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Smart Business Dealmakers Podcast
2020 (Episodes 1-87) | 2021 (Episodes 88-137)
Ep 230: Investing In Finhealth To Reach Underserved Consumers
with Jennifer Tescher, Founder & CEO of Financial Health Network
Financial Health Network opens the financial services industry to underserved consumers across economic, geographic and cultural spectrums. Founder, President and CEO Jennifer Tescher talks about FHN’s Financial Solutions Lab Accelerator, its cultivated network and its investment in 50-plus finhealth solutions.
Ep 229: Vytalize Health Raises $100 Million Series B Round
with CEO Faris Gawhi and CMO Matt Buder Shapiro
Vytalize Health has been raising funds successively and successfully for the past few years, drawing in $5.5 in 2020, $17 million in 2021, $50 million April 2022, and now a $100m Series B in February. Company CEO and co-founder Faris Ghawi and Chief Marketing Officer Matt Buder Shapiro stop by to talk about the big raise, how they'll apply it, the growth its perpetuating and what comes next.
Ep 228: How Working Capital Can Impact Your Deal
with Tony Montanaro, partner with Louis Plung & Co.
Setting the appropriate working capital target is a significant part of any deal, and it's often something sellers just don't understand. Tony Montanaro, partner in the forensic, litigation & valuation department at Louis Plung & Company, talks about the intricacies of working capital in an M&A deal.
Ep 227: John Estafanous, Founder & CEO of RallyBright, Baltimore
John Estafanous is leading RallyBright, the second company he's founded. He's recently raised investor capital — his first experience with the process — as he looks to accelerate growth for the company, which offers a software platform designed to improve team performance. John stops by the pod to talk about how founding the first company has informed building the second, what he learned selling that first business, his experience raising capital, and the importance of connecting with the right investors.
Ep 226: Liana Douillet Guzmán, CEO of FOLX Health, Boston
Liana Douillet Guzmán joined, FOLX Health as CEO in February 2022 and was tasked with growing the business to all 50 states. FOLX Health, operator of a digital health company intended to serve the LGBTQ+ community, has raised nearly $60 million since its founding through seed, Series A and Series B rounds, putting the company’s pre-money valuation at $95 million. Guzmán discussing the growth of FOLX and how raising capital has changed dramatically in the past two years.
Ep 225: Eric Satz, Co-Founder and CEO of Alto, Nashville
Eric Satz is the co-founder, president and CEO of Alto, developer of an alternative asset investment platform intended to connect everyday investors to alternative investment opportunities. Satz and his team raised $39.94 million of Series B venture funding in 2022, putting the company's pre-money valuation at $250 million. He talks about the capital-raising process and what the future holds for Alto.
Ep 224: Andrew Bennett, Chief Business Officer of Provide, Columbus
Provide, an integrated suite of financial products for healthcare practitioners, was acquired by Fifth Third in 2021. The company, which launched in 2013, made its way through pivots and financing rounds to ultimately become an independent business line of the bank in a deal that could accelerate the growth of an already growing company. Provide Chief Business Officer Andrew Bennett stops by to talk about the acquisition and what it means for the future.
Ep 223: David Tolmie, Senior Partner of Edgewater Funds, Chicago
Dave Tolmie is a senior partner at The Edgewater Funds, a private equity firm he co-founded in 2001 and has helped grow to more than $3 billion in committed capital. The former CEO of Yesmail, Inc., a company he led through a successful IPO and subsequent sale for $720 million, and previous Senior Vice President of Operations for Bally Total Fitness, a company he joined after building and selling a regional health club to Bally for $90 million, talks about what he looks for in the entrepreneurs who will lead his portfolio investments. He walks through the major stages of that investment and how that affects CEOs as they sell to PE, aggressively build and then sell again.
Ep 222: Dick Simon, CEO of Sensorium Therapeutics, Boston
Dick Simon, a serial entrepreneur and leader in advancing psychedelic-assisted therapies, is the co-founder and CEO of Sensorium Therapeutics, a company that identifies new, promising drug leads for therapeutics inspired by psychoactive plants and fungi to address mental health issues such as anxiety. Dick talks about the business, how it’s grown, and its recent fundraising, which brought a $30 million Series A into the business in 2022.
Ep 221: JD Harris, CEO of Ascent Solutions, Minneapolis
After JD Harris joined Ascent Solutions in 2014, he bought out the previous owners and turned the company from a hosting company — which was 95 percent of its business — into one that provides cybersecurity advisory, consulting, education, and managed services. In 2021, he sold a minority investment in the company to RunTide Capital to accelerate the already exponential growth the company experienced since he first got involved. JD talks about that first big pivot, the company's growth and the process of bringing on a PE partner.
Ep 220: Matt Massucci, Founder & CEO of Hirewell, Chicago
Hirewell, a recruiting company founded by Matt Massucci back in 2001, recently raised $21 million from Pry-tek Holdings, a company with global reach. Already, Matt has teamed with Pry-Tek on an investment in the London-based executive search firm TritonExec, a company that's expected to compliment the capabilities that Hirewell brings to the organization. Matt talks about the deal, the diligence and what it all means for his and the company's future.
