artnering is not a topic we've covered much on Acquiring Minds.

As we all know, buying a business is fraught with risk.

Doing it with a partner adds yet more risk to the mix.

Today's guest has been through 2 partnerships that involved buying a business — and he has the scars to prove it.

In 2008, Jeff Evenson and his wife acquired a salon doing $3.5m (that is a large salon), then he and a friend acquired a $12m precision machine shop in 2018.

Both of those partnerships did not end well, and these days Jeff is vocal that acquisition entrepreneurs be extremely careful & prudent when it comes to buying a business alongside a partner.

He has a few rules, informed by a few underlying philosophies, all of which he shares in this interview.

Please enjoy my conversation with Jeff Evenson about the delicate, unpredictable nature of partnerships.