He Bought an Agency, Then Got Acquired 10 Months Later

Mike Begg went from buying an agency to being acquired himself in about ten months. His agency, AMZ Advisers, was doing about $3 million a year in revenue when he bought out one of Reach Social’s two partners. Reach Social is a TikTok Shop agency he found through a LinkedIn conversation with a founder who wanted out. The deal added roughly $1 million in recurring revenue and a capability his Amazon clients were asking for, and it helped him negotiate a better multiple when Chief Media acquired AMZ Advisers. In this episode, Mike walks Peter through the build-versus-buy decision behind the deal. He covers the two-week sprint to close after the previous buyer never turned up with the cash, and why he paused his own sale talks with Chief Media to get the Reach deal done first. He also explains how he combined a contractor-based agency with an employee-based one, and how the acquired team became the template for moving AMZ Advisers upmarket. Mike shares what buying taught him about selling, from the contract protections he insisted on to the leverage that gave him in his own negotiation. He breaks down how he matches deal structure to what he’s buying, and why Chief Media saw value in bringing him in to lead acquisitions. He also says what he’d tell his younger self about reinvesting in growth through M&A. CHAPTERS 00:00 — From buyer to acquired in 10 months 01:42 — The two deals: Reach Social and Chief Media 02:59 — Adding about $1M in ARR to a $3M agency 05:24 — Build versus buy 07:53 — Selling the vision, and being open about your exit 10:14 — How Mike runs early seller conversations 14:35 — Using the acquired team to move upmarket 16:37 — What made him open to M&A 23:08 — How the Chief Media deal came together 28:29 — Becoming Chief’s corporate development lead 33:47 — Matching deal structure to what you’re buying 37:52 — What he’d tell his younger self 39:46 — AI, underwriting, and buying for life Please subscribe and hit the like button. It means a lot, and I’m putting out videos every week! If you have any questions at all, fire away. If you think you or someone you know should be on our show, or you just have a question, email us at info@agencyacquisitionsandexits.com. Follow Peter on Instagram: / peterlang Follow Peter on LinkedIn: / peterclang Follow Mike on LinkedIn: / mbegg Free 21-day Programmatic M&A Training: https://digitalagencybusiness.com/