Ep 219: Tranice Watts, Founder of Lifting Lucy, Baltimore
Tranice Watts co-founded Lifting Lucy when she was in her early twenties, working in an industry not known for much diversity. The idea came to Watts — the first Black woman to co-own and operate a craft brewery in the state of Maryland — when she was on a subcommittee of the Craft Brewers Conference. Lifting Lucy has since grown into a national organization that supports under-represented communities within the brewing industry by helping finance opportunities for exposure and inclusion.
Ep 218: Silas Deane, Founder of VendEngine, Nashville
Silas Deane founded VendEngine, a financial tech software solution for inmates and their families, when he realized there were serious issues with correctional facilities in regard to money transfers. He discusses the founding of the company, how COVID-19 played a critical role in the firm's path, and how he ended up selling the business to Tyler Technologies.
Ep. 217: Jon Eesley, Partner with Windsor Advisory Group, Columbus
Selling a closely held business is a unique and taxing challenge. When an owner's eyes are focused too intensely on how much they'll get and how to keep it away from the IRS, there's a lot they can miss. Jon Eesley, who has been a part of many M&A transactions both as an accountant and as a financial adviser, talks about the personal toll a process can take, how to emotionally prepare for an event, and where to get objective advice.
Ep. 216: Guy Friedman, Co-founder & CEO of SteadyMD, St. Louis
Guy Friedman is Co-Founder, President and CEO of SteadyMD, a B2B telehealth infrastructure provider that enables telehealth patient experiences in all 50 states. He spoke on the Dealmakers Podcast about how he built SteadyMD as a direct-to-consumer offering, but quickly realized its value to other businesses.
Ep. 215: Sanjay Singh, Chairman & CEO of Mace Security International, Cleveland
Years back, Sanjay Singh lead a company through a challenging integration after acquiring an industry competitor. Those first 100 days were critical to the deal’s success. Sanjay, now Chairman and CEO of Mace Security International, talks about the deal, and how he walked the companies through the post-deal work, in what could be called a tense environment, to move the needle, and how his integration process has evolved since.
Ep. 214: Joe Hipsky, Co-founder of IRALOGIX, Pittsburgh
IRA record keeping and technology solutions provider IRALOGIX raised an $11 million expansion of its Series B in 2021 and $22 million Series C funding in 2022. In this episode, Founding Partner Joe Hipsky talks about those raises and some things he might do differently looking back.
Ep. 213: Jason Barsema, Co-founder of Halo Investing, Chicago
Halo Investing’s vision and execution has propelled it to one of the top FinTechs in the U.S. That success also allowed it to easily raise capital to further its long-term goal of making structured notes accessible for just one dollar. Jason Barsema, co-founder and president, joined the Dealmakers Podcast to talk about how they built the company to where it is today and what we can expect in the future.
Ep. 212: Andrew Ashur, CEO of Lucid Drone Technologies, Charlotte
Andrew Ashur's Lucid Drone Technologies is a robotics company that's outfitting flying drones to soft-wash buildings. After bootstrapping to get to proof of concept, the design caught the eye of Y Combinator, leading not only to a significant capital raise but also an informative stint with the influential accelerator. Andrew talks about how his company and his fundraising tactics have evolved, and traces the growth of the business since its launch in 2018.
Ep. 211: David Dunstan, Managing Director of Citizens M&A Advisory, Boston
Citizens Financial Group has released its 2023 M&A Outlook, its annual survey of 400 leaders at U.S. middle-market companies and private equity firms. David Dunstan, managing director in the Citizen's M&A Group, talks about the results — that despite some caution because of macroeconomic uncertainty, pre-pandemic norms are the expectation in the 2023 M&A environment — and what that could mean for both sellers and buyers.
Ep. 210: Dr. Patrick Hines, Founder & CEO of Functional Fluidics, Detroit
Dr. Patrick Hines is CEO and Founder of Functional Fluidics, a company that has developed a testing platform that can assess the health of red blood cells. The company recently raised a $3.1 million bridge round and, at the time of this interview, was in the process of working to secure a Series A that would help it expand its reach into the market. Dr. Hines shares the story of his mission to develop the diagnostic tools to help people with serious health conditions resulting from abnormal red blood cell function receive the right care.
Ep. 209: Thomas Goodmanson, CEO of Calabrio, Minneapolis
Thomas Goodmanson has been with Calabrio essentially from the start. From its spinout the company has been acquired twice and grown exponentially in both headcount and revenue. And with its recent acquisition by Thoma Bravo, it's looking to step even harder on the accelerator. Thomas talks about the experience of bringing on a financial partner and the differences and similarities the second time around.
Ep. 208: Keith Campbell, Senior Partner with West Monroe
West Monroe Senior Partner Keith Campbell stops by to talk about The Future of Diligence in Private Equity, which just happens to be the title of a report he recently co-authored. Highlighting survey findings from 100 U.S. PE companies, it explores the shifts in diligence approach that move away from identifying risk to identifying opportunity, greater data needs and the application of data analytics tools in a more commonly remote setting. Keith talks about how much progress has been made toward these changes as well as what middle-market companies headed toward a process should expect from this new diligence approach.
