Episode 106

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Published on:

29th Feb 2024

Ep. 106 Empowering Entrepreneurs with Chris Antonello, Owner & Operating Partner of Plexus Capital

In this episode of Investors & Operators, Jordan sits down with Chris Antonello, Owner and Operating Partner at Plexus Capital to discuss the different aspects of deal creation, offering his insights and advice to those looking to either secure capital or structure deals. Together, they discuss:

  • Types of Operating Partners
  • Professionalizing a Company
  • Value Creation After a Deal

...and so much more.

Top Takeaways

  • Where am I going? Where do I want to be? When talking about the key questions all business owners should be asking themselves, Chris encourages them to reflect on where they currently stand and identify strategies for increasing their businesses’ value. He emphasizes the significance of not only working on the day-to-day task, but taking time to step back and evaluate the business’ worth and growth potential. 
  • “You can’t throw the ball where the guy is. You’ve got to throw the ball where the guy is going to be.” Chris uses an analogy of a quarterback throwing the ball to where the receiver will be, stressing forward-thinking in organizational setup for future success and growth. Highlighting middle market buyers expectations, Chris shows the importance of professionalizing your company and teams to boost its EBITDA and overall value.
  • Chasing the American Dream. Chris shares the joy he finds in seeing the hard work and value creation of entrepreneurs and being able to partner with them to scale their businesses. He spotlights the importance of shared values in these partnerships and highlights the satisfaction Plexus feels from seeing the growth and success from these partnerships.
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About the Podcast

Investors & Operators
A Podcast by 51 Labs
The M&A market can be boring, but everyone has a story. The Investors & Operators podcast is about discovering the stories people were holding back, didn’t know how to tell, or forgot about. The goal is simple: fresh, authentic storytelling to bring people together in the M&A community.

With over 1M organic views and counting on LinkedIn, 51 Labs is disrupting the M&A market through the use of videography and content creation. In a market that longs for authenticity, 51 Labs helps strengthen your brand and tell your story. From concept to distribution, we strategize and produce thoughtful content to be used across a multitude of channels, to help you stand out in an otherwise traditionally boring market.

New episodes every other Thursday at 6:00am Eastern.

About your host

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Jordan Selleck

Founder. Recovering Investment Banker. 3x Entrepreneur. Philz Coffee Enthusiast.

Jordan Selleck is a recovering investment banker turned 3x entrepreneur. While teaching English in China, Jordan met an investment banker in a bar and before he knew it he’d spent six years in cross-border investment banking advising global corporates and private equity firms on M&A deals up to $250 million.

As much as Jordan loved investment banking, he always knew he was meant to do something more. In 2016, Jordan founded Debtmaven, a deal management platform for debt financing in the lower middle market. It was while he was marketing Debtmaven on LinkedIn that Jordan found his true passion: building meaningful relationships in the lower middle market.

Seeing over 50% of Debtmaven’s $450million+ in deals come from LinkedIn, he realized he’d found an untapped market and began his journey with LinkedIn consulting. Dozens of clients and a handful of extraordinarily talented employees later, 51 Labs is a thriving marketing agency for the lower middle market that produces captivating content and generates organic traffic across LinkedIn.

Jordan was born in San Diego, grew up in North Carolina and attended UNC-Chapel Hill. He has traveled to 32 countries, lived in China for 18 months, trains Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, is a fourth-generation private pilot, SCUBA dives, speaks Mandarin Chinese, and is a husband and father of 2.