Think Like An Owner
The Think Like an Owner podcast seeks out conversations with small company owners and investors to learn how to acquire and run small companies, with a focus on search funds, micro private equity, and permanent capital.
Filter By Topic:
Palmer Higgins – Moving to the Operating Side – Ep. 43
In this episode with Palmer, we talk about his move to one of their operating companies, Mainely Grass, as CEO.
David Johnson – Building a Jeep Ecommerce Business – Ep. 42
David Johnson started Northridge 4×4, a Jeep parts and accessories business, in his father’s garage and eventually hired his father and brother to help in the business.
Brandon Laughridge – Blending Real Estate and SMBs – Ep. 41
My guest is Brandon Laughridge. Brandon lives in Kansas City and owns a property management company North Terrace and a furniture and home interior store Nell Hill’s, along with a growing real estate portfolio. This is the first episode on the podcast where we discuss how real estate overlaps with owning small companies, something I hadn’t spent much time thinking about until meeting Brandon. Those on Twitter will recognize Brandon
Matt Estep – Picking Low Hanging Fruit Off the Ground – Ep. 40
My guest Matt Estep got his business start early in life when he started a go-kart manufacturing business in high school with dreams of eventually being a professional NASCAR driver. The business still exists today but Matt sold it with other plans in mind.
Aaron Green – The CEO Role in a Growing Company – Ep. 39
My guest Aaron Green founded a staffing company called Professional Staffing Group, or PSG, in 1996. He has grown it along with 6 other related companies to just shy of $100m in revenue and 2,000 employees. Most of my guests operate small companies and PSG of course started small, but I wanted to learn from an owner who had managed to scale a company and their role in it over
Mitchell Blackmon – Operating and Growing a Chimney Service Business – Ep. 38
My guest, Mitchell Blackmon started Patriot Chimney, a chimney service and installation business in Roanoke, VA, last year with his brother Matt and his friend Billy. They have recently made their first hire and have another one coming shortly, a testament to the growth they’ve been experiencing. If you liked the recent episode with Rich Jordan, you’re going to like Mitchell’s story too as he’s thinking about many of the
Lacey Wismer – Getting More Women in Search – Ep. 37
My guest on this episode is Lacey Wismer. Lacey runs her recently started search investment fund called Hunter Search Capital and has been conducting research on female searchers and unique challenges they encounter while seeking and operating a business. We talk extensively about women in search along with how she’s seen the model grow over her career, alternative models in search, constructing a searcher’s board, and how she’s instilling entrepreneurial
Rich Jordan – Buying a Small Plumbing Business – Ep. 36
Rich bought a home service plumbing business only a few short weeks ago in Pennsylvania. During the episode we talk about Rich’s first few days in the business getting his hands dirty, fighting off competing offers for his plumbers from competitors, and a few moves he’s done to grow revenue 60% in only 8 weeks of ownership.
Mark Sinatra – Going Off-Playbook as CEO – Ep. 35
My guest, Mark Sinatra, raised a traditional search fund with a partner in 2006 after graduated from Wharton and a year and a half later acquired an HR company called Staff One HR. I’ll let him tell the full story but there were significant ups and downs running the company including moving the company from Southern Oklahoma to Dallas, managing staff turnover of roughly 85% during that move, and losing their biggest customer who was 30% of their revenue.
A.J. Gordon – Running a 3rd Generation Family Business – Ep. 34
A.J. Gordon runs Gordon Aluminum in Schofield, WI, a company that was founded by his grandfather, passed to A.J.’s father, and eventually to A.J. himself. The company has a fascinating story told in great detail that includes machines breaking down, closing business lines, multiple recessions, and a lightning strike that set fire to their offices and burned their computers and data, forcing them to start from scratch. This is a
Subscribe
Letters
Each year I write an annual letter to readers and listeners to reflect on the evolution of the podcast and my personal growth.
