Shane Ehrsam, Brandon Adams·September 21, 2023

How to Hire a GM and Buy Business #2 | Shane Ehrsam & Brandon Adams Interviews

This episode features two return-guest update interviews. Shane Ehrsam bought North Texas Trailers — a three-location trailer dealership in the Dallas-Fort Worth area — for $4 million in a highly leveraged SBA deal with seller notes and minimal equity. One year in, despite industry-wide softening (Texas trailer unit sales down ~20%), Shane's business is on track to exceed $10 million in revenue and surpass its 2021 EBITDA peak, driven by a strategic pivot to higher-margin parts and service and a B2B/B2G customer development push. Shane is a self-described long-term holder who values autonomy and lifestyle over rapid scaling, candidly discussing the envy he sometimes feels listening to faster-growing operators on the podcast. Brandon Adams, a former Army Recon leader and hedge fund analyst, co-owns the Philadelphia Dry Ice Company (also operating as Jim's Ice) with partner Don Ware, acquired in April 2021. Their key milestone since the previous episode was hiring an experienced GM (John), which freed them to pursue a second acquisition now under LOI — sourced off-market through a beer club contact. Brandon describes the first 6-12 months as genuinely difficult — including discovering the seller had been paying employees under the table — but the business has stabilized well above pre-covid EBITDA levels (~$1.1m in year 2 vs. ~$700k pre-covid), and the duo are executing on their vision of building a diversified holding company with empowered, entrepreneurial teams.

Deal facts

purchase price: Shane: $4m; Brandon: not stated
multiple: Shane: implied ~4.4x normalized SDE (~$900k); Brandon: not stated
sde ebitda: Shane: EBITDA $1.7m (2021 covid peak), ~$900k normalized pre-covid; Brandon: EBITDA ~$700-750k pre-covid, $2.4m in 2020 (covid peak), ~$1.4m year 1 post-acquisition, ~$1.1m year 2
revenue: Shane: $9.5m (2021), on track for $10m+ in 2023; Brandon: not explicitly stated
financing structure: Shane: SBA loan + seller note (standby) + seller note (regular), minimal equity brought; Brandon: not discussed in update episode
notes: Shane's business: North Texas Trailers, 3-location trailer dealership in DFW, founded 2007, 17 employees at acquisition, 22 at time of interview. Brandon's business: Philadelphia Dry Ice Company / Jim's Ice, acquired April 2021, 2-person partnership (Brandon Adams and Don Ware). Brandon's deal: seller was paying employees under the table; faulty pre-acquisition information; business stabilized well above pre-covid levels.

Why this business

Shane: The business fit what he was looking for — he wanted autonomy, to answer to no one, and to run a business his own way after a sour exit from corporate life. A six-month systematic search led him to a high-cash-flowing multi-location dealership he could buy with minimal equity via SBA leverage. Brandon: He and his partner Don wanted to build a holding company combining the small-team leadership experience of the Army with the intellectual and financial challenges of the hedge fund world; the ice business offered a stable route-based service with a strong reputation in Philadelphia.

What's working

Shane: Revenue up ~10.5% year-over-year in 2023 despite industry-wide trailer sales down ~20% in Texas; on track to exceed $10m revenue and surpass 2021 SDE record.
Shane: Shifted focus from trailer sales (normalized pricing) to higher-margin parts and service business; bulk purchasing of parts inventory drives better margins.
Shane: Developing B2B and B2G customer base (construction companies, municipalities, landscapers) where service speed (1-2 day turnaround vs. competitors' 2-3 weeks) is a key differentiator; hiring an outside account executive.
Shane: Added 401k match and health insurance, restructured compensation and bonus plans, improving employee morale and retention.
Brandon: Successfully hired a GM (John) with deep dry ice industry experience; GM took over full day-to-day responsibility, freeing Brandon and Don to pursue strategy and M&A.
Brandon: Business sustaining EBITDA well above pre-covid levels (~$1.1m in year 2 vs. ~$700k pre-covid), providing capital to fund next acquisition.
Brandon: Strong reputation for reliability in Philadelphia ice market maintained and built upon; consistent customer service ethos.
Brandon: New business under LOI sourced proprietarily through a personal contact (beer club connection), with experienced GM already in place.
Brandon: Iterative improvement in hiring process — now prioritizing cultural fit and team buy-in over speed of hire; team morale is high.

What's hard

Shane: Non-recurring, project-based revenue creates unpredictable peaks and valleys in sales week-to-week (e.g., worst month since acquisition was July 2023 with no clear explanation).
Shane: Highly leveraged SBA loan creates fixed monthly debt obligation that requires consistent cash flow management; accumulating cash reserves rather than paying down debt early.
Shane: Stock deal structure means legacy liabilities (e.g., was served a lawsuit the day before closing) remain an ongoing risk; requires proper insurance coverage.
Shane: Miss the white-collar mentorship dynamic from corporate life; flat org structure limits traditional career-development relationships with employees.
Brandon: First 6-12 months were extremely difficult — driving ice deliveries late at night personally, discovering seller had been paying employees under the table, faulty pre-acquisition financial information, significant early employee turnover.
Brandon: Labor is the biggest ongoing challenge — finding committed workers for physically demanding, lower-skilled delivery and warehouse jobs; early hires were rushed and some did not work out.
Brandon: Rising SBA interest rates (9.75-11%) making new acquisitions harder to pencil while seller multiples have not come down proportionately.
Brandon: Dry ice revenue mix has shifted downward as COVID tailwinds faded; had to pivot strategic focus toward packaged ice and potential ice manufacturing instead.

Notable quotes

This has been by far the most professionally rewarding year of my life, bar none. I don't want to be cliche but like a lot of successful Searchers say we wish we'd all done this sooner.

If I can pay my fixed expenses or operational expenses through the gross profit made on parts and service then anything I sell kind of is gravy or falls to the bottom line from there.

I plan on holding this business for a very long time, you know hypothetically forever. I have such a long-term outlook on this business and because it's cash flowing, it's doing well, I'm very happy with 10 to 15 growth.

Labor is a great challenge especially in unskilled work. I hate to say that it's unskilled but I think that's kind of how the market would define it but it's very difficult to find people who are going to be committed to the team committed to the job when you have to find a way to give meaning to it.