What Type of Business Should You Buy?

When you’re thinking about buying a business, one of the most important things to consider is how well it suits your background and skillset. Think beyond just profitability—consider how you’ll run the business day to day and what value you can add that the current owner may not have brought to the table.

Ideally, you’ll find a business that matches your experience. If you’ve worked in a particular industry, buying in that space can be a smart move. It makes everything easier—from securing finance to gaining credibility with suppliers and building rapport with customers. Banks, for example, are far more confident lending to someone with a proven track record in the industry they’re entering.

But don’t be discouraged if you come across a business that looks promising but sits outside your area of expertise. If you can clearly see how to make it work—and you’re willing to put in the effort—it might still be a strong opportunity.

A real-world example: my partner and I come from finance and tech backgrounds. Despite having no experience in construction, we purchased a construction company because we saw untapped potential. The business had solid fundamentals but was falling behind in systems and marketing.

We focused on its weaknesses. Instead of spending on outdated print advertising, we redirected the budget into digital marketing—improving lead generation significantly. We also introduced better systems for tracking sales and construction workflows, which made the business more transparent for buyers and streamlined the entire process.

Over three years, we tripled the company’s size and sold it for more than three times what we paid.

This isn’t a recommendation to jump into a business you can’t manage. But if you find something compelling that doesn’t tick every box, take a step back and think strategically. What could you do to fix its weaknesses? What would you change to make it run more smoothly, more profitably, or more efficiently?

Sometimes, the best opportunities lie not in finding the perfect business—but in finding one that’s good and knowing how to make it great.