Searching in Chicago?

May 19, 2026

by Luke Tatone from Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MIT Sloan School of Management in Portland, OR, USA

We're working hard to grow the Searchfunder community in Chicago. Please take a moment to introduce yourself below. Some questions to consider answering: Where are you based? What is your background? What's your buy box? Have you acquired yet? Where do you need the most help right now? Where can you provide help to others? Anything else on your mind? We'll be able to have much deeper discussions if you can provide as much detail as possible. A paragraph or two is perfect. Be sure to tag (@) when replying to comments to make sure your sub-comments are read.

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Reply by a searcher
from Northwestern University in Chicago, IL, USA

Happy to share! > Where are you based? Chicago (Pilsen and Wicker Park) > What is your background? Software engineering + agency owner > What's your buy box? B2B Audio + Video service businesses with $300k-$1m in revenue. Looking across the US, but operating remotely. Working to roll up $2m+ more in EBITDA over the next 3 years. > Have you acquired yet? Acquired multiple agencies in the past 3 years, and closing 2 more right now. > Where do you need the most help right now? Financing - looking for a long-term debt partner. Local and regional banks aren't comfortable with small agency acquisitions and unfortunately, we don't qualify for SBA. Integrations - still figuring out how to do this well. Would love to talk to more operators who have merged multiple companies and teams. > Where can you provide help to others? Operations, business to business sales, tech.

Reply by a searcher
from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, IL, USA

Luke, appreciate the tag on this. I’m based in the Chicago area and am the Founder & CEO of CoLaborator, Inc. My background and current focus are a bit different than a traditional single-search path. CoLaborator is being built around a strategic partner-first model for lower-middle-market businesses, operators, acquisition entrepreneurs, and service providers who may be better positioned to scale through aligned collaboration than by operating completely independent. Our focus areas include: • manufacturing • industrial services • logistics • distribution • healthcare infrastructure • field services • business services • other fragmented lower-middle-market sectors where succession, growth constraints, or operational bandwidth create opportunity Our buy box is generally U.S.-based businesses with roughly $3M – $50M in revenue and $750K – $20M of EBITDA/cash flow, although we also look at smaller opportunities when there is strong strategic fit, platform potential, or an operator relationship already in place. We have not yet acquired through CoLaborator, but the model has evolved significantly from simply looking for acquisitions for ourselves into building a broader ecosystem with our consortium & partners around: • operator alignment • acquisition collaboration • capital structuring • strategic partnerships • service-provider activation • shared infrastructure • eventual platform-building opportunities Where I need the most help right now is connecting with more serious operators, owners, searchers, independent sponsors, investors, lenders, and service providers who are open to thinking beyond one-off transactions and toward longer-term ecosystem or platform value creation. Where I can be helpful is in thinking through strategic structure, partnership-first acquisition paths, roll-up logic, capital alignment, operator collaboration, and ways to reduce the burden on owners or searchers who are trying to scale without carrying everything alone. I’m especially interested in connecting with Chicago-area people pursuing manufacturing, industrial, logistics, healthcare-adjacent, or service-business opportunities where strategic alignment may create more value than a purely isolated acquisition approach. Happy to collaborate with others building, buying, operating, financing, or supporting lower-middle-market companies in the Chicago area and nationwide.

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