with Xavier Helgesen · Dolphin Pools
LenderHawk analysis. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Acquisitions Anonymous.
Enduring Ventures liked Dolphin Pools because it was a stable, growing Phoenix business with good margins, strong branding, and room to expand into remodels, commercial pools, and higher-ticket work.
After closing, Xavier said the business benefited from both Phoenix market growth and COVID-era demand; permits were up about 60% and the company also grew roughly 60%, while moving average ticket above $50,000 and adding higher-margin remodel work.
Phoenix pool demand was a key part of the thesis: the company’s growth tracked a rising permit environment rather than just internal sales execution.
A pool builder that acts mainly as a general contractor can be attractive when subcontracted labor keeps fixed payroll light and capex low.
The business was more sales-intensive than a typical SMB because each lead had to be converted from online inquiry into a customized backyard project.
A strong local general manager can make a pool company far more scalable than the founders themselves, especially when the buyer wants to avoid buying a job.
Separate subsidiary-level cap tables can be worth the bookkeeping burden if the holdco wants to bring in different investors or managers for different businesses.
Remodels can be a more attractive margin pool than new builds once the company already has installed capacity and brand recognition.
The buyers learned that acquiring the right CEO can be as important as acquiring the right company because leadership quality can multiply the value of the asset.
A holdco with little or no debt at the parent level can preserve flexibility while using subsidiary financing, seller notes, and occasional SBA debt to close deals.
Xavier used this as a shorthand for a holdco that owns diverse businesses across tech and non-tech, with a small central team and decentralized operations.
When to use: Use it to describe a multi-business platform that combines central capital allocation with very light headquarters overhead.
A simple acquisition filter: prefer businesses in expanding end markets because growth in the market makes execution easier than trying to outgrow a shrinking category.
When to use: Use it when evaluating whether a target’s industry tailwinds can do part of the work for you.
Dolphin Pools had done about $14 million in revenue in 2016, $16 million in 2017, and $19 million in 2018, with a projected $21 million for 2019.
Bill walked through the teaser economics before Xavier explained the close.
The listing showed about $2.7 million of EBITDA on roughly $21 million of revenue, implying low-teens margins.
The panel discussed the business quality and cash generation.
The company had been operating since 1984 and had built more than 7,500 pools in the Phoenix area.
These facts were used to show longevity and market presence.
Average pool ticket rose from roughly $35,000 in 2016 to about $40,000 in 2018 and around $39,000 in 2019.
The hosts used this to gauge pricing power and market positioning.
Xavier said the Phoenix market’s pool permits were up about 60% after the acquisition year.
He used permit growth to explain how the business benefited from market tailwinds.
Enduring Ventures has done 10 acquisitions and started two companies in about two and a half years.
Xavier described the scale of the holdco platform.
The holdco has executed deals as small as $600,000 and as large as $15 million.
Xavier used this to define the firm’s acquisition range.
Xavier said some portfolio deals have been about 90% seller financed.
He was describing how creative deal structures can reduce the need for outside capital.
Buy businesses in markets with natural demand growth rather than trying to create growth from scratch.
Why: A rising market reduces the burden on the buyer to outcompete incumbents just to stand still.
Hire or partner with the right operator before or during the acquisition process.
Why: A great CEO can make an otherwise ordinary business far more valuable and make capital raising easier.
Keep headquarters lean and push accounting, HR, and operational support down to the subsidiary level unless a service truly needs centralization.
Why: Decentralization preserves flexibility and avoids the mess of trying to run too many businesses through one shared-services layer.
Use seller financing and subsidiary-level capital structures creatively when parent-level debt is undesirable.
Why: This can reduce holding-company leverage while still getting deals closed.
Focus on businesses where capex needs are modest relative to cash flow.
Why: Low capex gives a holdco room to recycle cash into new acquisitions.
After the acquisition, the sellers asked to shorten or avoid the full earnout because they wanted to reward a veteran pool executive, Jeff Mano, whom they trusted to run the company. Xavier said that move effectively handed Enduring Ventures a seasoned operator who had already wanted to buy the business himself.
Lesson: A seller’s willingness to back a strong successor can de-risk management transition and add hidden value to the deal.
Xavier said Enduring Ventures nearly bought a different pool construction company first, but the owner backed out near the end because he ultimately did not want to retire. That setback pushed the firm back into the market, where it found Dolphin Pools through a broker relationship.
Lesson: Deal pipeline setbacks can improve underwriting if you use the learning to sharpen what you want in the next target.