Jerry Schill spent 20 years building a landscaping business with his brother. Design-build, residential, creative work—chasing every shiny object along th way. But then they split.

Jerry took the maintenance side and rolled back to $3 million. He'd admit that he was scared. But he got laser-focused. And from 2012 to 2019, he took the business from 0% recurring revenue to 93%.

He ditched residential entirely, built a "business in a box," and grew to $16.5 million before partnering with Argon Capital. Four years later: 37 locations, 1600 employees, eight states, nearly $200 million in revenue, and best-in-class EBITDA margins. The lesson? Focus and discipline beat chasing shiny objects every time.

Here's what we discuss:
• Starting with his brother and why they eventually split
• Rolling back to $3M and being scared to start over
• Going from 0% to 93% recurring revenue
• Why he eliminated the entire residential division in one year
• Building the "business in a box" model
• Joining Vistage and surrounding himself with smarter people
• Why his bank said no—and how he found PE instead
• Partnering with Argon Capital and what they taught him
• The difference between an expense and an investment
• Imposter syndrome at 1600 employees
• Growing from 4 locations to 37 in four years
• Recapitalizing with TruArc Partners
• Why every business should be built to sell

Running a blue-collar business? Thinking about selling? Iconic Founders Group helps founders like you explore what's next. If you're doing over $2M in profit, check us out at iconicfounders.com or send us a message at theturn@iconicfounders.com.

Iconic Links:
• Learn More: https://www.iconicfounders.com
• Connect: theturn@iconicfounders.com
• Production: Lower Street https://lowerstreet.co

Tony Mallinger joined his family's roofing products manufacturing company in 2001. His dad bought it in the late eighties for about $2 million. By the time Tony led the first sale in 2020, it was doing $62 million. Four years later, after two acquisitions under private equity, they sold again—for $410 million.

But this isn't just a growth story. It's a family business story. Three brothers, a father who wanted to treat everyone the same, and years of misalignment that made the success feel hollow. Their best year ever? Everyone was miserable. That's when Tony knew it was time to sell. He pushed for a fiduciary board, hired the best M&A attorney and banker, and signed the purchase agreement two weeks before COVID hit. The family relationships got rough after the first sale. The good news They're better now. But the lesson is clear (and it's a rather common one): you can win the deal and still have wounds to heal.

Here's what we discuss:
• How his father—an accountant—bought a $2M manufacturing company
• Growing from $10M to $62M through strategic accounts and speed-to-market
• Working with two brothers and a father—and why alignment was the hardest part
• Setting up a fiduciary board with real governance
• How his father transferred 90% of equity to the kids early
• The moment everyone was miserable after their best year
• Signing the purchase agreement two weeks before COVID
• Staying on as CEO and buying their #2 competitor six months later
• Going from $62M to $130M in four years
• The second exit at $410 million

Running a blue-collar business and wondering how to think about value or selling? Iconic Founders Group helps founders like you explore what's next. If you're doing over $2M in profit, check us out at iconicfounders.com or reach out to theturn@iconicfounders.com.

Bryan Carruthers started his first company in the middle of the 2008 financial crisis, right after college. A tiny consulting firm called Consilium. He sold it to a publicly traded business a few years later. Then he went the private equity route—got backing, bought a 15-person shop, and built it into a national $50 million EBITDA business in under five years. Then he sold it to one of the largest consulting firms in the world.

Most founders are obsessed with ownership percentage. Bryan was obsessed with acceleration. He gave away two-thirds of his first company to partners who knew more than he did. He took 5-10% in a PE-backed roll-up because he knew he could build something bigger, faster. He called it "ignorance as a superpower"—jumping before he knew what he was doing, then bringing in the pieces to make it work. Three exits. Each one bigger than the last. And he never owned more than a third of any of them.

Running a blue-collar business? Wondering how to think about value or selling? Iconic Founders Group helps founders like you explore what's next. If you're doing over $2M in profit, check us out at iconicfounders.com or send us a message at theturn@iconicfounders.com.

Iconic Links:
• Learn More: https://www.iconicfounders.com
• Connect: theturn@iconicfounders.com
• Production: Lower Street https://lowerstreet.co