n the fall of 2020, Martin Bispels bought a very pandemic-friendly business, one positioned to benefit from the consumer trends unfolding due to Covid.

It was a direct-to-consumer, or DTC, brand — essentially, it was an ecommerce brand with a Shopify store.

And it sold bags for disc golf, a hobbyist, no-contact sport, the perfect activity for being outside safely.

Not to say it was easy, though.

When Martin and his partner acquired the business, revenue stood at 0 dollars, and inventory at 0 units. Martin was going to have to rebuild it from an absolute standstill.

And he did.

When Martin came on Acquiring Minds in September 2021, he was on track to reach $2m/yr in sales, just one year after buying the business.

Today you'll hear how things have gone since.

As we all know, ecommerce has softened, and people are spending less time & money on their outdoor activities.

Martin's business has felt those shifts.

‍A few of my favorite topics in our conversation are:

  • How to think about acquiring a consumer product brand
  • What it's like to move your supply chain from China to Vietnam
  • The high availability of talent if you're operating a remote business

Finally, Martin is a brand guy; he worked for years at QVC, the shopping channel.

So pay attention to how he thinks about brands. It's not something we talk about much on Acquiring Minds; the businesses many of my guests acquire are operations heavy, so operations are what gets attention.

But maybe your average small business buyer isn't thinking about brand enough, and is leaving some opportunity on the table.

See if you agree.

Here's Martin Bispels, owner of Upper Park Disc Golf.