Jared Johnson sits down on location with Jordan Hood, the new owner of Low’s Bridal, a regionally known 48-year bridal institution in rural Arkansas. Jordan shares how a childhood on a Mississippi farm, an art and photography degree from Parsons, early digital marketing work in New York, and five years raising money for St. Jude all shaped the way she eventually stepped into owning a historic 22,000 square foot bridal shop she first joked about buying at age 19. She explains how she found the deal through her best friend’s family, what it took to win the trust of sellers who saw their staff as family, and why saving, buying her first home, and years of work across multiple industries positioned her for a successful SBA loan.

Jordan and Jared break down the real transition process inside a legacy business. They discuss hiring managers to replace two founders, navigating vendor account transfers, ordering a phase one environmental report early, using working capital to bridge delays, and learning everything from market trips to seven circuit breaker panels in a 30-day sprint. Jordan also shares the operational and customer experience changes she made on day one, including modernizing the check-in process, rewriting sales scripts, and improving the flow for today’s bride while protecting the magic that has defined Low’s Bridal for nearly five decades.

Main Takeaways:

• A nontraditional background can prepare a buyer more than they realize
• Deals often originate from long-standing relationships and small conversations
• Asking a seller if they would ever sell is a simple but powerful first step
• Sellers of legacy businesses often value the right buyer more than maximum price
• Building genuine trust with the seller and long-tenured staff creates stability during transition
• Buying a home or establishing savings can strengthen a buyer’s SBA profile
• Ordering environmental reports and key third-party items early can prevent last-minute delays
• Working capital is essential during the early weeks of account transfers and vendor approvals
• A defined transition period helps the buyer learn daily operations and uncover hidden processes
• Legacy owners often do everything themselves and successors may need to build a management team
• Improving customer flow and experience can increase conversion without losing the brand’s essence
• Today’s customers expect faster processes, guided appointments, and a modern check-in experience
• Sales scripts should create connection and trust, not pressure
• Mentors and industry coaches provide valuable support through a steep learning curve
• Loving the mission and the day-to-day work sustains owners through demanding seasons

Episode Highlights:

[00:00:40] Meet Jordan Hood and the origins of Low’s Bridal

[00:01:36] Growing up in rural Mississippi and discovering a creative path

[00:03:22] Early digital marketing work in New York during the rise of social media

[00:04:14] From floristry and fashion to AI behavioral advertising

[00:05:22] Five years at St. Jude and the business efficiency lessons of nonprofit fundraising

[00:08:07] The college conversation where Jordan first joked she would buy Low’s one day

[00:10:00] How the deal file landed on Jared’s desk and why this SBA loan looked different

[00:11:49] Being a “normal person” buyer and how saving and buying a home made the deal possible

[00:14:23] Advice to searchers: be willing to ask owners if they might sell

[00:17:00] Winning the trust of the sellers and staff in a multi-generation bridal business

[00:20:32] Replacing two founders with one owner and hiring managers quickly

[00:22:20] What Jordan would do differently and what she wishes she knew up front

[00:25:37] Ordering the full phase...

Jared Johnson sits down with Paige Wiese, founder of Truing Digital, a 16-year full-service digital marketing and web agency, to unpack the part of buying or selling a business that almost nobody plans for: digital asset transfer. Paige explains why domains, hosting, email, social accounts, analytics, third-party tools, brand files, and even AI/GPT logins often sit in personal inboxes or with old vendors—and how that can stall or even devalue a transaction. She walks through her two-step approach (digital asset assessment, then a 300+ point audit), why buyers should ask earlier for logins and proof of marketing performance, how sellers can show up more prepared, and what can go wrong when a domain expires or the recovery email is deleted. They also get into the new issue of employees training GPTs on company data under personal accounts, and why companies need standards now: one company-owned AI account, clear rules on what data can go in, and a plan for what happens when an employee leaves.

