
Why He Won't Sell The Business He Could Exit For $18M
From The SMB Deal Hunter Podcast by Helen Guo
May 29, 2026 · 1h 7m · Episode 100
About this episode
In this episode, Paul discusses his journey of buying businesses and why he chooses not to sell his profitable ventures.
Want help buying a business? https://smbdealhunter.link/pro-yt In this episode, Paul breaks down how he left corporate to buy his first business when his wife got pregnant with their second baby, why he's bought 12 businesses in 25 years and refuses to sell the cash cows, and how he's setting up all five of his kids to run the exact same play. ◼️ What he sold (and downsized to) so his pregnant wife could stay home and he could buy his first business ◼️ Why he still works just 5-10 hours a week at the first business he bought 25 years ago ◼️ The lighting store he closed on two weeks before the 2008 housing crash ◼️ The single property he kept after selling the business attached to it (now worth $2.5M and paying him $100K a year) ◼️ The business he built from zero that he could sell for up to $18M (and why he won't) Subscribe to the SMB Deal Hunter newsletter (200,000+ subscribers): https://join.smbdealhunter.xyz/ Follow Helen: Twitter: https://x.com/HelenGuo_ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-guo-06674523/
People in this episode
Host: Helen Guo
Guest: Paul
Topics covered
- business acquisition
- entrepreneurship
- family business
- investment strategy
- business growth
Keywords
- business buying
- entrepreneur
- cash cows
- investment
- family legacy
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: SMB Deal Hunter, Twitter, LinkedIn
Products: lighting store
Places: United States
More episodes of The SMB Deal Hunter Podcast
- How 2 Friends Bought a Business That Prints $780K/yr · June 12, 2026 · 1h 4m
- He Stopped Investing In Real Estate, This Is Why… · June 8, 2026 · 19 min
- From $18M AI Founder to a Cleaning Business (Working 15hr/week) · June 5, 2026 · 54 min
- How She Went From a Tech Layoff to a $1M+ Business · June 1, 2026 · 1h 10m
- How She Bought A $3M Pet Food Business Making $500K/yr (For 10% Down) · May 25, 2026 · 43 min
- How He Went From $0 to $1.8M/yr (While Living on His Wife’s Salary) · May 22, 2026 · 1h 13m
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The SMB Deal Hunter Podcast podcast page.