Acquiring Minds – Episode Summary

Podcast: Acquiring Minds

Host: Will Smith
Episode: Buying a Wide Moat in a Consolidating Industry
Guest: Anya Aliyev, CEO of Life Support Systems
Date: October 27, 2025

Episode Overview

In this dynamic episode, Will Smith interviews Anya Aliyev, CEO of Life Support Systems, about her acquisition of a business in AED (Automated External Defibrillator) sales and servicing—a niche, highly fragmented, and quickly consolidating industry now catching private equity’s attention. The discussion covers Anya's extraordinary path to acquisition (including negotiating while in labor), the industry’s recurring revenue model, the business’s defensible moat, pricing model innovations, and Anya’s perspective as a female entrepreneur in a traditionally male-dominated sector. The episode stands as both a case study in acquisition entrepreneurship and a window into mission-driven business in healthcare.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Anya’s Background & Path to Search

• Wall Street to Entrepreneurship
  Anya began her career on an institutional equity sales and trading desk, learning from observing management teams—both those she admired and those she didn’t. She carried forward lessons about leadership, honesty, and building positive organizations.

  “How you are as a leader really impacts the whole organization. … I really wanted to create spaces where everybody felt comfortable and a place that I could obviously be happy that I worked.” —Anya (06:52)

• Discovering Search Funds
  Anya discovered search funds during her MBA at Tuck (Dartmouth), initially skeptical but ultimately drawn to the model for its collaborative investor relationships and the opportunity to control her entrepreneurial future.

  “I just felt like we had kind of like a vested interest together there. … Some of these relationships last longer than marriages.” —Anya (10:00)

2. Defining the Search Strategy

• Geographically Focused Search
  Anya’s search focus was Boston and the Northeast, balancing her husband’s non-mobile trading career with her goal to find a mission-driven company. She was even willing to commute long distances to make it work.

  “I couldn’t ask him to give up his career so that I could have mine. That’s not fair. That’s not a partnership.” —Anya (13:20)

• Human, Non-Corporate Outreach
  She used highly personal emails to prospective sellers, highlighting her personality, local roots, and even her pregnancy to stand out from dry, corporate outreach.

  “My outreach was a lot like, ‘Hi, this is me. I grew up in this town. I still live in the same town. I’m super pregnant. Your business looks cool...’” —Anya (15:32)
  This approach created a self-selection filter, attracting sellers who valued authenticity.

3. Discovering and Closing on Life Support Systems

The Business and Industry

• What Is an AED?
  AEDs are life-saving devices needed in cases of sudden cardiac arrest; their timely deployment is crucial (every minute reduces survival by 10%). Life Support Systems (LSS) stands out by offering on-site service and maintenance, a niche not widely covered in the industry.

  “Our company is one of the only companies nationally that goes around and helps make sure that these devices are actually working properly.” —Anya (25:41)

• Recurring Revenue Model
  LSS’s business is built on recurring service contracts—technicians visit client locations semi-annually or more to inspect and maintain the devices. Consumable parts like pads and batteries are replaced, and emergency servicing is provided.

The Acquisition Journey

• Seller Motivation & Relationship
  The seller was not actively looking to sell and was deeply attached to the family business. Anya’s local connection, candor, and urgency were key in moving the deal forward.

  “I was like, ‘Dude, I’m really pregnant. I’m doing this. It’s now or never.’” —Anya (20:41)

• Deal-Making During Labor
  The most memorable anecdote: Anya literally negotiated and responded to diligence emails from her hospital bed while being induced.

  “I called the seller on the way to the hospital... I was emailing from the hospital while I was in labor...” —Anya (36:23) Will: “For some people, they could be like, oh my gosh, give it a rest... In fact, going into labor and working on your deal at the very same moment almost is just two sides of the same coin.” —Will (40:26)

4. Business Model Analysis

• Wide Moat in a Fragmented Market
  The business built a network of technicians covering wide geographic areas—hard for a new entrant to replicate. Major competitors like Cintas offer similar services, but it’s a small piece of their overall business.

  “To build that from scratch would take—in fact, it has taken—some decades... You get all of that built infrastructure with your acquisition.” —Will (49:44)

• Recurring Revenue and Stickiness
  Customers tend to stay for many years:

  “Once you buy AEDs from someone, you are not calling up somebody else to buy AEDs unless they do absolutely the most horrible thing in the world to you.” —Anya (61:10)

• Fragmentation & Growth
  The industry is only about 20% penetrated, with plenty of greenfield for growth. Growth comes from both finding new customers and upselling recurring service to those who initially just buy AEDs.

  “You don’t have to displace somebody else to grow our business. There’s lots of open opportunity for everybody.” —Anya (51:52)

5. Gender, Industry Perspective, and Advantage

• Pattern Interrupt as Advantage
  Anya's presence as a woman in a male-dominated industry allowed her to bring fresh eyes and build differentiated relationships with manufacturers and stakeholders.

