SMB Turnaround Guy

Turnaround and special situations investor rebuilding American SMBs one deal at a time. If there’s a path forward, let’s find it.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

There are two types of people in this world: those who’ve sweated payroll, and those who haven’t.

Happy Friday to everyone waiting on a big customer payment on Monday so Tuesday’s payroll funding clears. Hope you get some rest this weekend.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@BoilerPlateCPA Send it

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@wraithbrokerage Preachh 🙌🏻

[Thomas Braziel @Bkclaims]

Friday Thought:

One thing I’ve learned in distressed/private deals - Under ~$1m, assume the docs almost don’t matter.

Good docs help. You should still have them. But you cannot contract your way out of a bad counterparty.

If someone wants to steal, lie, delay, hide assets, or play games, they will. The documents just determine how expensive the fight becomes later.

At the end of the day, investing is mostly trust. The legal docs are there to memorialize trust - not create it.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@TheAdam027 Refuah shleima. Stay strong

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@SBA_Matthias Not in a restructuring!

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@MSUKyleBrown I saw more distressed deal opps in this space in 2025 than any other industry. Insurers have gotten smart and are crushing down on margins. I think there’s a lot of these companies coming to market now because the easy money has already been made.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@BoilerPlateCPA Great work

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@PerrySolem Banger tweet

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

Not really. This actually isn't even that heavy-handed compared to what the government has done in the past. The government can, has, and should be able to redirect private industry to protect national security.

1. 1942 - fed created the War Production Board (WPB) that could force private manufacturing of scarce inputs for WWII
2. 1950 - fed created the Defense Production Act (DPA) to make private biz prioritize defense contracts for the Korean War and Cold War
3. 1973 - Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act (EPAA) allowed the exec branch to control how oil was sold

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@BigDemoPrez Congrats!

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

Anyone with a keyboard can tear down, judge, and heckle. Only the strong can build and praise.

The world needs your positivity.

If the x algorithm actually shifts to only rewarding negative engagement, opening this app will become a dreadful experience. This will push away the life-loving good voices worth being around, and leave only trolls and ghouls to wallow in their collective misery. That is not a “commons” I think is worth stooping one’s self down for.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

At @HoldCoConf yesterday I met 6 people under 45 who own 100% of $10m+ EBITDA boring biz holding companies. Unbelievable roster, the quiet young legends of the ETA model.

Also had fun chatting e-comm turnarounds with @kelceylehrich

[Compound Conference @HoldCoConf]

Hitting the slopes a few times between sessions?

Must be HoldCo Conference.

#holdcoconf

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@lawyer4SMBs Can you share the source?

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@Jaredkotter @marcusmclayton @Nads_Shariff Curious about this too!

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

This chart explains why business ownership is so hard. In 2026, SMBs have 3 options:

1. Grow through product innovation and tech/AI efficiency
2. Sell to a buyer who will do #1
3. Get pushed out

The US economy now rewards scale, tech enablement, and specialization. Many 1-49 employee businesses are under-resourced, under-capitalized, or both.

Also, a hidden driver here is the capital vacuum for stressed SMBs. When trouble hits, they’re shut out of capital markets and left only with vampiric MCAs. This pressure is accelerating as COVID-era rescue financing comes due.

[Restructuring__ @Restructuring__]

Great start from Apollo on the bifurcation of the job market

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@ConnorAbene Counterpoint. If your margins are too high compared to industry benchmark, that could indicate you’re leaving material top line on the table. Need to do an optimization equation to find the right balance of margin shrinkage in exchange for more, still profitable throughput

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@sourcesandmuses Following. Let us know what you settle on. I have a similar situation.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

A recurring pattern in elite founders/operators: maniacal focus + credible aggression.

Neil Mehta says it best in his interview with @patrick_oshag.

Focus isn’t “working hard.” It’s choosing the one thing that matters most and saying no to everything else.

Credible aggression is what separates ambition from fantasy: clear sequencing, proper resourcing, and explicit tradeoffs.

The best people pick a constraint, swarm it, and move to the next one only after the first breaks.

This is why some teams look “lucky.” They’re not lucky; they’re disciplined and relentless.

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

@paulswaney3 @SMBJackieHirsch

[SMB Turnaround Guy @turnaroundsguy]

Spotted in Brooklyn today.

If you don’t believe in yourself, who will?