Ep. 207: Chuck Morton, Partner with Venable, Baltimore
Chuck Morton, Partner, Venable LLP, has been recognized for decades as one of best middle-market deal lawyers in the United States. During his time as an M&A attorney, he’s seen business leaders make some excellent choices and some not-so-brilliant decisions. He sat down for a discussion with Smart Business Network to elaborate on both and provided specific examples.
Ep. 206: Jared Paquette, Managing Partner of Conanicut Capital, Boston
After 20 years of working in PE at different firms, Jared Paquette has stepped out on his own, launching Conanicut Capital. Targeting the lower-middle-market, his aim is to deploy patient capital at founder-led businesses to help them grow. He talks about launching the firm, the first deal and how the process of getting capital backing for the firm affected how he looks not just at deals, but his own business.
Ep. 205: Debbie Gordon, Founder & CEO of Cloud Range, Nashville
Cloud Range is a cybersecurity company led by security executives and engineers who encourage military-grade simulation training for enterprise security teams. The company recently raised its first round of outside capital from three different investors. Founder and CEO Debbie Gordon talks about what that process was like for her, what she's learned that she'll apply to future rounds, and how the company plans to use the investment to grow the business.
Ep. 204: Joe Bagan, CEO of STAQ Pharma, Columbus
STAQ Pharma recently raised about $45 Million of Series C venture funding to build a $70 million facility on the west side of Columbus, which will add 300 jobs to the area. Its 503B Outsourcing Facility will produce compounded medications under the Current Good Manufacturing Process (cGMP) quality system, a Federal Drug Administration standard. CEO Joe Bagan sat down with the Dealmakers Podcast to discuss the capital raises and the new, much larger facility being built in Columbus.
Ep. 203: Michael Pearson, Founder of Union Packaging, Philadelphia
Michael Pearson launched Union Packaging in 1999. Over nearly 20 years, he grew it to employ some 100 people, many of which he hired from what he calls non-traditional sources. Recently he sold that business to LBP Manufacturing, and became a partner at Iron Stone Real Estate. In addition, he's giving back to the community through board participation at many Philadelphia organizations. Mike shares the story of Union Packaging, how he prepared for and executed its sale, and offers advice for those getting ready for life after an exit.
Ep. 202: Nick Mirchef, Co-founder of SmartWitness, Chicago
Nick Mirchef and his son-in-law, Chris Pflanz, went through the trails and tribulations of early-stage capital raises with their company SmartWitness, a pioneer in video telematics. They found a big payday at the end of it all. Today, they offer others advice using their experience as a guide.
Ep. 201: Michael Healander, CEO of Airspace Link, Detroit
In four short years, Detroit-based startup Airspace Link went from a couple founders and a few employees to recently raising $23 million in a Series B to aid its global expansion. It started with a $100,000 convertible note, a $3 million pre-seed, a $10 million Series A and now the global expansion raise. Michael Healander, co-founder, president and CEO, is a drone pilot enthusiast who envisions the positive impact drones could provide to economies and quality of life. His company is creating a roadmap in the sky for drones of all types and sizes.
Ep. 200: Rocco DiLillo, Serial Entrepreneur, Cleveland
Rocco DiLillo has lived the entrepreneurial experience. He's operated 10 companies — five he founded and five he acquired, taken a company public, rescued struggling businesses and realized successful exits. His passion for building businesses compelled him out of his first retirement in his mid-40s. And even today — many years later as he begins to divest himself of his business holdings — he finds himself drawn back in by opportunity. DiLillo share some the highlights from his decades of experience, including one of his most recent exits from the North Carolina manufacturer, PCX.
Ep. 199: Grant Goris, CEO of Boon Logic, Minneapolis
Boon Logic, developer of machine-learning based anomaly detection algorithm, is completing its second funding round over the last four years with a nearly $40 million pre-money valuation to support the commercialization of two disruptive services. CEO Grant Goris sits down to discuss how the company was born, how it has grown, and what he’s learned about raising capital along the way.
Ep. 198: Mike Moran, CEO of Walnut Ridge, Cleveland
Mike Moran is the CEO and Managing Partner of Walnut Ridge, multigenerational family office managing investment activities and controlling interest in a number of operating and start-up companies. He stops by to talk about the family office perspective — what they look for in potential acquisition targets, how they differ from other buyer types, and why and in what circumstances a family office is the likely best choice for a seller.
Ep. 197: Mike Morgan, Former CEO of Updox, Columbus
Late in 2020, Updox, a software collaboration platform for out-of-hospital healthcare providers, was acquired by EverCommerce. That year, the pandemic had created for Updox conditions that would make it the busiest time in the company's history as telehealth became a critical channel for both patients and service providers. Former Updox CEO Mike Morgan talks about laying the groundwork for that event, which reportedly led to the company's $143 million exit.