Main Takeaways:

- Most businesses cannot produce logins on demand and access is scattered across staff, vendors, and old emails

- Digital assets (domains, hosting, email, website, social, analytics, third-party tools) are business assets and should be part of the deal

- A two-step process works best: identify gaps, then audit and recover everything before close

- There are far more digital data points in a modern business than owners realize, often 300+

- Expired domains, deleted recovery emails, and vendor deaths can take 1–2 weeks to unwind

- Sellers who package digital assets cleanly reduce friction and protect valuation

- Buyers should ask early for proof of marketing performance and actual ownership of key platforms

- Key employees should not be single points of failure for website SOPs, renewals, or platform access

- Use a single company-controlled email (webmaster@ / marketing@ / info@) for all third-party tools and renewals

- AI/GPT tools introduce new risk when staff train models with company data under personal accounts

- Companies should provide the AI account, define what can be uploaded, and make it portable on exit

- Auditing tools also surfaces unused SaaS/AI expenses and can save money while organizing assets

Episode Highlights:

[00:00:21] Why digital asset transfer is an overlooked part of ETA and small business deals

[00:02:05] Paige’s background, 16 years running Truing Digital

[00:04:12] “Do you have the login?” and why clients rarely have everything in one place

[00:08:17] Preparing to sell in 6–12 months: start with a digital asset assessment

[00:10:43] The 300+ digital data points behind a business

[00:15:48] Extreme case: developer dies, everything was on reseller accounts, legal recovery required

[00:20:22] Standards of practice: one shared email for renewals and third-party tools

[00:26:14] Post-transaction integration: re-running the checklist once the buyer owns the business

[00:28:32] The “website is down six months after close” call and why it happens

[00:31:40] AI complication: personal GPTs trained on company data

[00:33:27] Policy solution: company-provided AI accounts and data rules

[00:37:25] Document everything before IT wipes a departing employee’s machine

Connect with Paige:

Website: https://www.treeringdigital.com/beforeyoubuyorsellabusiness

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paigewiese/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TreeRingDigital/

Instagram:

Jared Johnson sits down with husband and wife operators Tahir Zaman Hussain and Neilab Rahimzada to unpack an 18-month search that started in London and New York, survived a failed first deal, and ended with the acquisition of a hyper niche window restoration company with decades of brand equity. They explain why calling brokers directly beat scrolling listings, how a prior LOI on a fire sprinkler company fell apart over working capital, and what changed when they found a seller who was transparent and responsive. The pair walk through pricing, a structured transition that kept the seller away from staff, and why even a negative working capital model still demanded real cash at close for insurance and early costs. They share role reversals once they took the keys, the expected J curve, discovering demand that exceeded capacity, and the plan to professionalize operations while hiring to remove themselves as the bottleneck.

Main Takeaways:

• Calling brokers and building relationships beats passively browsing listings
• Seller fit and transparency are early signals of post close reality
• Working capital is a must have topic, if the seller cannot grasp it, walk away
• Even firms with negative net working capital need cash at close for early bills
• Weekly seller calls and a living data room keep diligence moving and cut surprises
• A tailored transition can work if the seller is kept away from employees and authority
• Expect role shifts after close, divide by aptitude rather than the original plan
• The J curve is real, track project efficiency early or you give margin away
• A strong and aligned deal team keeps emotions in check and momentum toward close
• Growth needs capacity and systems, hire to free owners for tools, process, and scale
• 
  

Episode Highlights:

• [00:00:28] Backgrounds, London and Long Island roots, careers in finance and capital markets
• [00:03:06] Why ownership, investment returns and the itch to operate
• [00:04:47] What they bought, a hyper niche window restoration company with outsized reputation
• [00:07:37] How they sourced it, broker outreach over listing sites and why that worked
• [00:10:18] Search timeline, education in mid 2023, close in October after about 18 months
• [00:11:45] The first LOI that died, fire sprinkler company and a breakdown on working capital
• [00:14:06] Context on working capital in lower middle market deals, shifting norms and lessons learned
• [00:18:20] The right seller, transparency, fast document turns, weekly calls, clean diligence cadence
• [00:20:11] Transition design, seller support for two months without interacting with staff
• [00:23:05] Deal structure at a high level, SBA senior debt, standby seller note, modest buyer cash
• [00:24:55] Why they still needed working capital, insurance costs and early cash needs in New York
• [00:27:01] The value of an aligned deal team, keeping emotions steady through closing
• [00:29:35] Day one, the speech, then role reversal, Tahir on sales, Neilab on operations
• [00:32:42] Performance, an initial dip then trending toward the best year in company history
• [00:33:30] What is next, systematize operations, add headcount, prepare to handle more demand
• [00:36:13] Mentorship, leaning on entrepreneurial family and the search for a mentor
• [00:38:44] Motivation, stewardship of a legacy brand and showing up even when it is hard

Connect with Jared:

If you have questions for Jared, visit: https://jaredwjohnson.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaredwjohnson/

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The views and opinions expressed in this...