We help you buy businesses,
fix your profits, and cash out.

Don't try to figure it out on your own. We act as your personal deal team. We find competitors for you to buy, streamline your operations so the business runs without you, and shape your company so it sells for the absolute highest price.

See How We Do It Talk With Us

1. Buy a Business

We find, negotiate, and close deals on your competitors so you can grow overnight.

2. Fix Your Profits

We untangle your operations so your company makes more money and runs without you.

3. Cash Out

We package your business and bring it to market so you get a life-changing payout.

Founder & Principal

Rich Coppage CMA

Over two decades of experience building value and closing deals in the lower middle market.

As the founder and Managing Director of AcquisitionQB, Rich Coppage specializes in helping acquisition entrepreneurs and business owners analyze and acquire companies, structure and scale operations, and build long-term transferable value. Over the last two years alone, Rich has led and structured over $50 million in closed transactions for lower middle-market businesses.

Before launching AcquisitionQB, Rich served as the Director of Transaction Advisory Services at Acquira (an ETA accelerator) and as an M&A Advisor at Groce, Rose & Moore LLC (a boutique M&A advisory). He has extensive experience sitting on the buy-side of the table—analyzing and structuring deals, leading rigorous Quality of Earnings (QoE) analyses, structuring multiple layers of the capital stack, and building post-acquisition integration roadmaps across the construction, manufacturing, distribution and business services sectors.

Rich leverages his background as a former corporate controller, analyst, and Chief Financial Officer to provide institutional-grade pre-acquisition analyses and due diligence to help clients mitigate business acquisition risk as much as possible. He also consults with clients in the post-acquisition phase to install institutional grade financial and operational infrastructure—ensuring their businesses run predictably today, and sell for a premium tomorrow.

M&A Due Diligence

Expert Quality of Earnings (QoE) and cash flow normalization to uncover a target's true profit.

Deal Structuring

Creative financing utilizing SBA 7(a), seller notes, and earn-outs to protect buyer equity.

Cash Flow Modeling

13-week rolling cash flow forecasts and KPI dashboards to drive strategic decisions.

Capital Raising

Building investor materials and financial narratives to secure equity and debt financing.

Core Strategies

Engineering a Premium Sale

We use proven strategies to protect your business, grow it rapidly, and help you cash out.

Done-For-You Business Buying

PHASE 1: Business Acquisition

We act as your personal business-buying team. We lead the entire process from the first phone call to the final signature—handling the pricing, deep financial background checks, and tough negotiations so you don't overpay and your team can stay focused on your current business.

Key Deliverables

Quiet Target Searching: We reach out to potential businesses on your behalf, keeping your identity secret so sellers don't artificially jack up the price.
Deep Financial Inspections: We shred the seller's financial statements to uncover hidden risks, fake profits, and the true health of the business.
Smart Deal Structuring: We negotiate the initial offer and structure the payment terms to protect you from overpaying upfront.
Getting to the Finish Line: We manage the bankers, lawyers, and paperwork to ensure a safe, smooth, and timely purchase.

Learn More about Business Buying

Exit Value Maximization

PHASE 2: Maximize Exit Value

We implement our "Evergreen Exit" Operational Plan to build a business that is always ready to sell, but never forced to. By running your operations through the lens of a prospective buyer, we maximize cash flow, minimize operational risk, and create compounding enterprise value over time.

The 5-Pillar Operating System

Revenue Quality: Shifting to contracted recurring revenue and minimizing customer concentration.
Operational Independence: Decoupling the founder through centralized SOPs and smart delegation frameworks.
Financial Rigor: Institutional-grade accrual accounting, clean P&Ls, and strict working capital management.
Asset & Data Readiness: Maintaining an updated, buyer-ready Virtual Data Room (VDR) and continuous asset protection.

Learn More about Exit Prep

Growth via Acquisition

PHASE 3: Growth via Acquisition

The fastest way to increase your company's worth is by buying other businesses. We design and execute a strategy to buy your smaller competitors, giving you more market share, lowering your shared costs, and instantly putting your company into a higher price bracket.

