Writing a search thesis that actually works
The search · Acquisition Entrepreneur Blueprint
"I want to buy a good business" generates no deal flow. Intermediaries cannot act on it, your network cannot refer to it, and you cannot screen with it.
What a usable thesis specifies
Size, in EBITDA. This is the most important constraint, because it determines everything else — what you can finance, what competition you face, and whether the business can afford a manager other than you.
Below about $500k of EBITDA, the business usually cannot support a salaried general manager, so you are buying a job. Above roughly $5 million, you are competing with private equity that has lower financing costs and a team. The $1–3 million band is where individual acquirers have a genuine structural advantage, because it is too small for institutional capital to bother with and too large for most individuals to finance.
Geography, honestly assessed. If you will not relocate, say so. Most owner-operated businesses need an owner present for the first year.
Industry characteristics, not industries. Better than naming sectors: recurring or repeat revenue, fragmented competition, low technological obsolescence, no single customer above 15%, and a business a competent generalist can run.
Owner situation. The best acquisitions come from retirement, illness, partner disputes or fatigue — situations where the seller wants out for reasons unrelated to the business. A seller who is optimising for price is a worse counterparty than one optimising for certainty and continuity.
What to avoid, and say so
Businesses where the owner is the product — a consultancy built on one person's relationships. Businesses in structural decline. Businesses requiring a licence you do not hold. Businesses with one customer above a quarter of revenue. Turnarounds, unless you have done one before.
The one-page version
Write it as something a broker could act on in ten seconds:
Manufacturing and industrial services businesses in Ontario and Québec. EBITDA $1–3m. Recurring or repeat customer relationships. Owner retiring within twelve months. No customer above 15% of revenue. Able to close in 90 days with committed financing.
That gets forwarded. "Looking for a good business" does not.
Work this through
Write your search thesis to one page, including everything above and an explicit exclusion list.
Then test it: send it to three people who know your target industry and ask whether they could identify a specific candidate from it. If they cannot, it is still too vague.
You are previewing this Blueprint
The remaining lessons, the workshops, your progress tracking and notes are included with Professional membership.