Daniel Katz

Entrepreneur | Searcher | CEO | Acquired & scaled a 45-year business | Building the first franchise built by a Searcher, for Searchers™

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

🚨 Exciting Illinois Update!

Our Illinois franchise registration has been approved, and we're now able to begin offering franchises in Illinois.

Over the last 2½ years, we've been building something that started with a self-funded search and ultimately took us in a direction we never expected.

Read our story here:
https://t.co/6Y1iSYDo5Z

After acquiring Tommy Pollina, we eventually realized the company's most valuable assets weren't the trucks, equipment, customers, or even the revenue.

They were 45 years of institutional knowledge, intellectual property, proprietary processes, operating systems, and methodologies developed through decades of trial and error.

That realization changed the direction of the business and ultimately led us to build what we believe is the first franchise built by a Searcher, for Searchers™.

Our plan is to award the first eight territories, all within the Chicago market where Tommy Pollina has spent 45 years building customer trust, goodwill, a strong digital footprint, and brand recognition. We believe that gives our initial franchisees a significant head start by launching where the brand is already known and trusted.

We've done zero paid advertising or digital marketing to this point. Every conversation has come from personally reaching out to members of the ETA community.

If the story resonates with you, I'd appreciate you sharing it with any searchers, operators, or investors who you think might find it interesting.

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

See the journey at https://t.co/Eh9bFIkhYZ

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

Would you buy the house next door just to tear it down? What these homeowners did with the empty lot is pretty unbelievable.

After the neighboring house was demolished, our crew got to work.

- 30 yards of topsoil and mushroom compost to build up the base
- more than 800 rolls of sod
- Green Giant arborvitae for privacy, plus aspens and magnolias
- perennials and shrubs, from hydrangeas to catmint and lilacs
- Unilock pathways, river rock, steel edging and a drainage system underneath it all

They didn't buy the neighboring house to renovate it, rent it out, or build something bigger.

They bought it to turn two residential lots into one enormous backyard.

Something you almost rarely see in Chicago.

If you could buy the house next door, would you keep it or turn it into yard?

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@Mlovely4life oh wow

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

Should homeowners have to pay more when their contractor discovers unexpected problems that weren’t in the contract?

Sometimes, the biggest problems are the ones nobody could see before construction began.

We recently took on a complete exterior renovation that included replacing an old brick paver driveway, installing new concrete walkways and patios, rebuilding a retaining wall, and restoring the landscaping.

But when our crew started removing the old driveway, we discovered something unexpected.

There was no proper stone base underneath it. Just sand.

And you can’t simply pour a new concrete driveway over an inadequate foundation and expect it to last.

So before we could move forward, we had to build a properly compacted stone base to support the new concrete.
The finished project included over 1,700 square feet of new concrete, decorative paver borders, a rebuilt retaining wall, and new landscaping.

But the most important work might be the part nobody will ever see.

If a contractor discovers a hidden problem that wasn’t included in the original estimate, who should pay for it?

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@AlexLanghe12493 agreed

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@MMw653106 @Priority1771 exactly

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@spyguywashere @Stealx Yes sir !

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@Priority1771 There was no aggregate base under the sand

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

A matter of fact- most of the business that came in through the founder’s Cell Phone the first year, his longtime customers that he had been under charging - doing work fast, great, and cheap for ( which you can’t do all 3) - I essentially, the nicest way I could, fired most of his longtime customers because they were extremely entitled, were getting so much work done for so little, and expected us to jump anytime they snapped their fingers- so I just raised prices so high that they went away, most of them (by design )

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@seethefriction Devil’s in the details

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@BuiltAndPriced Got a document as much as you can in the contract upfront about what can go wrong

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@fatalradel @Stealx Iman was really generous with his time and we had a blast - hours went by pretty quickly

It’s a crazy world out there with a lot of noise - especially in acquisition , search and even RE, great to meet people that are passionate , and have similar values and views

[Iman Jalali @Stealx]

Tommy Pollina has been fixing drainage and landscapes on Chicago's North Shore since 1982

In 2024, @InvestmentTier1 bought it

Met him today for what was supposed to be an hour coffee. We ended up talking for 3 hours. One of the most passionate entrepreneurs I've ever met.

He saw what the ETA gurus don't post about:
- Inflated SDE
- Sellers who quit investing to pump the number
- Brokers running the process
- Buyers closing on businesses they had no business buying

Too many grifters. Too many people getting hurt. So Dan built the alternative

He took 45 years of drainage experience and turned it into a franchise

The first one built by a searcher, for searchers

A real brand, a real playbook and a niche almost nobody else is franchising

He wants you to diligence him hard

If you're around Chicago, he'll coach and mentor you himself

This is beyond personal to him. He's not going to let you fail.

Give him a follow!

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@Mitchellduzit Terms need to include as much language as possible about what treasures can be found

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@suiwereen Absolutely

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@Stealx 🥹

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

See the journey at https://t.co/Eh9bFIkhYZ

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@irentdumpsters The real question is what part of the market do you want to compete in ?

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

@WestUnderAttack I could FaceTime you from the property, the camera angles are definitely different but this is the before and after

Flattered that you would say they’re completely different- we agree that they look completely different because our crews did a great job

[Daniel Katz @InvestmentTier1]

Would you pay someone to remove a perfectly good swimming pool?

This family in Mount Prospect had a pretty good reason.

Our crew demolished the existing pool and surrounding concrete, prepared the area for drainage, and regraded the backyard.
After that, the crew:

- backfilled the pool and finished the top 4 to 5 inches with topsoil
- cleared out overgrown bushes and small trees
- regraded the yard and put river rock in by the shed
- poured a new concrete patio and sidewalks on a stone base with wire mesh
- built a small Quarry Stone retaining wall out front

Their kids had grown up, the pool wasn't getting the same use it once did, and the homeowners decided it was time to reclaim their backyard.

The goal was a backyard the homeowners can actually use, without the pool.

Would you ever get rid of a pool? Or is that crazy talk?