What are You Really Worth with Legacy Advisors, Episode #283

In this episode of The Power Producers Podcast, David Carothers and co-host Kyle Houck interview Mike Almberg and Max Olson, partners at Legacy Advisors. Mike and Max discuss their expertise in optimizing the value of insurance agencies, their advice to owners eyeing the next chapter in their journey, and how Legacy Advisors stands as a beacon of trust, offering clarity, and tangible results for agency owners ready to transition.

Episode Highlights:

• Max shares that he comes from the insurance agency world and has experience in buying and selling agencies, but noticed a lack of focus on culture and long-term happiness after the sale, leading to potential regrets and dissatisfaction among colleagues. (2:27)
• Mike mentions that they gained valuable knowledge and best practices for selling businesses by working with larger companies and applying those practices to independent insurance agencies. (4:43)
• Max explains that despite some fluctuations, now is a great time for agency owners to sell as there are buyers willing to pay sizable multiples, especially for agencies with significant growth and strong back-end processes. (12:40)
• Mike discusses the importance of a transition period in mergers and acquisitions and the need for principals to stick around after the sale to ensure employee happiness and client satisfaction, and how buyers incentivize this through an earn-out period. (19:38)
• Mike believes that focusing on small improvements in business can lead to significant profit increases when it’s time to sell, but it should be done more frequently than just once a year. (26:10)
• Max emphasizes the value of attending meetings and gaining insights from experts in the field, particularly in the context of financial management for insurance agencies. (29:38)
• Mike mentions that their job is to educate and provide clients with the best options, without pushing them in any specific direction, and their goal is to close transactions and build long-term relationships based on trust and mutual benefit. (40:21)
• Max mentions the importance of providing agencies with more information to make better-informed decisions. (44:08)

Tweetable Quotes:

• “Our job is to educate and basically just get our clients the best options that we can so they can evaluate them.” – Mike Almberg
• “Anything that can be provided into the agency world, where they have a better idea about what happens in or around the time that they go through and themselves so they have more information and can make better-informed decisions, is really helpful.” – Max Olson

Resources Mentioned:

• Mike Almberg LinkedIn
• Max Olson LinkedIn
• Legacy Advisors
• David Carothers
• Kyle Houck
• Florida Risk Partners
• The Extra 2 Minutes