Searching in Ohio?

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 Ohio. 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 Indiana University, Bloomington/Indianapolis in Columbus, OH, USA

Hi All - I'm Brian Lechlitner based in the Columbus area. Prior to starting this ETA journey, I served as the COO in the banking equipment space (ATMs, TCR machines, etc) for an $8M firm in Atlanta. I just left that role in April after a 90-day transition. Before my COO role I worked directly for the large financial institutions. I'm currently seeking to acquire and operate a single local business for the long-term. My buy box focuses on B2B industrial/services or established Specialty Trades. Target SDE is in the $450K to $900K range and I am seeking a strong stewardship play. My search is self-funded, utilizing the SBA for acquisition. I attended SMBootcamp with @redacted‌ in Feb - highly recommend. To date I have reviewed a decent number of CIMs, no LOIs yet. I guess the biggest area I am working on is overall local deal flow. I have extensive experience running all facets of business and am happy to assist with any questions or insights I can offer.

Reply by a searcher
from Bowling Green State University in Cleveland, OH, USA

Hi I'm Mitchell, currently based in Cleveland OH. I'm a finance grad coming from BGSU, eager to learn more about ETA and what it takes to excel in this space. I have not acquired any SMM businesses yet due to lack of capital as I just got out of school not too long ago. I took a little bit of an unconventional path following school, I wanted some real world experiences so I spent my summers in high-volume, high-pressure ops and the past two winters as a private ski instructor in Jackson Hole WY, connecting with some high net-worth clients and picking their brain in an environment that was super uncomfortable for them but where I felt “at home”. Where I need help: I need someone that has been through these processes and systems in the past. Someone who has done it. I know when you first start out is where you make valuable mistakes that you will learn from later on, but I would like to minimize those as much as possible learning from a mentor that has done it before. That mentor is a key piece in my puzzle right now. Where I can offer help: I am a grinder. I get stuff done in a swift motion while making incredible connections with the people I meet along the way. I have zero doubt that I will excel in this space, just need that initial jump. Always open to expanding my network and connecting with each and everyone of you to see if I could learn from your past experiences or use my skills in the near future.

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