The Overlooked Founder

The Overlooked Founder: The Blue-Collar Success Story

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There’s a group of business owners I’ve worked with—people who don’t often get the spotlight but whose stories are the backbone of the American economy. They’re the ones who built something lasting from the ground up: founders who run manufacturing plants, logistics companies, regional service providers, or specialized trades. Their companies might not make the business headlines, but they consistently generate millions in revenue, employ local workforces, and contribute to their communities in ways that matter.

Despite their success, these founders are often left out of the club. Their journey through a business transition is anything but straightforward, and the support system isn’t built with them in mind.

Humble Beginnings, Complicated Endings

Like many of the owners I work with, my background is humble. I understand firsthand the challenge of navigating a world of complex financial strategies and elite networks that can feel distant and unwelcoming. Most of these founders have relied for years on a trusted accountant or attorney—good people, but often with limited knowledge of mergers and acquisitions. When it comes time to consider a sale, they’re sent to a patchwork of other advisors, each pulling them in a different direction and often operating with little alignment.

Too often, their choices boil down to two extremes. On one end, there’s the large investment bank—fast-talking, highly polished, but laser-focused on their own internal network of repeat buyers and big private equity firms. Here, founders can feel lost in the shuffle: passed down to junior team members, facing six-figure retainers, and treated like a number rather than the person who built the company. The sophistication (and the cost) is overkill for a $10 million to $100 million business, but these firms aren’t structured to offer anything more tailored.

Falling Through the Cracks

On the other end, they might get referred to a business broker, who’s often less of a true M&A expert and more of a career salesperson. The result? A generic approach, pitch books that barely rise above amateur, and a focus on mom-and-pop shop transactions. This level of advice simply isn’t sophisticated enough for founders who have built something substantial, but it’s what’s available—and that can leave them feeling invisible and unsupported.

When founders turn to financial advisors at big firms, the story isn’t much better. These advisors are generalists, working with a wide range of clients—from retirees to executives to business owners. For anything complex, they call in a specialist from a different office, sometimes even a different state. The founder ends up interacting with a revolving door of faces, none of whom truly understand their business or their values. The advisor’s incentive is to get the owner to sell so they can manage the proceeds, not to help them choose the best exit or maximize legacy.

What’s Lost Without True Advocacy

The consequences of this system are personal. Owners who spent a lifetime building a business find themselves pulled in conflicting directions, lacking a single point of truth. They can feel small or unsophisticated compared to the slick professionals in the room, and they’re left with important questions unanswered. What are their real options? What’s the best way to maximize value? Who is actually working for them?

What’s often missing is a true advocate—someone who understands the unique world of the blue-collar founder, who can guide every step of the process with a deep knowledge of both the owner and their business. Instead, these founders are expected to trust a system built for someone else.

A Call for Something Better

I’ve seen what happens when these owners are finally given the attention and expertise they deserve. The process becomes more transparent, less intimidating, and far more rewarding—not just financially, but personally. Their values are protected. Their voices are heard. Their legacy is preserved.

There’s a lesson here for the broader financial and advisory world: Success doesn’t always look like a Fortune 500 balance sheet. Sometimes, it’s the shop that employs 50 people in a small town, or the logistics company that keeps an entire region moving. These founders deserve advocates who see the whole person, not just the business, and who build solutions for them—not just the biggest clients in the room.

— Nick