - Dallas, TX
Texas & The South M&A and Business Symposium (Oct 16-18) - Dallas, TX
National Summit for Middle Market Funds (Oct 27-29) - Palm Beach, FL
🎵 Listening: “Gotta Serve Somebody“ by Bob Dylan
How did you like this issue of the newsletter?
⚒️Tools & Resources
I want to share some tools & resources that I have found helpful. Please note that some of these are paid sponsors of the newsletter.
PrivSource - PrivSource helps you source deals and connect with transaction partners without ever paying a success fee.
X5 Deals - Proprietary deal sourcing for a great price. They do the outreach and send you relevant, actionable deals directly into your inbox.
Rejigg - Platform that connects searchers/investors directly with owners of off-market small businesses ($1M - $10M of revenue) considering exits. All deals are sourced by the Rejigg team. Their team adds 7 to 10 new deals each week.
Kumo - 100,000+ deals sourced from thousands of brokers and marketplaces. Plus, AI-powered listings, robust data & analytics, and more.
Sterrett Law - At Sterrett Law, we offer Manhattan and Boston experience at Vermont prices. Specializing in deals under $10 million, we're your go-to partner for navigating the complexities of mergers and acquisitions without the hefty price tag
Search Fund Coalition - community for the Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition ecosystem. Monthly events and meetups for acquisition entrepreneurs.
Deal Sourcing Guide - a comprehensive list of business marketplaces, brokers, deal origination firms, and more.
💡 How I Can Help
Whenever you’re ready, here are a few ways for us to work together…
Schedule 1:1 consulting on deal sourcing, due diligence, M&A ecosystem, newsletters, entrepreneurship, or anything else you’d like to discuss
Promote your brand to business buyers, investors, SMB owners, and other M&A participants by sponsoring this newsletter
Assemble your M&A deal team with DueDilio
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