Ep. 196: Dr. Shante Williams, Founder of Black Pearl Global Investments, Charlotte
Dr. Shante Williams has had a remarkable career, one that started as a Research Associate studying how tumor cells migrate to founding two investment firms. Now, as the founder and CEO of Black Pearl Global Investments, she's focused on health care companies with investments that create long-term, sustainable growth while also backing several initiatives that seek to create more successful black, brown and women entrepreneurs, investors and fund managers.
Ep. 195: Michael Schreiber, Founder & CEO of Playfly Sports, Philadelphia
Michael Schreiber knows something about disruption. He was on the team that founded and launched Hulu and led some of the media industry's first digital distribution deals. Now he's leading PlayFly Sports, a full-service sports marketing company managing multimedia rights for universities, state high school associations and other properties, including esports. The fledgling company, with significant backing from Sinclair Broadcast Group and Access Holdings, has already made a slew of acquisitions and grown from a single employee to more than 700. Schreiber talks about building PlayFly, the opportunity in the market it addresses as well as how he deals with doubters when introducing disruptive innovation in the market.
Ep. 194: Jerry Frantz, President of JumpStart Ventures, Cleveland
Is it the best of times or is it the worst of times? With market signals suggesting both economic strength as well as indications that a recession is coming — or that we're in one, or that one isn't coming — uncertainty is the only certainty and it's gripped the investor mindset, shaping perspectives that are driving real changes in where they're putting their dollars, which, of course, has entrepreneurs reacting. JumpStart Ventures President Jerry Frantz joins offers his view of the early-stage market, and what's happening with investors and entrepreneurs.
Ep. 193: Kelly Greene, VP of Corporate Development at Park Place Technologies, Cleveland
Park Place Technologies' Kelly Greene has helped the company write its M&A playbook. From director of human resources to VP of Mergers and Acquisitions, she's completed more than 20 deals for the company, including the recent acquisition of Park Place's largest competitor. She talks about how the M&A process has evolved over her seven years with the company, offers tips on post-deal integration, and shares how a team of stay-at-home moms, of all things, has added speed and efficiency to the company's deals.
Ep. 192: Faith Voinovich, Principal at Ohio Innovation Fund, Columbus
From Faith Voinovich's position as principal at Ohio Innovation Fund, she's seeing an increase in new blood via internships interested in entrepreneurship, eager to work with or start new ventures that can make an impact through meaningful work. Illustrating that change, she says applications for internships with the Fund have gone from a couple hundred to nearly 5,000 in a few years for just five spots. She talks about what she's seeing on the ground as an investor with an Ohio focus, as well as how investment sourcing at the Fund has been affected by the pandemic and ongoing economic uncertainty.
Ep. 191: Linzie Venegas, Co-owner of The Ideal Group, Philadelphia
It may have been out of necessity, but Frank Venegas Jr. began the succession process at a very young age for daughter Linzie and son Jesse. Linzie said she was in a playpen in her father’s office, because they didn’t have the money for sitters and her parents worked long hours. It may have been a hardship then, but its paying dividends today as both Linzie and Jesse have taken over leadership of the company.
Ep. 190: Brian Glick, Founder & CEO of Chain.io, Philadelphia
As supply chain issues continue to wreak havoc for businesses both large and small, Chain.io Founder and CEO Brian Glick hopes to alleviate the problems with its cloud-based integration platform, which lets all the different entities in the chain share data between all their systems. In this episode, he discusses how Chain.io is addressing the problem as well as the company's recent capital raises.
Ep. 189: Eric Sheinkop, CEO of The Desire Company, Chicago
The Desire Company matches and retailers with the right experts to trial, test and review products, producing video reviews for use at the point of sale and across digital marketing channels. These partnerships are proving to drive an increase in conversions, time on site and an increase in marketing effectiveness. Co-founder and CEO Eric Sheinkop discusses the creation of The Desire Company, his experience raising capital for the startup and place for the future.
Ep. 188: Kit Needham, Director of Project Olympus, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh
Kit Needham directs Project Olympus, Carnegie Mellon University's incubator that helps students, faculty and alums turn their ideas into viable businesses. She discusses the very earliest stages of entrepreneurship, what tends to trip folks up at this stage and how her experience as an investor informs her approach to coaching the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Ep. 187: Ralph Della Ratta, Partner with Kirtland Capital Partners, Cleveland
Ralph Della Ratta has had a remarkable career that spans four decades, hundreds of public and private M&A deals, and — despite two attempts at retirement — is still going. Ralph talks about his career, his recent retirement from Citizens Bank where he headed up its M&A division and chaired its investment banking committee, and his most recent move to join private equity firm Kirtland Capital Partners.
Ep. 186: David Fitzgerald, Partner with Petra Capital, Nashville
Petra Capital Partners recently completed fundraising on its Peta Growth Fund IV, which gives it $208 million of capital to invest, primarily in the health care space. David Fitzgerald, a partner at Petra, discusses the fund, the fundraising process and investment competition in a still-hot deal market. He also shares a bit of his firm's investment philosophy as well as his outlook on how the remainder of the deal year could play out.
