"Life is Just Brighter" in a $1.2m Distribution Business

What first piqued the interest of today's guest was a laundromat. No, not because he was watching Cody Sanchez shorts, though he did later join her community. Instead, Joseph Cruz lived near a laundromat and was just drawn to it, intrigued by it.

So intrigued that one day he went inside and started asking the owner about his business. While that conversation didn't result in a deal, it it did wet Joseph's appetite for business ownership. I was just so pumped about the possibility of owning this laundromat, he says.

It gave me so much energy. So after that I was hooked. Joseph moved on from Laundromats, but went down the rabbit hole of business buying and as of December 2024 is the.

Owner of A and A equipment and supply. Though he left a lucrative job in finance to pursue this path, he hasn't looked back. The business did $1.2 million the year.

Before he bought it, then 1.5 last. Year under his ownership, and he's targeting $2 million for 2026. Listen for how Joseph structured the deal, including the cash holdback.

Also listen for how the business had a masterful GM whom Joseph expected to lean on during the transition and beyond. Well, the GM quits two weeks before closing disaster. On the contrary, today Joseph reflects on that curveball as a blessing in disguise.

Okay, here he is Joseph Cruz, owner. Of A&A Equipment and Supply. Regular listeners of Acquiring Minds will recognize the name Connor Gross.

Connor is a franchise consultant who sits at the intersection of franchising and eta. Well, Connor's hosting a webinar tomorrow Tuesday on choosing the right type of franchise system for you. This may sound like business buyer fit and it is only franchise buyer fit.

So before you dive headlong into a thesis around a particular franchise system, you need to evaluate how and if your own strengths and interests fit.

Topics to include the different demands of different franchise models, how your strengths and preferences should shape your search brick and mortar versus Non brick and mortar franchise models, and how to evaluate the day to day owner experience before you commit the webinar is what type of franchise is right for you. And it is tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7th at noon Eastern.

Link to register is right at the top of this episode's show notes or on the Acquiring Minds homepage acquiringminds Co. Then on Thursday we're hosting a webinar with a great twist on an old theme. Buying a business and hiring an operator to run it is a topic as old as buying businesses itself, but this webinar will explore the topic from the operator's perspective Chelsea Wood of Acquisition Lab…

Ted runs operations for acquisition entrepreneur Tim Erickson. Tim is a former Acquiring Minds guest who bought an office equipment rentals business. Chelsea will bring her own perspective, having been brought in by Walker Deibel to build and run Acquisition Lab.