  “I was going to make my own opinions and I was going to see my own patterns in the industry... That has attracted more people to me because they like that I’m different.” —Anya (44:02)

6. Deal Structure & Capitalization

• Size and Capital Stack
  LSS was on the smaller side for a traditional search fund but still fit the model. Anya acquired the business with all equity for speed and simplicity, later introducing debt via acquisition financing as the business doubled in size.

  “Obviously it’s not advisable to go into deals having 100% equity... We would have to introduce debt.” —Anya (68:14)

7. Pricing Model Innovation

• Strategic Pricing Shift
  Anya switched to a model where AEDs are sold below cost (sometimes at a loss) when customers commit to at least two years of service, leveraging high retention rates and increasing customer lifetime value and recurring revenue.

  “It’s kind of like give away the razor, sell the razor blades…Your competitors don’t even have razor blades to sell.” —Will (74:24) “If people don’t see the value in what we’re adding after two years, then we didn’t do our job. But it’s really rare that that happens because our team is phenomenal.” —Anya (76:56)

• Impact: Boosted win-rate on new contracts, increased LTV, and made LSS the default choice in competitive bids. As of recording, 50%+ of revenue is service, and this share is expected to rise further.

8. Acquisition as a Growth Lever

• Acquisition Synergy
  Anya recently acquired a local competitor with a customer list but no service offering, allowing LSS to cross-sell lucrative recurring service to the new base, further accelerating growth.

  “Our attachment rate is over 70% with service. … If you can convert even 20% to 30% of that install base to service, you’re growing much faster…” —Anya (62:33)

9. Risks, Challenges & Industry FAQs

• Liability Concerns
  The main question from MBA students and outsiders: “Aren’t you scared about the liability aspect of this business?”
  Anya is cautious but confident, backed by strong inspection logs and rigorous processes.

  “We did our part right. But at the end of the day, yeah… something can happen. Anything can happen.” —Anya (82:26)

• Market Structure
  Students are also fascinated by the lack of “red ocean” competition—growth without constantly displacing incumbents.

10. The Future & Exit

• Long-Term View & Industry Consolidation
  Despite increasing PE and strategic interest in the space, Anya intends to operate for the long term, seeing massive unexploited potential in the business.

  “I would love to be operating this business for decades. There’s a lot of runway still to be had.” —Anya (86:05)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Doing the Deal While in Labor:

  “I called the seller on the way to the hospital... don’t worry about it, but I’m going to have the baby right now. … I was emailing from the hospital while I was in labor, and then people were yelling at me. The investors were yelling at me to cut it out.”
  —Anya (36:23)

• On Personal, Authentic Outreach:

  “Hi, this is me. I grew up in this town. I’m super pregnant. Your business looks cool. No idea if you want to sell your company, but I’d love to just talk to you. And by the way, here’s my dog.”
  —Anya (15:32)

• On the Recurring Revenue Model:

  “The service plan’s a couple hundred bucks a year... Our inspections are way more intense than just like a monthly visual check.”
  —Anya (31:46, 32:06)

• On Pattern Interruption & Gender Advantage:

  “I was really excited about [being the only woman] because I was going to make my own opinions... That has attracted more people to me because they like that I’m different … excited to see somebody new.”
  —Anya (44:02)

• On Industry Opportunity:

  “It’s not like anybody has to push somebody else out in order to win business and grow their business. There’s lots of open opportunity for everybody.”
  —Anya (51:52)

• On Long-Term Family & Personal Fulfillment:

  “To be able to quite literally be helping save people’s lives every day is something that’s so meaningful to me and makes me so excited to go to work every day.”
  —Anya (38:32)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 04:13 – Anya’s background on Wall Street and insights into leadership
• 07:34 – Discovering and pursuing search funds at Tuck
• 12:43 – Launching the search, balancing family/life constraints
• 15:32 – How Anya’s personal outreach landed her the right seller
• 19:14 – Finding the seller, rapport, and industry consolidation
• 23:21 – What is an AED? (Industry 101)
• 25:41 – LSS’s differentiated service model explained
• 36:23 – Negotiating and dealing while in labor and hospitalization
• 44:02 – How gender and fresh perspective are market advantages
• 49:44 – Building and scaling the route-based service moat
• 62:33 – Acquisition as a growth lever: high attachment rate for service
• 68:14 – Deal structure: all equity, then introducing debt
• 73:24 – Pricing innovation: “give away the razor, sell the blades” model
• 79:29 – Revenue split between service and product sales
• 82:26 – Handling liability in a life-saving equipment business
• 86:05 – Thoughts on exit and the long-term opportunity

Summary Takeaways

• Anya Aliyev’s acquisition of Life Support Systems is a masterclass in finding a defensible, recurring revenue niche business with a mission-driven element.
• Her journey underscores the power of authenticity in seller outreach, the practicality and family considerations in search, and bold willingness to execute through life’s biggest moments.
• The competitive advantage is built on real-world service infrastructure, customer stickiness, and innovative pricing.
• Even in small, fragmented industries, acquisition entrepreneurship can yield significant strategic and financial rewards—particularly when paired with swift decision-making and a values-driven approach.

Contact:
Anya encourages operators and searchers to reach out via LinkedIn for further conversations.