Transcript Disclaimer:
This transcript has been edited for clarity and readability. Filler words and minor repetitions were removed, and formatting was adjusted for flow while preserving the original meaning and conversational tone.
Henry Harrison: I’m really happy to welcome to the Henry Harrison Podcast—Entrepreneurs Business and Finance—my long-term friend and business colleague, James Poen. Hello, James.
James Poen: Hello, Henry.
Henry Harrison: James and I met through Entrepreneurs’ Organization. We were in a breakout group together—Forum—for eight years. We got to know each other well and stayed close over the years.
James is a successful entrepreneur, and his company, Richardson Saw & Lawnmower, is now in transition. The store stays the same for customers, but your relationship to the store is changing. Tell us what happened recently.
James Poen: Thanks, Henry. Richardson Saw & Lawnmower was acquired by a private equity group called Graycliff Partners out of New York.
Focus was our investment banker or broker that handled the acquisition through our Merrill Lynch group. We started with Merrill Lynch, Merrill Lynch introduced us to Focus, and Focus found Graycliff.
Henry Harrison: They also have you continuing to be involved. Why do they want you around, and why do you want to stay?
James Poen: When private equity approached me about purchasing us, they came with an idea to acquire more stores. They asked that I stay on as a percentage owner, so I still maintain a large portion of ownership.
I’m also the president of Richardson Saw. We maintained the same staff, but my new role—my new job—is acquisitions.
Henry Harrison: From my standpoint, it’s interesting. They didn’t just buy your store—they want you to help roll up others and show other owners why this may be a good option.
For people who don’t know the business, what is Richardson Saw & Lawnmower? You took it over from your father, you grew it, you expanded the space, you adapted to web sales and more. Give us an overview.
James Poen: The original store dates back to around 1945 in Garland—Garland Saw & Lawnmower—started in downtown Garland.
In the late ’60s, Richardson Saw & Lawnmower was started. My dad came on board as a manager in the early ’70s. He moved from Iowa, served in the Navy, moved to Texas, married my mom, and started Richardson Saw.
I’ve basically been employed at Richardson Saw since the late ’70s. We’re an outdoor power equipment dealership. We sell lawnmowers, chainsaws, weed eaters—anything landscape contractors use, and what homeowners use to maintain their yards.
Henry Harrison: You carry big names and you also do repairs and maintenance, which is a major part of the business.
James Poen: Exactly. Think of a car dealership: you buy your car, then you need service and parts. We’re the same model, but for outdoor power equipment.
We were a John Deere dealership for a long time until John Deere started doing acquisitions and changed their model—going from around 500 dealers down to about 100 dealers. We were a single store then, so we were no longer able to stay a dealer. In Texas, those stores were acquired by United Ag. Deere changed their business model.
Henry Harrison: You’ve got a wide range of experience—from knowing equipment mechanically to negotiating a sale with a private equity group. It didn’t start at that level. We learned over time.
James Poen: It’s funny—my mom was from Dallas, my dad was from Iowa. Two very different backgrounds.
My dad went to a school where he was the only person in his class. On a farm, you fix and manage things, or you don’t eat. He also worked in the Navy engine room, which added to his mechanical background.
My mom owned an advertising company and came from an entrepreneurial family. Her dad was in the restaurant business and was my biggest mentor.
So I got business savvy from my mom and mechanical aptitude from my dad.
Henry Harrison: You also had time in the restaurant and hotel world—college, career, then back into the family business. Tell us about that.
James Poen: I went to Texas Tech and studied restaurant hotel management—RHIM. I thought I’d end up in restaurants or hotels, probably because of my grandfather.
To get through college, I worked at two lawnmower stores. I think we go back to what we know and what we’re comfortable with.
I worked at Paul’s Parts and at Matt Howard’s lawnmower shop—two very different stores. I learned how to sell quickly at Paul’s. He had an hourglass on his desk and would time how fast you could sell. Matt Howard was all about service.
So I took a lot from both: selling efficiently and servicing people the right way.
Henry Harrison: Customer service is central in your business, and your wife also has a service industry background.
James Poen: Brenda went to North Texas and has a degree in restaurant hotel management. She worked in hotels and still consults in the industry.
Right now, she’s involved with FIFA in the Dallas market for a company called On Location.
Henry Harrison: You also have a son, Zach, who’s moving in a different direction, and you encouraged that.
James Poen: Zach graduated from LSU in business. He went to Jesuit Dallas, played soccer, and he didn’t grow up in the equipment world the way I did.
A lot of my success came from growing up in this business and having mechanical aptitude. If you live in Dallas, you’re not around tractors or equipment the same way. He could have done well, but I think he would’ve struggled with the mechanical side.
Also, retail often means weekends. The younger generation generally isn’t excited about that lifestyle. I wanted him to have a different quality of life.
Henry Harrison: You’re up early, too—that’s part of that background.
James Poen: Yes.
Henry Harrison: Let’s talk about the business owner skillset beyond the mechanics—financials, overhead, staffing, taxes, investing. How did you learn that?
James Poen: You learn on the job. And it’s about who you surround yourself with.
