Today's guest was fortunate to have great business buyer fit. Joe Wynn had been successful in medical device sales, so buying a sales and service business in the operating room supply industry was a natural transition. So natural in fact that the supplier went to bat for Joe.
Acquiring Minds
How Business-Buyer Fit Led to 2.2x and No PG
Deal story
Former medical device sales rep Joe Wynn bought an operating-room equipment sales/service distributorship in Georgia for $1.35M, leveraging supplier veto power and business-buyer fit to negotiate a 90%+ seller note at 7% over 10 years with no personal guarantee. The business does $2M revenue with ~45% margins; Joe underwrote it at a stabilized ~$600K SDE and is forecasting $3M+ revenue in his first full year.
Deal facts
Industry
Medical / operating-room equipment (surgical lights, tables, booms)
Business
Sales & service distributorship
Location
Atlanta / Georgia
Revenue
$2M (2025)
SDE / EBITDA
$889K reported SDE; ~$600K stabilized (underwritten)
Multiple
~2.25x on stabilized ~$600K SDE
Deal size
$1.35M purchase price
Acquisition model
Partnered
Outcome
Closed Jan 21; $120K down, ~90% seller note at 7% over 10 years, no PG, 3-month standby; received $150K working capital; forecasting $3-3.5M revenue for the year
People
Will Smithhost
Host of Acquiring Minds podcast
Joe Wynnguest
Former medical device sales rep, now owner of Surgical Specialties, an OR equipment sales/service business
Topics
Excerpts · 410 segments · ~1:33:42 long
Short excerpts only — hear the full conversation on the publisher's site.
05:03 Joe's medical sales background13:40 Finding the equipment business18:15 Revenue and SDE breakdown21:14 High margins and pricing power26:04 Lumpy project revenue history37:13 Purchase price negotiation57:52 Deal structure and seller note1:11:53 Bank froze account post-close
They wanted him to buy the business and that gave Joe leverage in the negotiation with the seller. Leverage he used. Joe's Multiple on this 600,000 ish SDE business was about $2,200,000, not to mention $150,000 in working capital, not to mention a seller note of around 90%. A note with the same nice 10 year amortization as an SBA loan, but at a lower rate and no personal guarantee.
We unpack the business model, the opportunity for Joe to grow, and the possibility for others to buy a business like this, even if you don't come from medical sales. It's early days for Joe. He closed in late January, but he's bullish on 2026, projecting to grow the business from 2025's 2 million in revenue to 3 million, maybe more.
And he already has some battle scars. Listen for how he dealt with his bank closing the business's account, leaving him unable to submit payroll or receive payments. Huge lesson in post close liquidity there.
Okay, please enjoy this conversation with Joe Wynn, owner of Surgical Specialties Real Estate. Can make or break your deal to. Acquire a business Attorneys Bill Barlow and James David Williams return for an office hours today Thursday that is focused on the legal issues that come up when dealing with real estate in a business acquisition transaction.
Topics to include dealing with third party landlords, leases with the seller as landlord, purchasing the real estate alongside the business or not and sale leaseback structures. You'll gain an understanding of the fundamentals for how real estate affects SMB acquisition structures and risks. The webinar is Real Estate Issues When Buying a Business and it is today, Thursday, April 16th noon…
Link to register is right at the. Top of this episode's show Notes or on the Acquiring Minds homepage available acquiringminds co. Welcome to Acquiring Minds, a podcast about buying businesses.
My name is Will Smith. Acquiring an existing business is an awesome opportunity for many entrepreneurs and on this podcast I talk to the people who do it. Buying a small business sounds simple.
Find a company due diligence, get a loan close. In reality you wear every hat just. To get the deal done and then the moment you close you have to throw those deal making skills out the window and learn how to operate.
You shouldn't have to rebuild this infrastructure from scratch and you Definitely shouldn't do it alone. That's why Walker Deibel created Acquisition Lab, which started as an accelerator, has expanded into a complete ecosystem for acquisition entrepreneurs. Over six years, the lab's 1,200 members have acquired over a billion dollars in businesses.
The lab puts everything under one roof. An active community, deal reviews, post close services, and a dedicated fund helping experienced operators buy large businesses. If you're serious about buying a business, come see why Lab members have a 40% success rate.
Learn more in the show notes or@acquition. Lab.com acquiring minds Joe Wynn, welcome to Acquiring Minds.
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