#193: Post COVID-19: The future of the economy, business valuations, private equity and more

Today I talk with a guest that is back on the show, Ilan Jacobson (the founding partner and CEO of Firepower Capital, based in Canada). Ilan is colorful, straight-forward, intelligent, and brilliant entrepreneur with an amazing background in finance and geneology.

Ilan is on the ground floor and has lots of exposure to the M&A marketplace. At Firepower Capital, they have an M&A sell side advisory team does deal between $10M - $250M as well as an investment arm that deploys their our own capital in Canadian companies through venture, gap & bridge term debt, as well as private equity with deal sizes $1M - $20M (fun fact – they own one of the largest battle ax throwing companies ;-)

We cover some of the biggest questions up in the air right now: What will our new normal look like? How will consumer behavior and the business landscape change? What impact does the debt levels on consumers and business have on the recovery?

Our conversation was a blast and rich with insight about how the pandemic could impact the future of the economy, business valuations, private equity and more.

Some of the things we discuss in today’s episode –

• What the new economic normal might look like
• How and when things might bounce back
• The high levels of debt and how that will impact the recovery
• How the shutdown is impacting business and private equity
• Changes in business valuations
• Ways business might change post-COVID-19
• How the CARES act and stimulus money will be deployed
• How corporate incentives could / should change when companies receive the money
• What industries are benefiting from the shifting of how business is getting done
• Where are the potential opportunities and value in the marketplace
• Ilan’s predictions for later this year and post-COVID-19
• Where to find Ilan and about his new podcast, “The Dealmaker’s DNA”

Main takeaway

Make sure to pull from all of the resources available for you out there. That way you can start synthesizing information and start figuring out what your new norm is going to be. One of the resources you should check out is our Mastering Your Cashflow Mini-course. Also check out the digital course for our bootcamp.

Quotes:

“The pandemic threw a wrench in the system in a real hard way. But the lack of lubrication was being seen. The squeaks were being seen before this.” - Ilan Jacobson

“It’s really shown, in a very real way, the flaws in our system. But I honestly think those flaws existed prior to us seeing them.” - Ilan Jacobson

 “We are only as safe as the lowest common denominator. And I don’t trust the lowest common denominator.” - Ilan Jacobson

 “We are, actually, as an entire global population, learning new skills. Which is quite interesting.” - Ilan Jacobson

 “The commercial real estate market is going to be so different.” - Ryan Tansom

 “This is the best case study of supply versus demand economics. Like, if people don’t wake up and buy shit every day, there is no machine.” - Ryan Tansom

Resources:

Ilan Jacobson, LinkedIn

ARKONA Boot Camp

Reach out to me if you have questions about the boot camp!

You can also reach out to me via email at [email protected], on my LinkedIn, or you can call me at 612-720-6530.

About Ilan:

Ilan Jacobson is the Founding Partner & CEO of FirePower Capital and has transformed the firm from a small 4-person family office into a 40+ strong M&A advisory and private capital powerhouse. Ilan leads FirePower Capital in all its endeavors, setting its strategic direction, providing top-level guidance on key transactions undertaken by the M&A division, and assessing new direct investments for FirePower’s Private Capital funds. Under his leadership, FirePower invests in Canada’s entrepreneurs by financing their growth directly with venture debt or private equity and helps them complete their most critical transactions.

Ilan is sought after for his expertise on topics related to entrepreneurship, private capital, and M&A, and has appeared at numerous events as a speaker, moderator, and workshop leader. Previously, Ilan was a Portfolio Manager at a leading venture capital firm in Toronto, where he sat on numerous boards. He received his MBA from the Ted Rogers School of Management at Ryerson University, and has an Honors Degree in Science with a specialization in genetics from the University of Western Ontario.

Check out the next Intentional Growth™ Boot Camp -

Because of the current situation Pat and I are working on a digital video course on the Intentional Growth™ 5 Principles. It will be the best of our material that we have in our 2-day Boot Camps that normally costs 5k for $995. Text the word Intentional to 66866 to get on the waiting list of the digital course.

We’ll teach you how to build a valuable company with the end in mind using our 5 Intentional Growth™.

1. In principle #2 - You’ll learn everything about how companies are valued, deal structures and how to calculate net proceeds (this helps if you want to know how much your company is worth, looking to buy a company or eventually want to sell)
2. In principle #3 - You’ll learn how the 5 major exit options (Internal, ESOPs, PE and more) work & the implications of each
3. Principle #4 - you’ll learn how to increase your multiple by derisking your company and building value for the long term build a financial model that ties to your strategic plan and what it takes to grow value for the long term.