Resources for Various Industry Research

searcher profile

June 25, 2024

by a searcher from New York University in Cranford, NJ, USA

I am fairly new to the idea of ETA and learning a lot, but there is a LOT to learn. As I am looking for a complete transition from my current industry (and must remain anon due to my current employment status) in terms of what business I am ultimately going to acquire -- wanted to see if there are any resources that anyone can suggest about how to analyze the risk associated with any specific industries that may be unknown/unforeseen to someone that has not spent their lives in said industry. For some examples - industrial distributors (metal, steel, etc), online businesses where outside forces can impact traffic, cash transport businesses as cash becomes less and less prominent, etc. Some of these have looked really sound and solid on paper, but I would like to know if there is anywhere that you can do some serious research on industry outlook in advance of committing to moving forward. Figured it would not hurt to ask all the smart folks here -- any feedback is welcome. Thanks so much!

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commentor profile
Reply by a searcher
from University of Pennsylvania in Yuba City, CA, USA
I am using data from various sources including:

• Federal Reserve (Household > Distributional Financial Accounts): data and analysis on wealth and income distribution, including business ownership by various demographics (link: https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/z1/dataviz/dfa/distribute/chart/)

• Dynamic Small Business Search: repository of small business profiles with various details such as small business designations, location, etc. (link: https://dsbs.sba.gov/search/dsp_dsbs.cfm)

• SBA Table of Size Standards: provides the different size standards both employee or revenue-based as determined by NAICS code (link: https://www.sba.gov/document/support-table-size-standards)

• NAICS Classification System: provides list of NAICS codes and definitions (link: https://www.census.gov/naics/)

• USASpending: open data source of federal spending information, including information about federal awards such as contracts, grants, and loans (link: https://www.usaspending.gov/search)

I plan to focus on govcon based on my prior experience and ultimate goals, so these have all been useful to me in thinking through set-asides, growth opportunities, etc. Happy to chat further if you'd like.
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Reply by a professional
from University of Wisconsin in Boston, MA, USA
I help all sorts of searchers evaluate potential industries, subsectors and deals pre-LOI as well as get involved during LOI structuring and post-LOI diligence. I help searchers build a more robust LBO returns model, institutional investor pitch deck and round up their debt and equity required to close on deals. I add a more institutional private equity lens to search deals and often help out post-closing - feel free to email me if helpful to chat redacted
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