Ep. 185: Kevin Newell, Founder & CEO of Royal Capital Group, Milwaukee
Royal Capital Group Founder and CEO Kevin Newell discovered that when living conditions improve, so do the mental and physical health of those living in the neighborhoods he’s developed. This approach opened a new capital stream through UnitedHealthcare, which is now the largest private investor, providing $5.4 million in equity funding for one of his latest endeavors.
Ep. 184: Samantha Ory, Founder of Ouroboros Group, Boston
Samantha Ory's firm Ouroboros Group is growing. The independent sponsor is building its first fund as it looks to approach sellers with unique strategies catered to the company's goals. She talks about the evolution of her firm, the effects of increased buy-side competition, and how buyer and seller misalignment is affecting deals and what's being done to bridge that gap.
Ep. 183: Jordan Hansell, Founder & CEO of Tradepost, Columbus
Former NetJets CEO Jordan Hansell has launched Tradepost, an investment platform that provides growth capital to mid-market firms. Hansell talks about how the firm approaches the M&A market, as well as how he's coupling his experience in the c-suite with his experience as an investor to help guide the CEOs who lead his portfolio companies.
Ep. 182: Lu Alleruzzo, Co-founder & CEO of Immunophotonics, St. Louis
Lu Alleruzzo, a bioengineer with a MBA, had an opportunity early in his career to understand innovation and immediately apply it to society for the benefit of all. That opportunity — and $88 million in venture capital — fueled him and his biotech company, Immunophotonics, to pioneer a field of cancer care called Interventional Immuno Oncology.
Ep. 181: Len Cosentino, Founder of Checkpoint Surgical, Cleveland
Checkpoint Surgical, a privately held U.S.-based medical device company with proprietary neurostimulation technology for nerve protection and repair, raised $16 million of growth capital in August of 2021. One year later, with those investments in place, the company is shifting into growth mode, a move that comes with substantial changes. Founder Len Cosentino talks about the raise, his process for vetting investors and how Checkpoint is setting itself up for profitability.
Ep. 180: Forrest Tefft, Senior Vice President of Northwest Bank
Forrest Tefft, head of corporate finance at Northwest Bank, has, more than four decades in banking. He has raised more than $14 billion in bank capital and was the originator of more than 70 transactions. Tefft discusses some of the hurdles businesses face in a near post-pandemic world and the things they should consider before making any M&A transactions.
Ep. 179: Melissa Sherman, CEO of MOBILion, Philadelphia
Melissa Sherman went from a MOBILion investor to its CEO. She has lead the still-young company that's focused on developing lab instruments that improve the prediction, diagnosis and treatment of disease through more than $100 million in fundraising to propel it to its next phase. She talks about her transition into the business, what she's learned being on the other side of the fundraising table, and how her experience leading two companies at different lifecycle stages to an exit has informed the way she's building MOBILion.
Ep. 178: Neil Johnson, Managing Partner of Lawrence Evans & Co., Columbus
What options do health care companies have when it comes to funding their business? And what are the pros and cons of each? Neil Johnson, managing partner at Lawrence Evans & Co., a lower-middle-market investment banking, corporate finance and advisory services firm, talks about the many funding options, when each makes sense for a company, and when they don't.
Ep. 177: Steve Cook, Co-Founder of LFM Capital, Nashville
After raising $307 million in capital commitments for his LFM III fund, LFM Capital Partners Co-Founder and Executive Managing Director Steve Cook talks about how the firm will deploy that capital in lower-middle-market manufacturing. LFM was founded by operators, and their time in that role informs their investment approach, meaning they can invest in companies that fall outside the typical PE investment criteria. He talks about the fund, their approach, and how businesses in that sector today are faring.
Ep. 176: Angel St. Jean, CEO of The Black Brain Trust, Baltimore
Angel St. Jean is the co-founder and CEO of the Baltimore tech startup The Black Brain Trust, which has championed a patent-pending methodology for measuring diversity, equity and inclusion in public and private companies and government agencies. Angel stops by the pod to talk about her fundraising experience, the traction DEI has gained in recent years as well as how the specter of ESG reporting beyond the public sector is pressing the issue.
Ep. 175: Jerry Schill, CEO of Schill Grounds Management, Cleveland
Schill Grounds Management, a commercial landscaping company, is growing .... well ... like a weed. Back in late 2019 the company sold a controlling interest to Argonne Capital Group and has since gone on an acquisition spree, adding seven companies into the fold while growing its headcount considerably. Founder and CEO Jerry Schill stops by the pod to talk about the decision to bring on a PE partner, and how both he and the company are evolving through the M&A process.
Ep. 174: Dan & Lauren L'Herbier, owners of Air Duct Maintenance, Pittsburgh
The L’Herbier family was at a crossroads six years ago. The owners of Air Duct Maintenance, Kevin and Debbie L’Herbier, were looking to retire and had to decide what to do with the company they started in 1996. They approached their children, Dan and Lauren, to see if they had interest in taking over leadership. After a brief period, the siblings decided to begin the succession process. But it didn’t go as quickly as everyone had hoped.