Key Deliverables

Clear Buying Strategy: We design a custom game plan for exactly which types of competitors or complementary businesses you should buy to grow the fastest.
Finding the Right Targets: We do the heavy lifting of hunting down and quietly approaching the best businesses to buy in your market.
Profit Combination Modeling: We run the numbers to show you exactly how much extra profit you'll make by combining operations and cutting duplicate costs.
Securing the Funding: We tap into our network of lenders and investors to get you the money needed to close the deal.

Learn More about Acquisitions

Our Proven Blueprint

The Value Creation Pathway

We don't do "consulting" for the sake of consulting. We execute a clear, step-by-step plan designed to take your company from simply running day-to-day to achieving a highly profitable final sale. Whether you need Phase 1 to acquire your first business, Phase 2 to fix your profits today, or Phase 3 to buy up your competitors, we meet you where you are.

1

PHASE 1: Business Acquisition

We act as your personal business-buying team, leading the entire process from the first phone call to the final signature. We handle the pricing, deep financial background checks, and tough negotiations to ensure you don't overpay and acquire a healthy, profitable business.

The Result

You successfully acquire a strong baseline business with minimized risk, favorable terms, and a clear path to immediate profitability.

2

PHASE 2: Maximize Exit Value

We implement our "Evergreen Exit" Operational Plan to build a business that is always ready to sell, but never forced to. By executing our 5-Pillar Operating System, we systematically maximize your cash flow and minimize operational risk. We focus on optimizing revenue quality, decoupling you from daily operations, establishing financial rigor, and ensuring continuous asset readiness so your company commands a premium valuation.

The Result

Your company transforms into a highly valuable, turn-key asset with compounding enterprise value, capable of operating independently and ready for a premium exit at any time.

3

PHASE 3: Growth via Acquisition

With a strong foundation in place, we focus on rapid growth. The fastest way to multiply what your business is worth is to buy your competitors. We help you find the right targets, secure the funding, and combine operations to create a much larger, more dominant company.

The Result

Your company grows much faster than trying to win clients one by one. Because larger companies sell for higher prices, this strategy quickly builds massive wealth.

4

PHASE 4: The Ultimate Exit

When the time is right, we help you bring your newly scaled, highly optimized business to the market. We work alongside business brokers and investment banks to ensure the deal structure and final negotiations get you the maximum possible payout.

The Result

A premium sale that rewards your years of hard work with life-changing wealth.

Are you ready to maximize your company's value?

Whether you need to organize your profits and build forecasts today, or you're ready to acquire competitors to grow fast, we are ready to help.

Schedule a Strategic Consultation

Advisory Retainers

Aligned with your stage of growth

Clear, straightforward pricing to help you execute our proven strategies.

Phase 1

$7,500

+ $7,500 Success Fee at Close

Business Acquisition

Target Searching
Deep Financial Inspections
Smart Deal Structuring
Full Deal Execution to Close

Discuss a Deal Download Tear Sheet

Phase 2

$3,000 /mo

Maximize Exit Value

Find True Profit Margins
12-Month Financial Forecasting
Owner Independence Planning
Investor-Ready Financial Cleanup

Select Phase 2

Phase 3

$5,000+ /mo

Growth via Acquisition

Acquisition Strategy Planning
Finding & Approaching Targets
Profit Combination Modeling
Securing Acquisition Funding

Select Phase 3

Ready to multiply your valuation?

Whether you need to organize your business today, or execute a strategy to buy competitors tomorrow, schedule a confidential conversation with us.

Optimize Profits

Fix your margins and build clear future forecasts.

Acquisition Strategy

Find and buy competitors to boost your sale price.

Maximum Exit

Shape your business so it sells for top dollar.

Full Name

Email Address

Current Revenue Range

Primary Objective

AcquisitionQB Equity Program

Equity Investment Criteria & Capital Partnering

Capital Solutions

Reliable Equity Capital for Operators & Independent Sponsors

Whether you are an operator executing a buy-and-build strategy or an independent sponsor seeking a reliable capital partner, we bring a massive network of lenders and private investors to fund your expansion.

Section I

Target Financial Profile

We target mature, profitable businesses with a proven track record, rather than early-stage or venture-backed startups.

Target EBITDA

$300K - $10M

Focus on companies with a established history of stable, positive cash flow and strong baseline profit margins.

Enterprise Value

$3M - $30M

Concentrated in lower middle-market enterprises ready for acceleration or structured exit planning.

