Built to Sell Radio

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Ep. 45 Raising Money Vs. Going It Alone May 25, 2016

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Katherine Hague, co-founded ShopLocket in 2011 and sold her business two years later to PCH, a billion dollar Irish company.

Hague was a prodigious fundraiser in her two years from idea to exit. She sold 2% of her company to a friend before she had a product, another 10% to an incubator before selling an even bigger chunk in a million dollar funding round.

In our interview, Hague describes some of the landmines to avoid when raising outside capital and why she still has one regret about the sale of ShopLocket to PCH: listen now.

Ep. 44 Multiple of What? May 18, 2016

Show notes

Dennis Hart sold his advertising agency, Apex Media, for 7.1 times EBITDA.

Selling for 7X sounds like a great exit but it disguises the complexity of the negotiations. Hart felt like he knew precisely how much EBITDA he generated until the buyer started questioning his math, adding back extra expenses, and driving down his EBITDA.

Hart walked away from the negotiating table twice. Eventually both parties were able to agree on a set of "add backs," but this is a good reminder that, when it comes to selling your business, your EBITDA can be subjective.

Ep. 43 The Ambush May 11, 2016

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How much would someone have to pay you to buy your business today? That's the question Kris Jones was asked when billionaire Michael Rubin approached him about selling. Jones' answer to Rubin's question may surprise you.

Ep. 42 How One Email Triggered Seven Acquisition May 04, 2016

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Back in 2011, Nathan Latka started Heyo, a social media company that helped businesses advertise on Facebook. By 2016, Heyo had raised $2.5 million in seed and venture capital financing and, by all accounts, it was a growing and successful business.

Then Latka sent an unusual email that would ultimately garner him seven offers to buy his business – with the winning bid amounting to an incredible 11 times revenue. Listen to Latka describe the content of the email.

Ep. 41 The Fishing Trip Apr 27, 2016

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When John Bowen received a $37 million offer to buy his business, he thought it was too good to be true.

As it turns out, it was.

Bowen had received a non-binding letter of intent from a global bank, who made their bid with no actual intent to buy his business. Bowen came to believe their offer was a decoy designed to disguise their real objective: to understand Bowen's strategy so they could compete better with him. Bowen got wise to their strategy and ended up selling his business to another buyer, Assante Wealth Management, for $25 million.

Bowen reveals his three strategies for evaluating the authenticity of an offer to buy your business during our interview.

Ep. 40 Is Your Partnership A Ticking Time Bomb? Apr 20, 2016

Show notes

John Maddox co-founded the digital agency Ten Fast Feet in the depths of the financial crisis. Despite his timing, Maddox was able to grow the business to $2.3 million in sales by 2013, when he got a call that would change his life forever.

Ep. 39 A Brand That's Built to Sell Apr 13, 2016

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If you have ever put a label on a sippy cup, chances are Julie Cole’s company, Mabels Labels, produced it. Cole and her three partners built Mabel’s Labels into a $10 million business providing labels for kids’ clothing and accessories before being acquired in early 2016 by C.C.L. Industries, the parent company of Avery Labels.

Cole and her partners were able to add hundreds of thousands of dollars to the price they got for their business using a negotiation technique called “normalization” – listen to find out how.

Ep. 38 Selling Your Company vs. Selling Your Product Apr 06, 2016

Show notes

Natalie Susi started Bare Organic Mixers to supply low-cal cocktail mixers to bars and restaurants in southern California. Susi got her product into 300 locations before she decided to sell her company to a strategic acquirer in the organic foods industry. In order to maximize her take from the sale, Susi had to decide whether she was offering an acquirer the chance to buy her company or her product.

Ep. 37 $250K to $180M Mar 30, 2016

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Aaron Houghton sold iContact in 2012 for $180 million. The first round of growth was financed by something called convertible debt, which Houghton recommends to any entrepreneur for its simplicity. To hear how Houghton parlayed an initial investment of $250,000 into a $180 million exit.

Ep. 36 The $20 Million Expiry Date Mar 23, 2016

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In eight years Ryan Born built Audio Micro, which began operations in his spare bedroom, into an Inc. 500 company. Born went on to sell his business for more than $20 million in 2014 – a deal that only happened because he had the foresight to put an expiry date on the "no shop” clause on his Letter of Intent.

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