The SMB Deal Hunter Podcast

Walker Yarbrough, an acquisition entrepreneur and former investment banking and healthcare startup finance pro, tells a wild buying story. He buys a vending machine business, battles competitive bidders, a two-month closing delay over $200, and a rookie operator hire that quits. He fixes inventory, improves margins, adds QR feedback, and scales operations while juggling repairs and hiring challenges.

I’m very excited to share this week’s interview with Raj Kankaria. It is an absolute roller coaster involving layoffs, divorce, rappers, a quarter life crisis, and Raj buying a $1.3M / year business with 100% seller financing. Here’s a sneak peak:Raj was a former army vet who had gotten a job at Citi Bank as an investment banker. He had just been laid off. He was in the middle of a messy divorce. And one day, he opened the door to a process server who handed him his divorce papers.Out of curiosity, Raj asked the man how much he made for every delivery. The answer: Over $100 per deliverySo, Raj started digging in…and 18 months later, with a lot of twists and turns along the way, Raj ended up OWNING a company that did exactly that. But it gets crazier:💡Raj ended up negotiating a 100% seller financed deal (after his SBA loan fell through)💡He ended up building the biggest litigation support company in Harris County. With $1.3M in revenue. 1000+ contractor network. And a recession-proof business model. 💡 And before all that, Raj actually spent over a year working as a process server himself. (And he shares advice on why this was pivotal to his success later on)--------------------------------👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz

Join me as I interview Kofi Acheampong... Kofi’s interview is unique because he actually went through our Pro program and bought a Home Restoration business cash-flowing $715k+ / year in a record 5 months.But this interview goes a lot deeper into…💡 How Kofi actually launched a software startup that got to #3 on Product Hunt - and how he walked away when his wife got pregnant and he had no health insurance.💡 How he bought his $3.2M business with only 5% down and 8 months later, he’s already under LOI on a second deal with 67% seller financing.💡 How he succeeded in buying the business after 6-7 other people had already tried and failed (including the current GM…who also happened to be the seller’s son-in-law)👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz

Michael Loftus, entrepreneur and owner of Conor's Landscape who built a landscaping roll-up through acquisitions. He explains buying seven landscaping companies using seller financing and SBA loans. He discusses why commercial landscaping is recession resistant, how he retains 90% of customers after buyouts, building an 80-person team, and creating a business that lets him take long vacations.

Andres Martínez, an acquisition entrepreneur who moved from Mexico and bought a $1.3M auto body shop at 25 after dropping out of college. He recounts hunting deals, using creative financing to close with minimal down payment, the due diligence and team hires that made the purchase work. He also describes running the shop, systems for growth, and plans to buy more service and automation businesses.

Join me as I interview JD Beck, an entrepreneur who is rolling up HVAC and plumbing companies in Colorado. He's made 3 acquisitions to-date, scaling the business from $1.1M to $4.6M in revenue.👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz

Join me as I sit down with Michael Kelker, a former corporate exec who spent 15 years in the aviation manufacturing industry before leaving to buy Timberline Pallet, a custom pallet and crating company in the Quad Cities.With no prior experience in pallets, Michael stepped in as an owner-operator, doubled the business in five years, and grew the team from 15 to 27 employees.Since then, he’s made two more acquisitions: an auto parts recycler and a manufacturing consultancy (which he exited).We dive into what it’s really like to run a blue-collar business, team building, why he says he’s “not a good employee anymore," and how he’s building a legacy business for his daughters (GBR Riverdale is named after them)._______________________________👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz

Join me as I sit down with Nathan Gregory, a former talent agent in the entertainment industry who acquired Auto Body News, the leading trade publication in the collision repair industry.Nathan’s journey into entrepreneurship began with flipping raw land and investing in commercial real estate. After building and selling an Amazon-based product business, he spent over a year searching for the right company to buy, ultimately landing on a 42-year-old B2B media company serving auto repair shops and vendors nationwide. He used SBA financing, creative seller notes, and deep industry experience to close the deal.If you’re curious about how to buy your first business, why domain expertise gives you a competitive edge, or how to modernize a legacy business, you’ll love this episode._______________________________👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz

Join me as I sit down with Kaustubh Deo, an entrepreneur rolling up tree care businesses in Seattle, Washington.After a few years in private equity, Kaustubh made the leap into small business acquisitions—starting with his first deal in 2022 using a combination of SBA 7(a) financing, seller financing, and investor capital. Since then, he’s added two more companies to his platform.If you’re curious about how to transition from Wall Street to Main Street, use debt to buy businesses, or scale through add-on acquisitions, this one’s for you._______________________________👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz

Join me for a conversation with Nick Patrick, a former financial advisor turned acquisition entrepreneur. Nick bought a wedding venue and catering business, scaled it, and exited to a family office just 20 months later.After taking a breather, he dove back in. Earlier this year, Nick closed on a residential and commercial solar company in Denver after a focused off-market search._______________________________👉 Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter Newsletter — free weekly deals & insights: https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz🤝 Work with me and my team 1-on-1 to find, finance, and close your acquisition in 6–12 months: https://pro.smbdealhunter.xyz