Ruchik Gandhi·October 20, 2025

Building Trust as New Owner of a $3m Business | Ruchik Gandhi Interview

Ruchik Gandhi is an Indian-born immigrant who built a career in financial due diligence (CPA, PwC Australia, then RSM in the US), where he conducted QoE work for private equity rollups in HVAC and landscaping. Inspired by the PE playbook but wanting to operate at a smaller scale, he searched part-time and then full-time (after quitting his job in June 2024) before discovering — through a Search Funder post — two searchers offloading a signed LOI and SBA commitment on a New Jersey workroom business (custom window treatment fabrication, upholstery, reupholstery, and custom furniture manufacturing) for a 1% success fee. He closed on the business — revenue over $3 million, SDE margin 15-20% — using an SBA loan, a 19% seller note with a 2-year standby, 10% cash equity, and a 9% seller equity retention with a call option at 3x EBITDA. The operational challenge he underestimated most was earning the trust of a predominantly Spanish/Portuguese-speaking blue-collar workforce that had worked for the prior owner — a self-made immigrant himself — for an average of 8+ years. Ruchik initially alienated staff by dismissing grievances, lost a key employee briefly (then won them back), and only turned the corner when his promoted managers explained the cultural dynamics and he began working alongside crews on job sites and learning Spanish. Ten months in, with two strong internal managers in place, he has shifted focus to inorganic growth — identifying small single-service workroom operators with aging owners as bolt-on acquisition targets.

Deal facts

purchase price: north of $2 million
sde ebitda: 15-20% SDE margin on $3m+ revenue (approx. $450k-$600k SDE)
revenue: north of $3 million
financing structure: SBA loan + 19% seller note (2-year standby) + 10% buyer cash equity + 9% seller equity retained (with call option at 3x EBITDA)
notes: Acquired via transfer of signed LOI + SBA commitment from two searchers who could not close; paid 1% finder/success fee (~$20k) to them. Working capital included in deal. Seller retained 9% equity (structured below the then-20% personal guarantee threshold). Call option allows buyer to purchase seller's 9% at 3x EBITDA of that year, and must be exercised by end of seller note term.

Why this business

Ruchik did not seek out this industry — he was introduced to the business through a Search Funder post by two searchers offloading a signed LOI they could not close. What attracted him was strong financials, a pre-negotiated deal with favorable terms, and a committed seller without the friction he had experienced in prior attempts. His QE/CPA background made him comfortable evaluating businesses across industries on common financial levers rather than requiring industry familiarity. He also saw that this workroom niche had not yet been penetrated by private equity, giving him a window before competition arrived.

What's working

Exclusive installation contract with Home Depot stores in New York City area and northern New Jersey (and blinds.com, a Home Depot subsidiary), providing a steady revenue stream with no direct local competition
Extremely loyal interior designer client base — oldest relationship is 32 years; designers stay for life because the workroom makes their jobs easier
Rare combination of services (window treatment fabrication, upholstery/reupholstery, and custom furniture manufacturing) under one roof, making the business a true end-to-end solutions provider that competitors cannot match
Promoted two long-tenured internal employees (one a former installer) to manager roles; they became the bridge between Ruchik and the predominantly Spanish/Portuguese-speaking blue-collar workforce
Ruchik's deliberate trust-building — going out as a helper on installs, fixing company vehicles, learning Spanish, inviting families to company events — accelerated team buy-in faster than expected
Inorganic growth strategy leverages Ruchik's QE/M&A background; many mom-and-pop workrooms are owner-operator boomer businesses with no succession plan and light capex, making them easy bolt-on targets
B2B-to-trade model (interior designers, architects, millwork companies) insulates the business from direct retail competition and supports premium pricing

What's hard

Entering a niche he knew nothing about — zero industry experience required a full 3-month transition period shadowing the seller and still left knowledge gaps
Blue-collar workforce management was entirely new; early instinct was to treat staff like white-collar reportees, which created distance and distrust
Seller had not informed employees of the sale; when the transition was announced, several long-tenured workers felt betrayed, morale dropped, and productivity fell sharply in the first months after close
Nearly lost a key skilled production employee in month two — dismissed their grievances, told them to leave if unhappy, then had to swallow pride and call them back; now among the best employees
Language and cultural barrier: majority of workforce speaks Spanish and Portuguese; Ruchik speaks neither, which initially made him seem like an outsider
Part-time search was unworkable in a hot deal market — missed multiple opportunities before quitting his job to search full-time
The SBA partial-ownership rules (seller personal guarantee requirement) created structural complexity; deal was specifically structured at 9% retained equity to stay below the then-20% guarantee threshold

Notable quotes

I saw a posting on Search Funder by a fellow searcher that said that hey we have a business under LOI in northern New Jersey and we cannot close on it, but everything has been agreed upon. The LOI, it's under LOI and we want to transfer this LOI over to a new buyer or a new searcher for a fee obviously.

I sucked it up, sucked up my pride, called them back, had a conversation, did not agree to every single demand, but agreed to quite a few that I would not have, my ego would not have let me because I was the one who said that go, you know, I don't care, but I sucked it up, humbled myself and brought them back and they are the best employee we have right now.

They see you as a white collar hot shot from Wall Street that walks in and starts barking orders.

I'll be the one fixing our cars if they break down and they'll see me fixing it like a mechanic or I'll go out as a helper to my installers when we need helpers and we're short of installers and actually help be do the job of a helper which is you know opening things up, cleaning out the area after the job is done — way beneath what a boss should be doing but I'll do them and at that point that guy is my boss even though I own the business.