09:12:23 - This week in The Hub - Main Street Weekly
09:12:23 - This week in The Hub - Main Street Weekly
What you need to know about buying, growing or selling small to medium businesses. The news, the pods, the social influencers. Curated from the world of SMB (small to medium business)
We do the research and bring you what’s pertinent when you want to grow, scale, buy or sell your first or your next business.
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In the News, Blogs, and AI …
Cybersecurity Mergers Flatline – Here’s Why That Won’t Last
Much like the rest of technology, merger and acquisition (M&A) activity for cybersecurity companies has been in a slump this year. There are a number of reasons why that won’t last, but still, the decline has been noteworthy.
For the first seven months of this year, there were a mere 34 startups that got acquired, according to data from Crunchbase. That is a level not seen since 2017, when there were 52 acquisitions. (1,275 words) Read more here…
A.I. Simplified: Growth Strategies For Small Business Owners
Having a robot assistant was once the stuff of cartoons like the Jetsons, but today, Alexa and Siri have become a part of our lives. The question is are we making proper use of A.I assistants? For more insight on that, Mitch Carson, the co-author of “AI Simplified: Growth Strategies For Small Business Owners” joins Las Vegas Now. (News Vid) Read more here…
Mergers And Acquisitions: The CFO’s Guide To Successful Integration
Bringing companies together through mergers and acquisitions (M&A) or disengaging them through divestitures and separations are some of the most complex business activities. After a lull in M&A activity owing to covid-19, 2022 saw action in the space at par with pre-pandemic levels. According to the Boston Consulting Group, by July 2022, the aggregate number of deals declared by companies worldwide stood slightly more than 22K and was valued at $1.73 Tn. (1048 words) Read more here…
AI and CRM: Combining Two Powerful Technologies to Grow Your Small Business
Learn how AI integrations for CRM platforms can help sales, marketing, and customer service teams grow your business.
Many small businesses use a customer relationship management (CRM) platform to document every interaction with every customer in one central location. This data helps sales, marketing, and customer service teams improve the customer experience. By seeing the entire relationship history in one record, your business can identify sales opportunities, record service issues, manage marketing campaigns, and more.
However, tracking all this information is often repetitive and time-consuming — making it the perfect activity for artificial intelligence to handle. As AI becomes more mainstream, businesses of all sizes are able to use this technology to automate and improve CRM tasks. (875 words) Read more here…
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In the Pods …
Will we testify for this $6.1mm witness prep biz? | Acquisitions Anonymous 225
In Episode 225, Heather (@EndresenHeather) and Michael (@girdley) explore an expert witness prep business. The seller is asking for $6.1 million for a Boston-based business with $4.1 million in revenue and $1.25 million in cash flow. They discuss the risks tied to the business's heavy reliance on the seller's connections and the unpredictable revenue patterns in the industry and debate whether the business can be scaled by expanding its reach beyond the seller's network and hiring sales representatives. [33:12] Watch here…
Building a Diverse and Resilient Holding Company: Lessons from Trish Higgins | How2Exit E140
Trish Higgins Trish Higgins is a founding partner at Chenmark Holdings, a Portland, Maine-based Holdco focused on the acquisition and long-term ownership of small businesses throughout North America.
She discusses the importance of building a diverse portfolio of businesses with steady cash flows to provide long-term stability and resilience. Trish emphasizes the challenges of finding the right operators for acquired businesses, highlighting the need for values alignment, trust, and analytical capabilities. She also delves into the psychology of emotional sellers and the importance of approaching negotiations with empathy and understanding. [58:41] Watch here…
Buy a Franchise Portfolio: How to Choose the Brand | Acquiring Minds
Some acquisition entrepreneurs set out to buy established franchise businesses, and not just a single location or territory. They want to buy a portfolio all at once, with the intention to add to that portfolio over time. That is the subject of today's conversation, and Michael Horowitz and Peter Mistretta are just such entrepreneurs.
