Pam Wolf
Pam Jordan Wolf, president of Acquisition Strategies, Inc., has 30 years experience in the pest control industry, as owner & operator of Arab Pest Control (1977-89), as district manager for Waste Management and, since 1992, as a consultant to buyers and sellers of pest control businesses.
“The industry has changed dramatically over the past three decades,” she says. “In the 1980s, a few big companies did most of the deals, and in the 1990s, the vast majority of calls I got were from sellers. Today, calls from buyers often outnumber those from sellers – and they’re not the big players, they’re small local firms that may just want to add a route or two or regional firms that have decided to expand by acquiring other operators.”
As a consultant on both sides of the table working on hundreds of deals, Pam has developed specific expertise in fair market valuations, marketing a business, selling strategies, negotiations and operating acquisitions profitably. “Changing dynamics in the sale and acquisition of pest control companies make it more critical than ever for buyers and sellers to plan ahead to ensure that they find the best possible fit at the best possible price,” she said.
Her 2000 book, Level the Field, was widely acclaimed as the definitive guide to buying, selling and valuing a pest control business. Although it’s now out of print, much of the material has been updated and will be available online at www.netopportunity.biz, the industry’s premier website for buying or selling a pest control business.
A 1977 graduate of Ball State University, Pam took, Arab, a second-generation family business from a $3 million regional operator to a $15 million statewide competitor. Waste Management made the proverbial “offer she couldn’t refuse” in 1989 and Pam then went on to direct their $50 million Florida operations until 1991. She is a past president of Florida Pest Management Association and has served on the National Pest Management Association board of directors as well as multiple committees.
pam@netopportunity.biz
813-968-9792 |
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 Tom Wolf
A “serial entrepreneur” who has built and sold five businesses over the last 30 years, Tom Wolf is now developing business Number 7. Transition Resource, established in 2005, is focused on helping small to medium-sized businesses achieve their maximum potential by enhancing leadership and creating a corporate culture that fosters success.
“I’ve learned, grown and gained great wisdom from both my successes and my struggles,” he says. “Along the way, I’ve earned considerable expertise in sales and marketing and developed an in-depth understanding of the tools, attitudes and resilience required to become a successful entrepreneur.”
While Tom hasn’t focused on the pest control industry, the lessons learned building companies as diverse as a full-service computer staffing firm, a franchised hair salon and a tri-state regional franchise for The Entrepreneur’s Source translate well to growing pest control companies.
“What those companies all have in common is a corporate culture that values people and allows all employees to thrive,” he said. “And when employees thrive, companies thrive.”
His staffing firm, for example, started as an undercapitalized executive search firm and grew into a business with multiple divisions serving accounts from five locations in three states. Even through its growth spurts, it pushed a remarkable 15% to the bottom line, when the industry average was about 6%. Until he sold it in 2005, his The Entrepreneur’s Source franchise was the largest, most productive and most profitable in the country.
Tom earned a BS in accounting from St. Joseph’s University and an MBA in marketing from Temple University. He or the companies he started have been ranked in the Inc. 500 Fastest-Growing Companies, named a finalist in the Entrepreneur of the Year award from Ernst and Young, won a quality achievement award from the state of Pennsylvania and been recognized as the regional director of the year by The Entrepreneur’s Source.
tom@netopportunity.biz
813-960-1810 |
