Acquiring Minds Growing Profits 30% in the First 1.5 Years
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Mar 5, 2026 Jonathan Taylor, a former Google and DoorDash operator who bought AEK Technology, shares his transition from tech to owning a defense/aerospace distributor. He discusses running a part-time self-funded search, structuring conservative financing with a forgivable seller note, mitigating supplier risk, modernizing an MS-DOS ERP, and scaling revenue quickly through digitization and sales improvements.
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Lock Supplier Agreements And Tie Seller Note
- Do meet suppliers and secure written agreements to mitigate supplier-concentration risk before or immediately after close.
- Jonathan met each Hutchinson division, signed two contracts and tied seller-note forgivability to supplier retention for two years.
Technical Support Creates A Distribution Moat
- Insight: Niche technical expertise and in-house engineers turn distribution into high-margin value-add.
- AEK staffs engineers who advise customers, perform on-site training, and source alternatives, enabling higher margins and customer stickiness.
Upgrade ERP To Unlock Sales Capacity
- Do modernize ERP and automate quoting to increase throughput and forecasting accuracy.
- Jonathan replaced an MS-DOS system, enabled SKU-level turns, and sped quote-to-ship cycles, helping the team respond faster to demand.