Equity Check Size

$250K - $5M+

Flexible structures per transaction, comfortable leading the equity tranche or co-investing alongside capital partners.

Section II

Business Quality & Characteristics

We invest in resilient businesses that command top dollar in the market.

Revenue Durability

Preference for recurring, sticky, or highly repeatable maintenance revenue with demonstrated pricing power.

Owner Independence

Built to survive its founder—capable management teams, internal successors, and clean operational infrastructure that minimizes key-person risk.

Risk Mitigation

Low customer and vendor concentration, combined with diverse and established commercial relationships.

Fragmented Markets

Targeting fragmented industries where combination modeling yields extra profit by cutting duplicate costs.

Preferred Sectors & Industry Focus

B2B Services Tech-Enabled Services Commercial Trades Light Industrial Healthcare Home & Commercial Services Construction-Adjacent Equipment Rental Light Manufacturing Specialty Distribution

Section III

Transaction Types & Deal Structure

Flexible capital solutions designed to align with your specific stage of growth and exit timeline.

Growth via Acquisition: Providing equity to aggressively buy out smaller competitors, capture market share, and jump into higher valuation brackets.
Buyouts & Recapitalizations: Funding majority buyouts and minority equity positions to support self-funded searchers, independent sponsors, and transition-ready founders.
Seller Alignment & Rollover: Welcoming seller rolled equity (10%–20%) and structured earn-outs to bridge valuation gaps, protect cash-at-close, and ensure a smooth post-close transition.

Section IV

The AcquisitionQB Advantage

We don't just write a check; we act as your personal business-buying team. You work directly with veterans who have over 25 years of experience.

Deep Financial Inspections: We shred financial statements to uncover hidden risks, fake profits, and true normalized cash flow.
Smart Deal Structuring: We structure payment terms to protect you from overpaying upfront.
Aligned Incentives: Our structure ensures we only win when you win, keeping us fully aligned with maximizing your final payout.

Discuss Equity Opportunities

Discuss an Equity Deal or Capital Partnership

Have a deal that meets our criteria? Get in touch with our advisory team for a confidential discussion.

Submit a Deal Inquiry

Exit Value Maximization

Phase 2: Maximize Exit Value

The Evergreen Exit

Always Ready to Sell. Never Forced To.

Our "Evergreen Exit" Operational Plan focuses on building a business that creates compounding enterprise value over time. By running the business through the lens of a prospective buyer, we systematically maximize your cash flow and minimize operational risk, ensuring you command a premium valuation when it's time to sell.

The 5-Pillar Operating System

Pillar 1: Revenue Quality & Margin Optimization

Goal: Predictable cash flow with low concentration risk.

Shift to Recurring Revenue: Transition one-off sales into subscriptions or multi-year SLAs (Target: ≥60% recurring).
10% Concentration Rule: Systematically ensure no single customer accounts for more than 10% of total gross revenue.
High-Margin Rationalization: Sunset the bottom 20% lowest-margin, high-friction offerings to focus on core profit drivers.

Pillar 2: Operational Independence (Decoupling the Founder)

Goal: The business runs smoothly whether the owner is on vacation for 3 months or working full-time.

Centralized SOPs: Maintain a searchable digital knowledge base covering every core process. If it isn't documented, it doesn't exist.
Delegation Framework: Audit time quarterly to systematize, hire, or delegate low-enjoyment/low-skill tasks away from the founder.
The 30-Day "Absence Test": Execute a 30-day period with zero owner operational approvals to identify and fix system bugs.

Pillar 3: Leadership & Team Resilience

Goal: Key knowledge is distributed across a leadership team, not trapped in individual heads.

Build a Second-in-Command: Develop or recruit a COO/GM responsible for daily P&L execution and staff management.
Key-Person Risk Mitigation: Cross-train staff across key technical and client-facing roles to eliminate single points of failure.
Long-Term Incentive Plans (LTIPs): Implement structures like phantom equity to retain key executives through an acquisition.

Pillar 4: Financial Rigor & Clean Governance

Goal: Institutional-grade financial tracking that instills total buyer confidence.

Monthly Accrual Accounting: Transition strictly to GAAP accrual accounting rather than cash-basis records.
Maintain a "Clean P&L": Eliminate personal expenses and owner add-backs to drastically reduce buyer due diligence friction.
Working Capital Management: Keep a lean Net Working Capital baseline by closely managing AR collection days and inventory turnover.

