Rescuing small businesses is all the rage on television. Whether it's Jon Taffer with Bar Rescue, or Tabitha Coffey's Salon Takeover. Despite the fact that none of them do it, these TV shows are fueling interest in a new trend. Move over Real Estate Flippers, Ace Chapman is building a nationwide group of business flippers.
Ace Chapman bought his first business at 19 with some savings from a summer job and caught the business buying bug. He leveraged $3,000 he saved working the summer before college into buying a business for $70,000. Over the last 16 years he has bought 40 businesses. Everything ranging from a Mortgage Company to a Clothing Retailer.
And right now he is seeing an explosion in the market for businesses under $2,000,000. "There are millions of Baby Boomer business owners who will bring their business to market in the next decade so they can retire. During the recession, many baby boomers wanted to sell their company but decided to hold off until better economic times."
At the same time many entrepreneurs are realizing the risks associated with starting from scratch are too high and are deciding to buy an existing profitable business instead.
Business sales saw a spike in 2013. While we saw a 68% increase in 2013 according to BizBuySell.com, business brokers expect 2014 to be even bigger. And while private equity firms are well positioned to take advantage of this increase in inventory, very few are paying attention to what Ace calls the Micro-Private Equity Market.
Ace began working with first time business buyers and helping them find, do due diligence, and finance small business acquisitions. "I have had a lot of people who find me and ask to invest in my deals. I'd rather show you what I am doing than take your money and have to split my returns."
Since starting his network of business buyers, he has helped members close deals all over the country. From 2 Sylvan Learning Centers in Seattle, to a software company in Pittsburgh and from a fitness gym in Huntsville, to a Catholic retailer in South Dakota, these were all deals done in recent months by the network.
Episode Outline
- 05:25 Why is buying a business more profitable than building a business from scratch?
- 08:15 How can someone buy an existing business with no money down?
- 13:30 Ace describes his revenue sharing model with his clients
- 14:20 How can you grow a business, then sell it for maximum value?
- 17:00 What's one of the biggest mistakes you've ever made buying or selling a business?
—
All our stories on this podcast are made available for free. Please listen, subscribe, rate and review our show, as it helps improve our ranking in the various podcast directories and helps others find us more easily.
Please help us by SHARING this podcast with others. We believe that listening to these inspiring stories are going to move other aspiring Black trailblazers to make significant changes that have generational impact for many others, both now and well into the future.
Blazer Nation, go out today and find a way to rise above, go way beyond and keep blazing your trail.
Join our community at TBPod.com