Ep. 173: Ron Andrews, CEO of Oncocyte, Nashville
Publicly traded cancer diagnostics company Oncocyte has used several avenues to fund its growth in recent years. President and CEO Ron Andrews discusses the company's latest capital raises and acquisitions. He talks about the company's use of its at-the-market program, how it works, when it's best deployed, and what the raise from it has enabled to the company to do.
Ep. 172: Matt Cordio & Peter Welch, co-founders of Wisconsin Startup Coalition, Milwaukee
The Wisconsin Startup Coalition aims to do as its name implies — build coalitions of people, organizations and companies that can establish a strong foundation on which to build a thriving startup scene in underserved rural areas. Co-founders Matt Cordio and Peter Welch talk about the progress the organization has made since its launch in 2020, and how creating a network of support could lead to putting Wisconsin on investors' maps.
Ep. 171: James Barnes, President of Immaculate Cleaning, Cleveland
James Barnes began his first microenterprise at the age of 14, and launched Immaculate Cleaning Co. in his early 20s. Today the company's founder and president has leveraged the advice of area business leaders to grow Immaculate Cleaning to some 60 employees who service marquee accounts throughout the city. He talks about his entrepreneurial journey and the importance of pushing through the noes to get to the all-important yeses.
Ep. 170: Allison Howard, Founder & CEO of Nollapelli, Pittsburgh
Several years ago, Allison Howard had an “ah-ha” moment when she realized her cotton bedding was damaging her skin and hair — and ultimately disrupting her sleep. In response, she founded Nollapelli to merge beauty science, textile technology and sleep discovery, and prepared the company for early-stage investing.
Ep. 169: Daniel Walsh, CEO of Citymark Capital, Cleveland
Interest rates are on everyone's mind as the Fed promises and delivers on increases to combat inflation. Citymark Capital CEO Daniel Walsh talks about the real estate investment market, what — and where — is hot, and how he sees the investment landscape playing out given the economic currents.
Ep. 168: Chris Lambert, CEO of Life Remodeled, Detroit
Since 2014, Life Remodeled has invested more than $35 million into blighted Detroit neighborhoods to spur economic opportunities, job creation, community centers and business growth. Founder and CEO Chris Lambert talks about the non-profit's progress, its successes, fundraising and its future.
Ep. 167: Dan German, Founder of Orthobrain, Cleveland
Having sold his super successful Dayton-based Orthodontics practice, Dan German has set out on a new venture. Orthobrain brings him up to Cleveland to help general practitioners through a digital venture get the training they need to introduce orthodontics in their businesses. German talks about how his former business is informing his current one, building with the end in mind, what he's learning about fundraising, building a board, and more.
Ep. 166: Christopher Riley, CEO of United Cutwater, St. Louis
United Cutwater CEO Chris Riley has more than 30 years’ experience owning and operating more than a dozen businesses in numerous industries. His personal experiences buying and selling companies, negotiating transactions, overseeing dozens of accountants, attorneys and other professionals allowed him to fine-tune a creative deal construction in the volatile industry of mergers and acquisitions. Chris sat down with Smart Business Dealmakers to discuss the current M&A landscape and how business owners can maximize business value before selling.
Ep. 165: Bill Fox, CEO of Rextar, Baltimore
Bill Fox launched GoIndustry.com around the time the dot-com bubble burst and managed to not only take the online machinery and equipment sales site public, but grow it to 47 offices in 27 countries and some 600 employees. Now, Bill is back with Rextar, an online real estate marketplace that does business as Homesale.plus. The company recently raised its first seed round and Bill expects a more substantial round could follow in 2022. He talks about his GoIndustry experience and how that's informing the way he's building Rextar and Homesale.plus.
Ep. 164: Nadyli Nuñez, Executive Director of Ascender, Pittsburgh
Ascender Executive Director Nadyli Nuñez has guided hundreds of early-stage entrepreneurs through her incubator, co-working programs and numerous early-stage investments to position them for add-on capital as part of their growth journey from scale-up to the middle market. She has a detailed, hands-on approach to ensure the success of her clients.
Ep. 163: Andrew Barnell, CEO of Geneoscopy, St. Louis
Andrew Barnell is the CEO of Geneoscopy, a life sciences company he co-founded with his sister to develop diagnostic tests for gastrointestinal health. The company recently raised $105 million and was ranked the 5th-largest biotech or agtech firm in St. Louis. Andrew talks about the formation of the business, operating a company with family, fundraising and how they'll use their latest round of capital.
Ep. 162: Ken Thomas, CEO of Archangel Protective Services, Nashville
Archangel Protective Services started out with just three people. Today, it has more than 270 employees. Founder and CEO Ken Thomas attributes that exponential growth to his work with the Nashville Business Incubation Center. Now he's paying it forward as an Entrepreneur in Residence at NBIC, sharing the lessons he's learned to help the next generation of business owners unlock their potential.
