Perry M. Anderson founded Quadra Global Capital Corp, a London/Vancouver-based sector-agnostic private equity and investment firm.
With nearly two decades of experience and over 30 completed investments under his belt, Perry is passionate about continuing to do deals, as well as educating others about mergers and acquisitions, corporate deal making and value creation.
What do you currently do at Quadra?
After 30+ investments, three go-public transactions and millions of pounds raised, I continue to be passionate about deal making. My role at Quadra is that of an ‘enabler.’ The combination of a strong team, effective delegation and strong quality control allows us to accomplish a lot. I view myself as the ‘glue’ that helps pull all these pieces together.
Beyond deal making itself, I also lecture globally on the topic of SME mergers and acquisitions. We are in the midst of the largest transfer of wealth in the history of the world – and the baby-boomer segment is looking to find a succession plan to divest their family businesses. It is a great time to position yourself in the middle of this and to transact!
We have also identified a void in the marketplace. People are finding good deals and acquisition targets, but they do not have the knowledge, experience or capital to get a deal across the line.
Thus, we setup a Joint Venture programme – whereby someone can plug into our ‘blue chip’ team and we will help them structure, present and raise all the capital required for their deal. Effectively, we are partnering with individuals and bringing execution to the table so people can acquire a good company of their own.
When not working or mentoring people on how to buy a business, I am occupied writing my second book on M&A. Travel and food also remain a couple of passions – and I try to do both often!
What was the inspiration behind your business?
Business always intrigued me from an early age.
Coming out of university, I was offered a job in finance but turned it down and explored entrepreneurship. In fact, to some it sounds a bit odd to say this, but I have never had a formal job before.
Barely out of my teenage years, my first real business was a commercial painting and drywalling company. I managed to make more money in one summer than most of my friends were making with their annual salaries.
I was 24 years old when I made my first business acquisition. As someone who splits his time between the UK and Canada, this business was a fast-food restaurant in Edmonton, Canada, that was ultimately rolled up and sold.
Numerous acquisitions and investments ensued and things snowballed from there. I had no real fear in what I was doing and everything felt very organic and natural.
The arbitrage of selling a low-cost product or service for a premium in the marketplace actually seemed quite natural to me. I suppose this is similar to someone finding they have a great singing voice or a knack for painting.
Realising this at an early age and coupling that with the fear of being chained to a desk forged a clear path for me.
Depending on which statistic you read, circa 94% of all startups fail. To me, this is an absolutely staggering statistic. ‘Acquisition Entrepreneurship’ is a much quicker and de-risked path to value and wealth creation.
I am inspired in showing people how they can do this themselves through my workshops and Joint Venture partner programme.
Who do you admire?
Growing up, there was not any one person I can pinpoint. I certainly wasn’t trying to emulate anyone, however, I was an avid reader of business biographies and people who achieved great things in life.
I appreciated the freedom my parents gave me and the space to carve out my own lifestyle – one that is fluid and self-supporting. This allowed me to become free thinking and not clouded by conventional ‘wisdom’ that school or society attempts to indoctrinate people with.
No matter how much someone may inspire you, I do not believe businesspeople should be portrayed as icons or heroes plucked from a fantasy book. They are just people. It is up to you to discover what makes you better, how you can operate as a leader and how you can live your best life.
I do, however, admire anyone with the grit, tenacity and dedication to engage in the entrepreneurial journey.
Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently?
Yes, in retrospect, I certainly wish I had a crystal ball!
I have made costly mistakes that would be nice to take back. However, I believe these have taught me my most valuable lessons,which could only have been learned through real world experiences and setbacks. As an entrepreneur, these are critical lessons required to sharpen your sword.
That said, I am living my life by design. I feel blessed to be living where I want, doing what I want and working with people whom I want. I control my own time and my own destiny.
Although there have certainly been bumps along the way, I would not have done anything differently from a macro level.
What defines your way of doing business?
My way of conducting business is highly collaborative. I also believe that deals only work when all parties benefit – so I always try and craft win-win outcomes.
In terms of structuring my day and schedule, life is unpredictable and things tend to just pop up, so I typically run a fairly decentralised day.
From a tactical standpoint, my calendar is approximately half scheduled for the next three months and the other half is left open so it can be filled with whatever arises.
Cramming things into a calendar for the sake of doing so is not practical.
What advice would you give to someone starting out?
First off, embrace failure! In life and in business you will fall down. You need to accept this fact and learn how to get back up to keep moving forward.
Secondly, pick a lane! You cannot try to become a real estate developer for one week, assume it does not work, then move on to trading cryptocurrencies the next week in hope for a better outcome.
Choose your craft. Stick with it, learn a skill and understand how to do it properly. This takes time and will not come overnight. However, once you get good the money will follow.
Thirdly, design a life first… and business second. Most people tend to follow whichever pay cheque is offered to them and comes their way. That accepted cheque then, for a period of time, determines their lifestyle, what they will be doing and where they will be living. This is a likely path to mediocrity.
Choose what you want to be doing and where you want to be doing it and go after that first. Once you are in your sector of choice and the city you want to be in, you can connect the dots by figuring out how to make the economics work.
