So it's, it's, it's like I literally had to get cortisone injections when my, you know, son was born because I, the pain was unbearable. And so all this is going through and I'm sort of like, you know, just keeping my eye on the business, making sure payroll is done. And then February of 2024, the number one salesperson who did almost 35, 40% of our sales quit and went to a competitor.
Acquiring Minds
Good Bones: Saving a $3m Business in Decline
Deal story
Himmat Singh, a self-identified hands-on operator, bought a $3M large-format printing business (EPI Color Space) in DC for a $500K 100% seller note, expecting it to be semi-passive. After his top salesperson defected and tried to poach clients, he went all-in, bought out his investor partner to become 100% owner, and brought on a sweat-equity partner. The episode also explores his prior run as a non-owner CEO at home-care company Circle of Life, where a 3% stake yielded a life-changing exit.
Deal facts
Industry
Large-format printing and signage
Business
Signage, wall murals, trade show booths, wayfinding/ADA signage
Location
Washington, DC area
Revenue
~$3M historic average, ~$2.4M recent years
SDE / EBITDA
$650K-$700K historic, ~$400K at acquisition
Multiple
~1x-1.25x stated, ~2x including working capital injection
Deal size
$500K (100% seller note, 0% interest over 5 years)
Acquisition model
Partnered
Outcome
Survived top-salesperson defection; Himmat bought out partner to become 100% owner; brought on sweat-equity partner Kevin Durbin; ~$2.1M sales / ~$300K EBITDA at end of 2024, building toward growth/exit
People
Will Smithhost
Host of Acquiring Minds podcast about buying businesses
Himmat Singhguest
Wharton MBA, career operator; owner/operator of EPI Color Space, former CEO of Circle of Life
Kevin Durbinother
Himmat's sweat-equity partner; ex-Goldman Sachs, ex-Exer VP, Georgetown grad
Pat Yeagerother
Founder of Circle of Life home care who hired Himmat as CEO; passed away during his tenure
Josh Greenbergother
Alpine/team home care lead, former searcher who acquired Circle of Life from Himmat
Bill Eganother
Original search fund investor (Asurion); father of Himmat's friend Mark Egan
Topics
Excerpts · 418 segments · ~1:48:41 long
Short excerpts only — hear the full conversation on the publisher's site.
04:30 Himmat's operator-focused background07:05 Failed search fund, 11 LOIs16:46 Running Circle of Life as CEO26:56 Operational fixes that doubled EBITDA48:26 Acquiring EPI Color Space deal terms1:01:42 Investor conflict-of-interest concern1:07:16 Large-format printing industry1:27:27 Sales crisis, partner buyout, Kevin
And I jumped in all 100%. And for the next sort of like, you know, a couple of months, I was trying to replace this number one salesperson, and I was basically, I, I think hired three or four. None of them worked out.
And at the end of 2024, we had 2.1 million of sales and about a 300,000 EBITDA. So it was not a bloodbath. But at the same time it felt like that.
It was, it was extremely hard. By the end of 2024, I'd still not found a replacement, which I felt was, you know, you know, as good as what the number one sales guy was before. But I was working with a business coach at that time and a friend who suggested, he's like, you know, why don't you.
They couldn't deliver. I couldn't waste any time waiting for them to deliver. And it's also a time in 2024 that I went through a very acrimonious split with my partner because I felt he was not supportive of what I was trying to do.
And I created a structure for him to earn equity into the business, you know, through milestones and EBITDA sort of thresholds and as he has done and, and Kevin has been a complete game changer.
And why not? Like, you know, like, you know, so then I started focusing on selling myself and trying to hire somebody like myself who could be a partner and shoulder for me in this business. So I put up a LinkedIn post on, similar to a search fund kind of a model about like, you know, what I'm looking for in a person. And I came across Kevin Durbin, who's my now partner.
But, like, you know, so we went through this whole, you know, sort of process where we basically sort of, you know, agreed to, you know, discontinue our relationship. And then after a couple of months, I bought him out fully and I became 100% owner of the business. And that took me towards the end of 2024.
And I think part of it was because like, you know, from day one I considered it as like an existential threat to the business with the salesperson leaving. And I went all in, trying to basically save this business. And it was grueling.
And basically we learned in the next day that he was trying to steal our business. So that's when everything changed for me. Like, you know, so I, I, I, I, I, I, I, you know, recognize the, the, the seriousness of the issue and how critical that could be.
He's like, you know, when he, he knew the numbers like we've disclosed and he's like, you know, you should be able to sell that much on your own. And it's sort of like, you know, and I was like it. Suddenly I, it dawned on me that I was like, yeah, I should, I, I, I.
All of them came from the industry. All of them had worked at other competitors. On paper, they looked really good.
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