Should I buy a business 90 minutes away?
Hi all – I’m in advanced discussions to acquire a business with two locations. The primary office is ~90 minutes from where I currently live, and the second location is about 40 minutes away. In the near term, I plan to spend significant time at the main office to get up to speed on operations, team, and processes. That said, the primary location has a more tenured team and appears relatively self-sustaining, so over time I expect to shift more of my focus toward growing the second location. Ideally, I would relocate to be closer to both sites. However, given timing around school transitions, a new baby arriving shortly before close, and the logistics of moving, that likely wouldn’t happen until ~12 months post-close. I’d really appreciate connecting with anyone who has successfully operated a business from a similar distance. Specifically interested in: - How you structured your time across locations - What you found worked (and didn’t) early on vs. later - Any pitfalls to avoid when not living near the primary site Happy to connect offline as well. Thanks in advance!