Former McKinsey Consultants Build $15M Business Through Serial Acquisitions, Signal Shift in Search Fund Model
A married couple who left McKinsey & Company to pursue entrepreneurship through acquisition has built a portfolio of three companies generating approximately $15 million in annual revenue, offering a real-world case study in how finance professionals are increasingly turning to search funds as an alternative to traditional corporate careers.
The development illustrates a growing trend among former consultants and finance executives who are bypassing venture capital and startup formation in favor of acquiring established, cash-flowing businesses—a strategy that appeals to CFOs and corporate development professionals seeking entrepreneurial paths with lower risk profiles than traditional startups.
The couple, both former McKinsey consultants, structured their approach around the search fund model, where investors provide capital to find and acquire a single company. However, their journey diverged from the traditional playbook. Rather than raising a dedicated search fund, they pursued a self-funded search, ultimately acquiring their first business and subsequently adding two more companies to create a holding company structure.
Their first acquisition was a services business, followed by two additional companies in related sectors. The portfolio approach allowed them to leverage operational synergies and apply consistent management practices across multiple entities—a strategy more commonly associated with private equity than individual search funds.
The case highlights several operational realities that resonate with finance leaders. First, the couple emphasized the importance of due diligence processes that mirror corporate M&A standards, including detailed financial analysis, customer concentration risk assessment, and working capital requirements. Second, they noted that post-acquisition integration demanded more operational involvement than their consulting backgrounds initially prepared them for, requiring hands-on management of everything from payroll systems to customer relationships.
For CFOs considering similar paths, the couple's experience underscores a key tension in the search fund model: the balance between financial engineering and operational execution. While their consulting training provided frameworks for analyzing businesses, the day-to-day reality of running multiple small companies required different skills—managing cash flow volatility, negotiating with suppliers, and handling employee relations.
The holding company structure they ultimately built represents an evolution of the traditional search fund model, which typically focuses on a single acquisition. By acquiring multiple businesses, they created a portfolio that offers some diversification benefits while maintaining the hands-on control that attracted them to entrepreneurship through acquisition in the first place.
Their journey also reflects broader changes in how finance professionals view career paths. Rather than climbing the corporate ladder or joining private equity firms, some are opting for direct ownership of operating businesses—a shift that has implications for talent retention in corporate finance departments.
The couple's success—measured both in revenue growth and their continued expansion through additional acquisitions—suggests that the search fund model may be maturing beyond its traditional single-company focus. For finance leaders evaluating entrepreneurial options, their experience offers a template that combines financial discipline with operational ownership, though one that requires significantly more hands-on involvement than passive investment strategies.
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