Together with professor A.J. Wasserstein, they co-authored a recent case note, Ten Essential Questions to Consider When Selecting a Franchise Brand for a Search Fund Journey. This note is an authoritative framework for how an entrepreneur who wants to acquire a franchise business, and especially a portfolio of such businesses, should choose which franchise system to commit to. [1:38:16] Watch here…
Understanding Risk in Business Acquisition | Business Social Club
In this episode of The Business Social Club, we cover the changing lending landscape, which is becoming more accessible to entrepreneurs. Private equity is also playing an important role in financing deals. Finally it touches on risk mitigation strategies such as buying a business that isn’t overly risk and can be naturally connected to existing investments. This conversation provides valuable insight into the due diligence process and strategies for acquiring a business without putting yourself at too much risk. [1:00:16] Watch here…
Expand Your Identity Beyond Your Business | Ross Brannon, Financial Advisor, E113
In this enlightening episode, Laurie Barkman, a seasoned business transition strategist, discusses the dynamics of selling a business, the ideal time to sell, and the significance of expanding one's identity beyond one's business. [31:33] Watch here…
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Founding Member Shout-Out
Shout out to our new founding member, with over 30 years in M&A, this company offers a Resource Center helping you buy good businesses. Very underpriced - get it now before they finish upgrading the site and very likely up the pricing.
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In the Knowledge
Business Development Manager Job Description: Templates for Hiring at Your Business
An Overview of Business Development
Business development encapsulates a wide range of activities aimed at growing a business. Essentially, it’s about creating long-term value for a company from customers, markets, and relationships. The function intersects various departments, including sales, marketing, and project management, playing a crucial role in a company’s growth and profitability. (xx words) Learn it here…
Using social media as a powerful brand-building tool – Bill Harper | BrandBoss HQ
On today’s episode of The Small Business Show, we’re sitting down with Bill Harper, the CEO and Chief Creative Officer for BrandBoss HQ, to discuss social media’s power through marketing and branding.
Harper recently discovered success with a TikTok case study performance, bringing in more than $1 million in new revenue over the past six months. Bill is a four-time owner of an advertising agency, a public speaker, a social media influencer, and a brand enthusiast devoted to assisting business owners in developing brand strategies and narratives that expand their companies in ways they never dreamed possible. [15:03] Watch and learn here…
The secret to small business success: Develop people early
It’s important to be aware of the many challenges and opportunities small business owners and managers face today.
Based on the U.S. Small Business Association’s (SBA) definition of small businesses as independent organizations with fewer than 500 employees, there are over 33 million small businesses in the United States. This accounts for 99.9% of all U.S. firms, employing almost half (46%) of America’s private sector workforce. By all standards, small businesses play a crucial role in the U.S. economy and job market. (231 words) Learn more now…
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In the BIG Guys Corner … (middle market and above) —
— It’s a Sweet week In the Big Guys Corner:
Nestlé Acquires Majority Stake in Grupo CRM
Nestlé has acquired a majority stake in Grupo CRM, a chocolate company in Brazil, from Advent International.
Grupo CRM operates a direct-to-consumer model, with more than 1,000 chocolate boutiques under the Kopenhagen and Brasil Cacau brands and an online presence. Renata Moraes Vichi will continue to lead the Grupo CRM operations as CEO and will remain a minority shareholder. (99 words) Read here…
Smucker to buy Twinkies maker Hostess for $5.6B
Smucker will take ownership of noted baked goods like Twinkies, Ding Dongs, Zingers
J.M. Smucker said on Monday it will acquire Hostess Brands in a deal worth approximately $5.6 billion, or $34.25 a share. (283 words) Read more here…
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In the Sosh … who to follow this week
Michael Ly
CEO of Reconciled.com - I want to serve your small business and buy your accounting firm.
An accounting and fintech entrepreneur.
”I've served in a variety of financial leadership capacities, from Controller to CFO. I launched Reconciled in 2015 as entrepreneurs demand for bookkeeping services grew and the technology to serve them online has come to a good level of maturity. Reconciled has grown relatively quickly and was selected by Intuit as a 2016 Firm of the Future Runner-up and 2018 US Firm of the Future, recognizing us as one of the most future-ready and forward-thinking firms in the world.
