The SMB Deal Hunter Podcast

This Man Makes $3M/Year With Direct Mail (his $5M/year plan)

Want help buying a business? https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt In this episode, Evan Stewart breaks down how he searched for years without quitting his day job, bought a 30-year-old commercial printing business making $1.7M a year in profit, and grew it past $3M in an industry most people write off as dying. ◼️ How he raised money from friends and family using a playbook from his political fundraising days (and the one question he used to cut his list) ◼️ The last-minute demand from the bank that nearly killed the deal, and the move by the sellers that saved it ◼️ Why he borrowed the absolute max the bank would give him for his first deal (he believes bigger is actually safer) ◼️ What happened when he realized he was "the dumbest person in the building," and how working second shift won over his 70-person team ◼️ The diligence mistake he regrets most: building model after model when he should have been studying the people Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter newsletter (200,000+ subscribers): https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/ Follow Helen: Twitter: https://x.com/HelenGuo_ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/

How She Runs a $450K/yr Business on 20hrs/Week (Without Quitting Her Job)

Want help buying a business? https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt In this episode, Bailey breaks down why she stopped trusting Big Tech and bought a firm that's run since 1971, how she closed the $925K deal in six months without quitting her job, and what running it on 20 hours a week actually looks like. ◼️ Why she stopped trusting "the tech billionaires" to keep her employed and bought a business instead ◼️ How our team helped her kill the seller's balloon payment and land interest-only terms for the first two years ◼️ The rival buyer she beat out, even though the seller thought he was too "spreadsheet focused" ◼️ Why she drove her own car into a member's auto shop for an oil change, just to prove we weren't all "paid actors" ◼️ What running a $450K-a-year business on 20 hours a week looks like when you still have a full-time job Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter newsletter (200,000+ subscribers): https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/ Follow Helen: Twitter: https://x.com/HelenGuo_ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/

How This College Dropout’s Business Does ~$5M/yr (No Experience Needed)

Want help buying a business? https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt [https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt] In this episode, Brian Seeling breaks down how he left a 15-year IT career, bought the very first business he ever looked at, and grew a boring commercial kitchen repair shop to almost $1.2M a quarter. ◼️ Why the first business he ever saw on BizBuySell ended up being the one he bought ◼️ The three separate times his deal fell apart before closing (and how he saved it each time) ◼️ The fine print that doubled his down payment mid-deal ◼️ How he's doubling revenue without chasing a single new customer ◼️ The no-cap commission structure that keeps his techs from milking the clock Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter newsletter (200,000+ subscribers): https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/ [https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/] Follow Helen: Twitter: https://x.com/HelenGuo [https://x.com/HelenGuo]_ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/]

He Left Startups to Buy a $300K/Year Business ($50K Down)

Want help buying a business? https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt In this episode, David breaks down why he left 15 years of VC-backed startups to buy a 28-year-old lawn care business, how he closed with $50K down and no bank after an SBA rule change killed his first deal, and what he's doing to grow a company that hadn't added a new client in a decade. ◼️ Why a founder with an exit under his belt decided a lawn care business was the smarter bet ◼️ How an SBA rule change killed his first deal 60 days into due diligence, and the pivot that got him to the closing table anyway ◼️ The exact seller-financing structure behind a $179K close with $50K down and no bank or investors ◼️ How he rode the routes and rebuilt the P&L by hand to make sure he wasn't buying "a complete wreck of a business" ◼️ How a business that hadn't added a new client in 10 years is now adding 2 to 3 every week Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter newsletter (200,000+ subscribers): https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/ Follow Helen: Twitter: https://x.com/HelenGuo_ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/

How He Turned This Boring Business Into a 24x Return (No Experience)

Want help buying a business? https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt In this episode, Chris Edwards breaks down how he quit a comfy consulting job in the middle of the pandemic, bought an overlooked flooring store with just 10% down, and turned it into a 24x return in four years. ◼️ How he turned just 10% down into a 24x return ◼️ Why he bought a flooring store in an isolated mountain town that bigger buyers wrote off ◼️ The year-one "I thought I ruined my life" stretch, and what got him through it ◼️ The unglamorous operator playbook that grew the bottom line, from ripping out a fax-and-paper system to bringing on offshore help ◼️ Why he walked away at the top and is now building a flooring company from the ground up, funded by the proceeds and everything the first one taught him Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter newsletter (200,000+ subscribers): https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/ Follow Helen: Twitter: https://x.com/HelenGuo_ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/