Ep. 161: Matt Buder Shapiro & Kevin Murphy of Vytalize Health, Cleveland
Having a relationship before the start of the pandemic helped a lot of deals get done, and that was the case when New Jersey-based Vytalize Health acquired Cleveland-based MedPilot back in February 2021. Vytalize Health CFO Kevin Murphy and MedPilot founder Matt Buder Shapiro, now CMO of Vytalize, talk about the transaction, doing the deal during a pandemic, and what they learned through the process.
Ep. 160: Ed Weinfurtner, Chairman of Blue Olive Partners, Cleveland
Great Day Improvements has executed a series of deals that put it among the fastest growing private mid-market companies in Ohio. It's grown from 12 market locations at the beginning of 2018 to over 115 locations in 77 US markets and over 2,200 employees today. Ed Weinfurtner, of Blue Olive Partners, joins us to talk about the initial acquisition and its growth through the years, including two major acquisitions it closed near the end of 2021.
Ep. 159: Ilana Diamond, Managing Partner of 412 Venture Fund, Pittsburgh
412 Venture Fund has only been around a few years, but it's founders and managing partners bring decades of experience to investing in early-stage ventures that have a Pittsburgh connection. Managing Partner Ilana Diamond stops by to talk about the fund, its first exit, the advantage of launching during the pandemic and some of the lessons she passes on based on her years of management, advisory, chair and investor experience.
Ep. 158: Joe Luedtke, CEO of Liturgical Publications, Milwaukee
Liturgical Publications is in its 50th year as a faith-based print advertising company. About 10 years ago, LPi leadership decided to dip their toes into software as a service and created a closed social network for churches to promote events. Somewhere early in the process, a customer asked if a donation mechanism could be added to their closed network. From there, the We Share We Gather arms of LPi took off, eventually processing nearly a third of a billion dollars a year and later selling to Ministry Brands in a high, eight-figure deal. CEO Joe Luedtke talks about the many long nights it took to get the deal to the finish line.
Ep. 157: Mykolas Rambus, CEO of Hush, Detroit
Mykolas Rambus is a serial entrepreneur who founded and sold two previous companies, including Wealth-X, where he served as CEO until its 2016 sale for more than $20 million. Last year, he raised early-stage rounds of capital to build out Hush, a company that offers cybersecurity services. Though the capital raise process went well, Mykolas talks about how better pitch materials would have made for a smoother raise.
Ep. 156: David Dunstan, Managing Director of Citizens M&A Advisory, Cleveland
Despite market turbulence and some handwringing over uncertainty, the deal year looks as if it will be just as strong as it was in 2021. Dave Dunstan, managing director of Citizens M&A Advisory Group, talks about what he's seeing in the market, based in part on feedback from the bank's Middle Market M&A Outlook, a survey of 400 leaders at U.S. middle market companies and private equity firms.
Ep. 155: Ngu Morcho, CEO of KeraLink International, Baltimore
KeraLink International CEO Ngu Morcho has more than 20 years of experience in early-stage technology development working in Africa and across India and Southeast Asia. Today, Morcho’s mission is to end corneal blindness globally as the head of operations at KeraLink. To fund this mission, KeraLink uses a blended finance model — a combination of grants, concessional equity and debt that is used together to develop a sustainable business model.
Ep. 154: Matt Spettel, Co-founder & CEO of Co-Pilot, Pittsburgh
Co-Pilot is an online coaching platform designed to provide a one-on-one fitness coaching experience that pairs individuals with a dedicated coach. The company raised nearly $6 million in January, which followed a more-than $4 million raise back in 2021. Co-founder and CEO Matt Spettel talks about the company's growth, fundraising, and expanding the team.
Ep. 153: Jonathan Hatch, President of Little Mountain Industries, Cleveland
Supply chain issues are a real problem for buyers. Jonathan Hatch, president of Little Mountain Industries, says diligence now has to be much more thorough, which means the independent sponsor group has become pickier with its targets. Hatch talks about buying manufacturing companies at a time when labor shortages and supply chain hang ups change the M&A math.
Ep. 152: John Huhn, Founder of Compass Group Equity Partners, St. Louis
Compass Group Equity Partners goes into every investment with a 100-day plan. They’re ready and prepared to move quickly, which they did when they purchased Sunpro Solar in 2020. Compass Group’s playbook includes augmenting the team and building a board deck with metrics and key performance indicators and having a written strategic plan. John Huhn, founder and managing partner of Compass Group, talks about how that plan enabled the independent sponsor to buy and sell Sunpro at a several time multiple in less than a year.
Ep 151: Stuart Clark, CEO of Premise Health, Nashville
Early on in his career, Stu Clark downplayed concepts like culture and team when it came to strategic acquisitions, opting instead for a finance- and execution-driven mindset. But he's since changed his mind. Today, the CEO of Premise Health says culture is key, so much so that he'd rather spend more on a company with a great team than get a bargain on a company that has a poor culture. In this episode, Clark talks about this change in thinking, and why strong teams are critical to a Premise Health acquisition.