Joining EO helped. I needed to be around like-minded people and learn through peer mentoring.
You also have to sit down with your accountants. We do monthly books. They come to our office, we review them, and that’s the best time to ask questions and understand how the numbers affect the business.
As I do acquisitions now, I’ve been surprised. I asked an owner two weeks ago, “What’s your total revenue?” He had no idea. I asked when he last reviewed his books—he doesn’t do it monthly or quarterly.
You have to take time to look at financials. Business owners wear a lot of hats—sometimes you’re fixing a refrigerator, a sprinkler system, trimming a tree, or dealing with a break-in at two in the morning.
You have to get up early, read the information, follow through, and ask questions until you understand it. If you still don’t understand, ask another way, or run it by peers.
In our Forum group, we had people with real financial experience, and that helped me learn how to read and understand financials.
Henry Harrison: Another major change is how the world evolved—online sales, shifting customer expectations, and adapting. What changed most?
James Poen: Online business has been difficult to navigate. Customers expect fast delivery—24 to 48 hours. Small businesses aren’t Amazon. We don’t have delivery fleets or unlimited inventory.
Manufacturers also restricted what we could sell online. Over time, they’ve opened up more—but now some manufacturers are shipping directly to customers and cutting dealers out.
I worry about generational change. We’ve had customers who came in with their grandfather, then their dad, and now third-generation customers. But I’m not sure that the next generation will continue that way. They may just order online because it’s easier.
Henry Harrison: Constant adaptation.
James Poen: You have to adapt, and you have to be nimble. You have to be able to turn the ship quickly.
For us, we went more commercial and less consumer the last few years. Coming out of COVID also changed our hours.
Dallas is booming, so the commercial side hasn’t slowed. But we’ve seen consumer spending soften, and tariffs have people paying closer attention.
Henry Harrison: Your location helps, too—right off major highways. Give people a sense of the footprint.
James Poen: We’re on Central Expressway between Belt Line and Spring Valley on the west side of Central—across from Pappadeaux.
We have three buildings: one retail, one office/warehouse, and a full mechanic facility. We also keep a lot of equipment ready for cities and schools.
We have about 25 employees, which is the right size for us. Some dealerships do similar volume with 35, but we’re efficient because of systems and low turnover.
I probably have 10 employees who have been here over 25 years.
Henry Harrison: You’ve invested in systems and procedures for years. Give an example of something you improved.
James Poen: I’ll pull from my restaurant background. In restaurants, a POS system drives process: the bartender makes drinks consistently, you control ingredients, you manage margin.
We did something similar with mechanics. Instead of mechanics walking around to find parts, we built a pick system where mechanics don’t leave their workstation.
If a mechanic bills at $110 an hour, you don’t want them wasting time. We put computers at their stations, they identify the parts needed, and our team pulls and delivers parts to them. We inventory it properly, attach it to the job, and keep the mechanic working.
That didn’t exist when I came in. It came from applying service-industry thinking to operational efficiency.
Henry Harrison: Let’s shift to the sale. Any advice on selling to private equity?
James Poen: We were fortunate to work with Focus. We spent a lot of time with them discussing what kind of partnership we wanted.
The first group they put in front of us was a fit. They asked good questions, we spent about three days with them, and it felt right.
The process was an equity purchase and took about nine months from NDA through close. Real estate and financing added complexity. Graycliff had never bought an outdoor power equipment business before, so they wanted to understand it thoroughly. We were the platform for a bigger plan.
Going forward, I hope acquisitions take 90–120 days and will likely be asset purchases.
Henry Harrison: What does your day look like now?
James Poen: I have a general manager who runs day-to-day operations. I still stay involved and check in on what’s happening.
Many customers don’t even know we sold. We didn’t make a big announcement because I’m still here. We want the public to feel nothing is different. Private equity is more of a financial partner.
My new role is acquisitions. I was in Miami at a meeting recently and four dealers approached me after hearing about the sale. They wanted to understand how it works.
I ask basic questions: revenue, product lines, real estate, debt, staff, whether they have a GM, and whether they’re willing to stay on.
The key question is: Will you stay? I can’t run 10–15 stores across Texas and Oklahoma day-to-day.
This is different from selling a house and leaving. It’s more like selling the house but still living in it—running it for a few years while the broader strategy plays out.
I sold at 54. I could have kept running it, but I wanted a new challenge.
Henry Harrison: Any final advice for business owners considering a sale?
James Poen: Give yourself time—at least 18 months.
Consider bringing in a CFO or COO depending on your structure. Tighten your processes. Align with good bankers. Talk to many brokers and negotiate.
Interview different M&A attorneys. Consider doing a quality of earnings if you haven’t. If audited books make sense, start preparing.
Don’t let the process overwhelm you. The last 30 days get intense. Start now, fix one thing at a time, then move to the next.
And listen. Bankers and brokers do this all day. Our broker told us how it would happen, and it happened exactly that way. Talk less and listen more.
Henry Harrison: That’s valuable guidance. Thanks, James—this was fun and I appreciate you taking the time.
James Poen: Thank you, Henry.
Henry Harrison: Talk to you soon.
