Scaling a Tiny Acquisition to a PE-Backed Exit | Phil Miller Interview

Phil Miller had a nose for value. He saw that the store had a ton of underutilized space that could be monetized with pet boarding, pet grooming. He also understood that being zoned for pet boarding was precious, and this business was so zoned. He jumped in and bought it. 18 years later, in 2024, Phil had grown to 11 locations, 2 of them pet hospitals, and Pawville was an established regional brand. Private equity came knocking, and Pawville became the platform for PE-backed WagWay. Now, 18 years is a long time, yes. But note, while it took 14 years to get to 3 locations, the next 8 locations came in only 4 years, from 2020 to 2024. Listen for how Phil unlocked growth when he shifted from owner of the physical locations to tenant. This is a lesson in capital allocation. OK, please enjoy this conversation with Phil Miller, founder & CEO of Pawville. ❤️ Enjoy this interview? SUBSCRIBE for more: https://shorturl.at/zaP1m Chapters: 00:00 Phil’s background 13:44 First location acquisition and early business struggles 26:39 Second location expansion and move to North Carolina 52:14 Strategic partnership with Store Capital for real estate financing 01:07:00 Brand consolidation and competitor acquisitions 01:09:14 Addition of veterinary hospitals to business model 01:25:00 Partnership with private equity firm Wagway 01:39:46 Benefits and challenges of private equity partnership CONNECT with the Acquiring Minds podcast, socials, etc. 🎧 Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2vZrl0u... 🎧 Podcast on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... 👉 Get notified of new interviews: https://acquiringminds.co 👉 Follow host Will Smith on Twitter:   / whentheresawill   👉 Connect with host Will Smith on LinkedIn:   / willsmithsf   ABOUT Acquiring Minds Acquiring Minds is a podcast about buying businesses. Acquiring an existing business is an awesome opportunity for many entrepreneurs, and host Will Smith talks to the people who do it. New episodes 2x per week. Credits: Edited by Anton Rohozov Produced by Pam Cameron #business #acquisitions #buyingbusiness