Ep 150: Anthony Manna, CEO of Signet Enterprises, Cleveland
There are a number of important steps that happen between the time a seller is ready to take their company to market and when buyer diligence starts. One of the tools used in the negotiation process at that stage is a letter of intent. Signet Enterprises Chairman and CEO Anthony Manna breaks down this early stage of the deal and what choices sellers need to make as they take their company to market.
Ep 149: Jim Stern, General Counsel of A.O. Smith, Milwaukee
Amid the pandemic, Milwaukee-based A. O. Smith closed the acquisition of Canada's Giant Factories — a deal nearly a decade in the making. Although the deal went smoothly, there were some interesting aspects about it that kept both sides on their toes, says Jim Stern, executive vice president and general counsel of A.O. Smith.
Ep 148: Cor Hoekstra, co-founder of Amicus.io, Charlotte
Cor Hoekstra co-founded fintech company Amicus.io to align the incentives of donors, financial institutions, corporations and philanthropic organizations for charitable giving at scale. Shortly before selling the business to TIFIN, Cor sat down with us to talk about how his work for tech giants such as Oracle and IBM informed the venture and attracting investors.
Ep 147: Lou Schneeberger, Executive Chairman of Proformex, Cleveland
Lou Schneeberger, Executive Chairman of Proformex, has been buying and selling companies for years. Today he is seeing what he calls a COVID backlog. Companies that were looking to sell but struggled during the pandemic chose to wait until the market stabilized. Now, many of those companies' M&A aspirations are waking up from their pandemic hibernation. Lou talks about those companies and how they're preparing to capitalize on their highest potential valuations.
Ep 146: Cesar Gueikian, Brand President of Gibson Brands, Nashville
Brand President Cesar Gueikian discusses Gibson Brands' 2021 acquisition of well-known guitar amp manufacturer Mesa/Boogie, as well as how he is helping to move Gibson forward by identifying its purpose.
Ep 145: Matt Mastarone, CEO of TTG Imaging Solutions, Pittsburgh
CEO Matt Mastarone and the TTG Imaging Solutions team started a search for a new capital partner in January of 2021. By May, they were in New York City doing early-look meetings with potential private equity firms its investment banker thought would be interested. In August, the molecular Imaging company had narrowed the search to two firms and were close to getting a deal done; however, supply chain concerns scared those two firms off. As a result, TTG had to come up with a thorough study on its supply chain issues to ease concerns. After doing so, they reengaged another set of bidders and managed to get the deal done in time for Christmas.
Ep 144: Edward Goldberg, CEO of Perimeter Solutions, St. Louis
Perimeter Solutions CEO Edward Goldberg worked with EverArc Holdings to complete in just a few months a merger process that normally would take years. And to make things even more problematic was the fact that they did it primarily in a virtual world.
Ep 143: Tony Montanaro, partner with Louis Plung & Co., Pittsburgh
The M&A market continues to be red hot with buyers competing for deals and sellers benefiting in the process. But what does it take to get your company ready for a sale? What is a quality of earnings report and how might it benefit sellers to get one done? Tony Montanaro, a partner with Louis Plung & Co., offers a look at deals from a buyer's perspective: what they like to see in diligence that speeds a deal to close, and what they don't like to find — problems that could mean they walk away.
Ep 142: Paul Larson, CEO of Larson Financial Holdings, St. Louis
The pandemic has been a major factor in the commercial real estate market. It's had an impact on everything from where companies are based to how long it takes to get things built. Paul Larson, CEO of Larson Financial Holdings, sits down to give his characterization of the market, where opportunities and challenges exist, and his advice for those looking to invest this year.
Ep 141: Scott Bushkie, Managing Partner of Cornerstone Business Services, Milwaukee
When it comes to the timing of a sale, there are things you can control, such as preparing your management team or tidying up your books, and there are things you can't, such as buyer appetite. Scott Bushkie, managing partner and founder of Cornerstone Business Services, says timing may be the most important element of a sale, and offers both his insight and advice on how sellers can leverage timing to their advantage.
Ep 140: Andy Vollmer, Managing Director of Bellmark Partners, Cleveland
Andy Vollmer, managing director of Bellmark Partners, discusses the record level of M&A activity in 2021, the factors driving that dealmaking, the consequences for buyers and sellers, and what we can expect throughout 2022.
Ep 139: Stephen Vitale, CEO of Pyrotecnico, Pittsburgh
COVID was a game wrecker for those in the entertainment business. Pyrotecnico President & CEO Stephen Vitale saw this firsthand when his special effects and fireworks display company had to make major cuts to remain operational. But amid the chaos, he also saw opportunity. He found a financial partner and made five acquisitions that helped Pyrotecnico grow significantly. We talked with Vitale, as well as his outside council Bill Buck, about the 132-year-old family business and its very busy dealmaking year.
Ep 138: Bob Norton, Founder & CEO of AirTight Management, Houston
Bob Norton, founder and CEO of AirTight Management, has been a serial entrepreneur for more than 30 years. In that time, he's seen startups launch, grow, succeed and fail. He talks about what separates those who succeed from those who don't, what investors are looking for at the earliest stages, and how insisting that your buddy from college remains your CTO for life might not be the best strategy for winning that Series A.
