From Cell Phone Insurance To Empire Builder | Rob Emery

The Wise Exit

E30: Today, my guest is Rob Emery, a serial telecom and pet industry entrepreneur with two exits under his belt.

Early in his career, Rob started selling cell phones through his own retail outlets. After merging his retail locations with a franchise partner, Rob sold off his retail locations and founded ProtectCELL to focus on selling cell phone protection and replacement service plans through operational excellence and great business relationships. ProtectCELL became one of INC magazine's 500 fastest growing companies in the country.

Rob was looking for a financial partner to grow the business further, but ended up selling the majority of the business in 2012 and then selling the remaining equity two years later. Today, after investing in the pet industry as a hobby, Rob is now the owner and CEO of Encompass Pet Group, which distributes high quality pet foods and products, manages pet retail outlets and sells the hugely popular pet Comfort product, Snuggle Puppy.

In our discussion, Rob advises business owners to; 1) build your data room every day so you're ready to exit when a buyer comes calling, 2) conduct real due diligence on your buyer if you're going to roll equity, and 3) how installing operational excellence and infrastructure can allow a business owner to grow by buying other companies.

I hope you enjoy the conversation with Rob Emery.

Episode Highlights:
(5:02) From selling car stereos to opening a retail location - the beginnings of entrepreneurship
(8:02) How cell phone protection plans kick-started massive growth
(10:10) Managing exceptional growth
(13:02) Getting the M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) house in order
(16:54) Two bites at the M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) apple
(22:46) Retirement, and beginning the next step in an exceptional entrepreneurial journey
(25:27) The investment into SnugglePuppy
(31:38) The long term plan for Rob and the Encompass Pet Group
(36:20) The importance of having a proper Data Room in M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions)
(41:33) Fly first class forever...
(41:49) Changing the life of Rob's two niece's and one nephew

Where To Find Todd Sullivan:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddfsullivan/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Todd_Sullivan

Where To Find Rob Emery:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robemery1/

Episode 30 References:

• ProtectCELL Purchased by Fortegra Financial, a Portfolio Company of Summit Partners
• Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS)
• SnugglePuppy
• 15 Things That Make Being A Single Puppy Owner Easier (USAToday)
• Encompass Pet Group