Acies Consulting — 1:1 acquisition coaching, by the hour

What buyers say

★★★★★

Josh has been great to work with throughout the acquisition process. Extremely knowledgeable, responsive, and practical. He’s done a great job helping me think through deals objectively while navigating lenders, diligence, and structure. More importantly, he’s honest and easy to work with. I’d absolutely recommend Josh to anyone serious about buying a business.

Ryan Coughlin · May 2026

★★★★★

Josh walked me step-by-step through the entire process, making sure I understood not just what needed to be done, but why each step mattered and what mistakes to avoid. Whenever I reached out with questions or asked him to review a deal, he responded the same day with thoughtful, practical guidance.

The most impactful moment came when he gave me his read on a business I was seriously considering. His perspective helped me identify risks I had overlooked, and I avoided a decision that would not have been in my best interest.

Rakiya Steans · May 2026

What you’re comparing this to

Most programs offering this kind of support charge $10,000–$15,000.

That’s a seat in a community or cohort program — paid upfront, for a year, before anyone looks at your deal. A fine way to learn the craft. An expensive way to get one question answered.

Community or cohort program

Paid upfront.
Use it or lose it.

The year runs whether you’re searching or not. Miss the window and the money is gone.

$10,000–$15,000Paid upfront, for twelve months

Curriculum built for everyone, not your deal
Your question waits behind forty others
Feedback from peers who haven’t closed either
Same price whether you look at one deal or none

Acies

Buy hours.
Use them when you need them.

Nothing expires on someone else’s schedule. Book an hour the week a decision lands.

$3,200 for ten hoursPaid when you need it

Every minute on your deal, your numbers
One-to-one. No queue, no cohort
Operators who own what they bought
Buy hours only when a decision is in front of you

Ten hours costs a quarter of a program seat — and none of it teaches you what you already know.

★★★★★

Josh is a natural teacher and really cares about helping others be successful. He goes above and beyond and is very approachable. The time saved on the business acquisition learning curve is well worth the money spent.

Lauren Potter · May 2026 · “Worth the money spent”

Simple hourly access

Hourly rates, on your schedule, for exactly what you need.

Book one hour or ten. Use them this month or across a year-long search. Every hour is with an operator who owns businesses they bought themselves — not a researcher, not a junior analyst assigned to your account.

Single call

Book one at a time

$400/ hour

One hour, one topic. A second opinion from someone who’s closed their own.

Pay as you go

Five hoursMost common

Five hours, pay for four

$1,600$320 / hr

Usually enough to get from buy box to signed LOI on a deal that holds up.

+1 hour included free

Ten hoursFull search

Ten hours, pay for eight

$3,200$320 / hr

Carries a search through diligence, close, and the months after.

+2 hours included free

Book hours ↗

No retainer. No monthly commitment. Nothing to cancel.

What we cover

Every topic, and how far each package gets you.

Nothing here is off-limits in a single call. The columns show what buyers at each level typically work through.

Where you are in the search	Single call$400	Five hours$1,600	Ten hours$3,200
Before you have a deal
Goal setting — what the business must pay you	✓	✓	✓
Buy box definition and review	✓	✓	✓
Industry, geography, and size screening	✓	✓	✓
Search strategy — on-market, off-market, or both	✓	✓	✓
Broker conversations and outreach approach	✓	✓	✓
Readiness check — capital, credit, and timing	✓	✓	✓
Evaluating a specific deal
Deal analysis and underwriting	✓	✓	✓
SDE and EBITDA quality, add-back defense	✓	✓	✓
Debt coverage against a 1.5–1.8x floor	✓	✓	✓
Owner dependency and customer concentration	✓	✓	✓
Working capital needs and seasonality	·	✓	✓
Red flags — when to walk, and why	✓	✓	✓
Making the offer
Offer support	✓	✓	✓
Valuation and price positioning	✓	✓	✓
Deal structure — seller note, standby terms, earnout	·	✓	✓
Capital stack — SBA 7(a), equity, seller paper	·	✓	✓
LOI drafting and review	·	✓	✓
Negotiation through a signed LOI	·	✓	✓
Financing and diligence
Lender packaging and SBA submission	·	✓	✓
Introductions — SBA lenders, QoE providers, attorneys	·	✓	✓
QoE findings and renegotiation	·	✓	✓
Diligence coordination and issue triage	·	·	✓
Lease, license, and transfer issues	·	·	✓
Close and the first 90 days
Closing table and funding	·	·	✓
Transition and employee comms	·	·	✓
First 90 days priorities	·	·	✓
Hiring a general manager	·	·	✓
Where it usually gets you	One question, answered straight	Buy box to signed LOI	Through close and into ownership

Meet your coach

Josh Wilson

Strategic owner · Multi-generational business owner · Glen Ellen, California

Leadership
Long-term strategy
Financial operations
Large-team management
Systems & data

“I buy businesses to own and grow them for the long haul. My family has kept companies going for generations, and I bring that same patience and respect to every transition.”

Still buying today — SBA pre-approved to $10M with investor capital on standby. The advice you get is the same advice I act on with my own money.

75 yearsThe age of Swaim Ornamental Iron Works, the steel fabrication company he acquired in 2024

90 & 25Years his family’s businesses have been operating, in two generations

$10MSBA pre-approved purchase capacity, plus investor capital on standby

15+ yearsLeading analytics and strategy teams at Southwest, Hilton, MGM, Panasonic Avionics, and AWS

He grew up inside family businesses. One is ninety years old, another twenty-five. That is where the view came from: a business is a long-term responsibility to its people and its customers, not a transaction.

He owns a real operating company. At Swaim he is the strategic owner, not the day-to-day operator — he installed a CEO, shop foreman, controller, and project manager, then backed them with capital, systems, and a long-term plan.

He is drawn to the hard ones. Skilled-trade and industrial businesses: hard to build, hard to replace, and too often sold to buyers who don’t understand them. That is the lens he brings to your deal.

Questions serious buyers usually ask.

Do you work with first-time buyers?

Mostly. The expensive first-time mistakes are structural: overpaying for owner-dependent revenue, under-funding working capital, taking a seller note that isn’t on standby. Experienced buyers tend to book single hours on one specific question.

How is this different from a course or a community?

A membership teaches thousands of people the same material at once. It works, and it’s the cheapest way to learn the craft. What it can’t do is tell you whether the deal in front of you is the one. That needs someone looking at your numbers.

Can you help me get financed?

We’re not lenders or brokers, and we take no referral fees. We design a capital stack a lender will approve, then introduce you to SBA lenders, QoE providers, and attorneys who close deals your size.

Do you guarantee I’ll close a deal?

No — be careful with anyone who does. Sellers walk, diligence uncovers things, lenders decline. We don’t source deals and we don’t promise outcomes. What these hours buy is not closing a bad one by accident.

What happens if the right answer is to walk away?

Then we say so, and that is the hour doing its job. Most deals are a no. The money you don’t lose on the wrong business is the return on this.

What if I already have a deal under LOI?

Book an hour this week. Bring the financials, the LOI, and the term sheet. The most useful hour we sell is usually the one before someone waives a contingency.

The confidence
to sign.
The judgment to
walk away.

Most programs offering this kind of support charge $10,000–$15,000.

Community or cohort program

Acies

Hourly rates, on your schedule, for exactly what you need.

Book one at a time

Five hours, pay for four

Ten hours, pay for eight

Every topic, and how far each package gets you.

Josh Wilson

Questions serious buyers usually ask.

Bring us the deal you’re not sure about.

Bring us the deal you’re not sure about.

Thank you — your message is on its way.