”In terms of retirement, I was much better off than I had really anticipated. I was in a good position, but I didn't realize how much better the position could be.” — Mark OligerIn this episode of the Power Exit Podcast, John Marsh sits down with Mark Oliger, former owner of Garrhs, the Durango, Colorado HVAC company his family has been connected to for three generations. Mark's grandfather started the business in Phoenix in the late 1930s and moved it to Durango in the early 1950s. Mark grew up in the shop, went to vocational school for heating and air conditioning, and when the family business closed in 1983, started his own from scratch, bringing his younger brother Travis in a few years later and quietly growing it into the largest company of its kind in the region.This is a real client story, told from the seller's chair. Mark walks through the part most owners don't talk about: what happens when you're ready to step back, your children are in the business, and none of them want to own it. He and John cover the first advisor who took the business to market and couldn't get it done, the year and a half Mark spent off-market fixing his financial reporting, why that rework changed how buyers saw the company, and the grind of post-LOI diligence that Mark says he genuinely didn't see coming. They also get into the SBA rule change that nearly killed the deal mid-diligence, what closing day actually felt like, and how Mark went from 90 days full-time to nine months part-time and remote, before trading it all for months at a time cave diving in Mexico.In this episode, you'll learn:🔹 Why Mark's son and nephews were in the business but didn't want to own it and how he worked through that decision.🔹 What happened when he offered ownership to long-term employees, and why that path closed too.🔹 Why the first advisor didn't work out, and what ”buyer reach” actually means in practice.🔹 The specific change Mark made to his financial reporting and why it reframed the business for buyers.🔹 Why he chose an individual buyer with hands-on industry experience over a roll-up, despite a broad range of interest.🔹 What surprised him most in diligence, including weekly work-in-progress statements he'd rarely produced in 30-plus years.🔹 How an SBA rule change on rolled equity landed mid-deal, and what it took to keep the transaction alive.🔹 The one thing he'd prepare differently: showing the buyer how the business runs without him, before they have to ask.Whether you're a founder with family in the business, weighing an internal transition, or just curious what a sale actually feels like from the seller's side, Mark's story is an honest look at the emotion, the grind, and the outcome on the other side.Connect With JohnLinkedIn –   / marshcreek  🔸 Get a Complimentary Business Valuation:https://www.mcreek.com/what-is-my-bus…📌 Subscribe To The PowerExit™ Insights Newsletter:https://www.mcreek.com/newsletter/John Marsh is the Founder and Managing Partner of Marsh Creek Advisors, a boutique M&A advisory firm that helps business owners navigate the sale of their companies with confidence and clarity. Since founding the firm, John has closed hundreds of millions in transactions and earned national recognition as Top Global Producer by the International Business Brokers Association and part of the Firm of the Year by M&A Source — the highest honors in the industry.Before launching Marsh Creek, John served as CFO and later General Manager of a high-growth medical device company, where he led over $300 million in M&A activity, including a $161 million sale to private equity. Earlier in his career, he worked at Ernst & Young and Frazier & Deeter, where he focused on financial reporting and audit services for both Fortune 100 companies and privately held businesses. John holds a BA from the University of Georgia and an MBA from Kennesaw State University.