McDonald’s generates nearly 47 cents of operating profit for every dollar of revenue it brings in. The average small business generates 5 to 15 cents. Same dollar coming in. Completely different amount staying in the business. The gap isn’t scale. It isn’t luck. It’s operational efficiency — and it comes down to three levers that…
Red Lobster had $2B in revenue and less than $30M in cash when they filed for bankruptcy. Spirit Airlines generated $4.9B in revenue in 2024 and burned $758M in operating cash. Both companies watched their revenue. Neither controlled their cash. Christian and Stephen break down the five cash flow rules every operator needs — and…
What do Kroger paying $1.65 billion for Giant Eagle, Sycamore Partners taking Walgreens private for $10 billion, and Bain Capital’s $3 billion acquisition of commercial HVAC giant Service Logic all have in common? Strategic positioning. In every case, the buyer wasn’t just purchasing revenue — they were buying a defensible, hard-to-replicate position in a market….