Acquisition Entrepreneurs

The Search for Opportunity: Michael Aubrey's Story of Entrepreneurship and Growth

Sun, 01 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Michael Aubrey is a seasoned operator who raised a search fund with his partner Dan Henn during the 2007–2009 cycle. They ultimately acquired StatLab Medical Products, which he ran for nine years and sold for an 11x return to investors.

“It’s gonna come down to you convincing them that you are the person they should trust their life’s work to.”

He later stepped in as CEO of Mission Veterinary Partners (MVP) when it was a small, struggling platform, and led a turnaround while scaling aggressively. Over roughly five years as CEO, MVP acquired about 300 hospitals, becoming a large multi-site operator.

Michael tells his story on the podcast and offers a clear look into what scaling through acquisition really involves.

How are Search Fund Investors Really Faring?

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Looks at ETA from the investor side. Focuses on actual portfolio returns, access and selection realities, and how weighting decisions shape MOICs. A useful counterweight to entrepreneur-reported datasets if you want to understand how the economics really work for investors.

Exploring the CEO's Leadership Role in a Search Fund–Acquired Small Business

Sat, 01 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Focuses on what happens after you close the deal. Closing an acquisition doesn’t automatically make you a good CEO - this note makes leadership concrete for first-time operators and is one of the few ETA resources focused squarely on operating excellence.

2024 Search Fund Study (Stanford GSB)

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The most-cited benchmark on search fund outcomes. Covers 681 funds across the U.S. and Canada (1984-2023) with data on returns, fundraising norms, acquisition rates, and how the model is evolving. The numbers everyone references when discussing ETA performance.

On the Nature of Modeling and Valuation in a Search Fund Acquisition

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Practical guide to building a search fund acquisition model tied directly to diligence questions and capital structure decisions. Covers valuation ranges, leverage capacity, and common modeling mistakes - especially helpful if you don’t come from a finance background.

Exploring Various Search Fund Structures

Tue, 01 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Maps out the main search fund structures - traditional, self-funded, accelerator, and hybrids - with clear tradeoffs for each. Useful for choosing a model aligned to your skills, capital access, and risk tolerance.

Stanford Search Fund Primer

Fri, 01 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

The closest thing the search fund world has to an operator manual. Covers personal fit, fundraising mechanics, economics, sourcing, diligence, and first-100-days playbooks. Widely used by searchers building process discipline and investor-ready materials.

HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business

Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 +0000

The book that brought ETA to the mainstream. Ruback and Yudkoff (HBS) walk through sourcing, diligence, deal structuring, and the CEO transition in one practical guide. If you read one thing before deciding whether ETA is for you, start here.