Connect with him on LinkedIn, X(Twitter), and his websites: reconciled.com (Company), michaelly.co (Personal)
Michael Byars
I’ll help you buy a profitable business for little to no money down 👉 AcquisitionCEO.com | Founder at Heritage Wealth Capital | Investor | Featured in Inc, Forbes, Business Insider, Entrepreneur | Proud Father
Michael will teach you how to find the deal, fund the deal and exit this deal. Utilizing his proven process, he is focused on people over money, and giving back to the entrepreneurial community.
Connect with him on LinkedIn, website - https://acquisitionceo.com/(Company), or email - Michael@AcquisitionCEO.com.
In the calendar …
The Exit Meetup by Flippa, In a City Near You Soon
The Exit Meetup is a local meet-up for like-minded business owners.
Meet others, and talk about growth and the opportunity to buy or sell. Plus, hear from a successful acquisition entrepreneur. This is an informative and entertaining meetup aiming to connect owners and investors in a fun environment. Check it out...
SMB Acquisitions Entrepreneurs Bi-Monthly Networking
A twice-monthly networking meeting where acquisitions entrepreneurs come together online to build teams, share ideas and resources, and help each other succeed. The first and Third Tuesday of each month. Check it out...
2023 Hold Co Conference - Sept 18-20 - Cleveland Ohio
The official “Un-Conference” of micro-PE. Where Holding Companies Meet, Learn, Scale, and Grow. Check it out...
Next SMB Event - Sept 28, '23 - Austin, TX
This will be an afternoon/evening mixer for SMB owners, investors, and operators. We'll be in the Hill Country of Texas with - Catered food - Live music - Pool - Fire pit - Fly in, build your network, make some IRL friends
Contact @JoshuaMSchultz on twitter for details
The Self-Funded Search Conference - Sep 30 - Oct 1, 2023 - Dallas, TX
The Self-Funded Search Conference is the first and only conference dedicated exclusively to the self-funded search model of entrepreneurship through acquisition (“ETA”) – exclusively for self-funded searchers. This annual conference is hosted by the Self-Funded Search Association (“SFSA”), a not-for-profit organization (NFPO) for individuals who are seeking to purchase a company through the self-funded path to entrepreneurship through acquisition. Check it out...
Rice's Entrepreneurship through Acquisition Conference - Saturday, October 14 - Houston, TX
The State of Search in the U.S. Conference focuses on search fund entrepreneurs, bringing them together with investors, students, and faculty. By Rice Entrepreneurship Association. Check it out...
10th ANNUAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP THROUGH ACQUISITION CONFERENCE - Wednesday, November 1, 2023 - Chicago, IL
The Booth-Kellogg ETA Conference is an annual event that brings together search fund entrepreneurs, investors, MBA students, faculty, and other participants in the ETA ecosystem to meet one another and share insights into this rapidly-growing area. The 10th Annual Booth-Kellogg ETA Conference at the Marriott Magnificent Mile | 540 Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL. Check it out...
Main Street Summit - November 8-9 - Columbia, MO
A festival for SMB owners, operators, and investors.
An immersive two-day experience for small to medium-sized businesses with ~10-500 employees. Choose your own adventure amongst a diverse set of presentations, interviews, debates, workshops, and conversations.
Every business has a birthplace and it’s never too far from Main Street. Check it out...
Capital Camp - May 21-23, 2024 - Columbia, MO
Capital Camp is an upcoming event scheduled for May 21-23, 2024, in Columbia, Missouri. The event is described as a gathering for "curious, kind, and thoughtful investors, capital providers, entrepreneurs, and executives" who are pushing boundaries and breaking new ground. The event spans three days and three nights, offering serious investing conversations in a relaxed setting—think shorts and sandals rather than suits and ties. Attendees can expect interactive programming, a variety of outdoor activities, and an endless supply of food, drink, and entertainment. The event has received high praise from past attendees, with many describing it as the most valuable and best investing conference they've ever attended.
Women’s Small Businesses Show Remarkable Growth Despite Stiff Challenges
October 3rd symposium at the Sonesta Hotel in White Plains will help local woman entrepreneurs overcome their toughest obstacles. The event kicks off National Women’s Small Business Month.
Speakers from SCORE, Mastercard, Community Capital New York, Women’s Enterprise Development Center, successful local entrepreneurs, and more will share lessons learned. Read more here…
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