Bird In The Hand: Ben Ihde of Wild Birds Unlimited

Dirty Secrets of Small Business

In This Episode

Today we were joined on the show by business owner Ben Ihde of Wild Birds Unlimited. Ben was a coaching client of MVP for several years and is a repeat guest on Dirty Secrets of Small Business (see link below for his February 14, 2019 appearance). During the show today Ben shared with us what’s been going on since we last heard from him.

When Ben was last on the show he had just completed the buyout of his former boss and he was ready to grow that business, D&S Color Supply. Not everything worked out as planned as Ben got an offer he couldn’t refuse less than a year later and wound up selling D&S Color Supply to Painters Supply Equipment. Ben stayed on for the first year after the purchase and then joined a company run by his good friend who less than a year later wound up selling that business! Not to worry as Ben and his wife Dawn had already identified their next venture as they purchased a Wild Birds Unlimited franchise which they have been running for nearly two years.

We covered a lot during our chat but some of the highlights include:

• Emotional decision to sell D&S Color Supply;
• What’s it like to go from being the boss to working for someone else; and
• How Ben discovered the rabbit hole that became the Wild Birds Unlimited purchase.

We had a lot of fun during this interview and we think you’ll not only enjoy hearing Ben share some of his stories, but that you’ll learn some good nuggets for how to grow your business and eventually sell it and then move on to your next business!

People, Companies and Resources We Mentioned in the Show

• Ben Ihde Interview from February 14, 2019, “How I Got From Entry Level Job To Owner” (https://dirtysecretsofsmallbusiness.com/episode/how-i-got-from-entry-level-job-to-owner-ben-ihde/)
• Wild Birds Unlimited, Cuyahoga Falls (https://cuyahogafalls.wbu.com)
• Painters Supply Purchase of D&S Color Supply (https://www.bodyshopbusiness.com/painters-supply-equipment-acquires-ds-color-supply/)
• Crash Champions Purchase of Ohio Collision Group (https://crashchampions.com/news/crash-champions-continues-growth-in-greater-cleveland-metro-area-with-two-new-acquisitions)