Pillar 5: Continuous Asset Protection & Data Readiness

Goal: A buyer-ready Virtual Data Room (VDR) that is updated continuously.

IP & Asset Registration: Explicit corporate ownership of all trademarks, code, domain names, and formulas.
Transferable Contracts: Standardize "change-of-control" or assignability clauses in material supplier and customer agreements.
The Rolling Virtual Data Room: Maintain an encrypted cloud repository with up-to-date financials, cap tables, and legal agreements.

Growth via Acquisition

Phase 3: Growth via Acquisition

The Fast-Track to Wealth

Growing one customer at a time takes decades. Buying a competitor who already has 100 established customers takes months. More importantly, smaller companies sell for less money, while larger, combined companies sell for much more. By buying smaller players and adding them to your business, you create instant, massive wealth simply by combining them.

Finding the Right Fits

We define exactly what type of business makes sense to buy, search the market, and start quiet conversations with competitors who are ready to sell.

Profit Modeling

We build simple math models that show you exactly how combining your teams, cutting duplicate bills, and sharing customers will dramatically increase your cash flow.

Finding the Money

We use our deep network of business lenders and private partners to get you the cash you need to buy these companies without crippling your current business.

Done-For-You Business Buying

Your Outsourced Business-Buying Team

Getting the Deal Done safely

A seller's advisor works hard to inflate the price. You need an aggressive advocate on your side whose only job is to protect you from overpaying, uncover hidden problems, and structure terms that keep your money safe.

Quality of Earnings (QoE): We shred the seller's financials to find the true, normalized cash flow.
Deal Structuring: We utilize earn-outs, seller notes, and performance claw-backs to minimize your cash-at-close.
Hard Negotiation: We act as the "bad cop," maintaining a firewall between you and the seller so post-close relationships remain intact.

Download Premium-Lite Brochure

Helping You Find the Money

Buying a business takes capital. Whether you need a loan for a buyout or need to reorganize your current debt, we act as an independent banker for your company.

We help you buy businesses, fix your profits, and cash out.

1. Buy a Business

2. Fix Your Profits

3. Cash Out

Rich Coppage CMA

M&A Due Diligence

Deal Structuring

Cash Flow Modeling

Capital Raising

Core Strategies

Done-For-You Business Buying

Key Deliverables

Exit Value Maximization

The 5-Pillar Operating System

Growth via Acquisition

Key Deliverables

Our Proven Blueprint

PHASE 1: Business Acquisition

The Result

PHASE 2: Maximize Exit Value

The Result

PHASE 3: Growth via Acquisition

The Result

PHASE 4: The Ultimate Exit

The Result

Are you ready to maximize your company's value?

Advisory Retainers

Phase 1

Phase 2

Phase 3

Ready to multiply your valuation?

Optimize Profits

Acquisition Strategy

Maximum Exit

AcquisitionQB Equity Program

Reliable Equity Capital for Operators & Independent Sponsors

Section I

Target Financial Profile

Target EBITDA

Enterprise Value

Equity Check Size

Section II

Business Quality & Characteristics

Revenue Durability

Owner Independence

Risk Mitigation

Fragmented Markets

Preferred Sectors & Industry Focus

Section III

Transaction Types & Deal Structure

Section IV

The AcquisitionQB Advantage

Discuss an Equity Deal or Capital Partnership

Exit Value Maximization

The Evergreen Exit

Always Ready to Sell. Never Forced To.

The 5-Pillar Operating System

Pillar 1: Revenue Quality & Margin Optimization

Pillar 2: Operational Independence (Decoupling the Founder)

Pillar 3: Leadership & Team Resilience

Pillar 4: Financial Rigor & Clean Governance

Pillar 5: Continuous Asset Protection & Data Readiness

Growth via Acquisition

The Fast-Track to Wealth

Finding the Right Fits

Profit Modeling

Finding the Money

Done-For-You Business Buying

Getting the Deal Done safely

Helping You Find the Money

Traditional & Flexible Business Loans

SBA Government-Backed Loans

Growth Capital & Investor Funding

We help you buy businesses,
fix your profits, and cash out.