POWERS Podcast #397 Summary

Guest: Wiley Curran, Co-Founder @ CPC
Host: Chris Powers
Date: October 28, 2025
Theme: Building a Perpetual Holding Company of Lower Middle Market Businesses

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation between Chris Powers and Wiley Curran, Co-Founder of CPC, a perpetual family holding company based in the Midwest. CPC specializes in acquiring one lower middle market business per year ($80–$120 million enterprise value), with the intent to own indefinitely and focus on long-term, multi-generational value creation. Wiley shares the origin story, the guiding principles (“the five key battles”), cultural philosophy, incentive structures, processes for sourcing and diligence, and his vision for CPC’s future.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. CPC’s Origin, Philosophy, and Structure

• Legacy & Foundation:
  The company roots go back to the family’s chemicals business acquired by Wiley’s father in the 1970s, who performed a KKR-style LBO before such deals were mainstream. After years of perseverance and eventual exit, the family set out to build a diversified holding company.

• Intentional Buy-and-Hold Model:
  Around 2010, Wiley and his sisters decided, “we wanted to go out and buy one business a year for 10 years, with the idea of creating a stable of earnings generating businesses for the benefit of the family, capitalize them really strongly and ask management teams to think long term.” (09:45)

• Perpetual Ownership Mantra:
  CPC believes selling a great business should be market-driven, not timing-driven. They look to own businesses "forever":

  “It was a lightbulb moment for us, in the sense that a great business—an exit should be market driven, not timing driven…We further doubled down on this strategy of buying businesses for a truly indefinite time.” (11:16)

• Structure:
  CPC is comprised of firm operations (compliance, capital), an investment team (deal sourcing), and the 'Excellence Group,' providing project-based operational support to portfolio companies in their five battles.

2. The Five Key Battles

Wiley emphasizes the five fundamental business “battles” that CPC expects every company to master:

• People: Talent and culture, including attracting/replacing leadership over time.
• Systems and Processes: Stable and scalable business operations.
• Execution: Disciplined, persistent delivery on plans.
• Product Leadership: Continuously improving and leading in the product or service line.
• Customer Intimacy: Deep, data-driven understanding of why customers buy, churn, and continue, and tailored resource investment.

“When teams were able to consistently win the various challenges they would get in these five areas, you didn’t even need to look at the financials—you knew you were going to get a great outcome.” (18:40)

3. Emphasis on Customer Intimacy & Journey

• Beyond Surface Satisfaction:
  CPC pushes management to measure and deeply understand customer personas, mapping every touchpoint (drawing on cases like California Closets):

  “Breaking it down in a measured way at the important forks in the road is the start… what your end market looks like in a data-driven way…and then invest resources into the product leadership side to make each persona happy.” (27:42)

• Practical Application:
  Each company’s customer journey and satisfaction (NPS, retention, churn analysis) inform which resources to invest and where, over the long haul.

4. Talent and Incentives in a Perpetual Model

• Long-Term Perspective:
  Unlike private equity, management’s wealth creation is driven by long-term recurring cash flows and equity accumulation, not quick flips.

  “We look at wealth creation as a stream of cash, not buy for one and sell for two.” (37:50)

• Flexible Ownership for Leaders:
  New management can earn performance-based units each year, vesting over time. Executives accumulate real equity and receive true distributions—liquidity is provided as needed, with equity typically repurchased or retained on retirement, depending on circumstances.

  “You aren’t earning into shares that only are worth something if we decide we’re going to sell. They’re worth something if you decide you want to sell.” (41:59)

5. Sourcing and Buying Process

• Disciplined Sourcing:
  CPC reviews ~300 deals a year, gets serious on 4–5, and intends to close on just one per year. Almost exclusively works through small and medium-sized banks rather than proprietary search.

  “We see about 300 opportunities a year. We get serious about four to five…for one reason or the other, our interest wanes. And we end up buying one.” (47:12)

• Simplicity in Transactions:
  Offers are all-cash, no financing contingencies, minimal structure:

  “Our offer is going to look different because of its simplicity.” (55:52)

• No ‘100-Day Plan’ After Closing:
  Focus on building trust first, not rushing change:

  “The first not-to-do is don’t come with a hundred day plan...let’s pursue trust and relationship first.” (56:14)

  New companies onboard via the “Foundations” process—a deliberate ramp-in focused on expectations, board meetings, KPIs, and relationship-building.

6. Culture, Board Meetings, and Internal Engagement

• Culture of Patience, Not Deal Churn:
  The team is still expected to deploy capital prudently, but “not getting a deal done” if it’s not right is okay, reflecting long time horizons and family office discipline.

• Board Meetings:
  Meetings are thematic and staggered—virtual deep-dives for team members, in-person board meetings focused on strategic themes, and a three-pronged annual cycle (strategy, planning, results).

• Excellence Group & Engagement Managers:
  CPC’s operational support group works project-by-project, QB’d by engagement managers (a unique title Wiley calls out), and focuses on both revenue growth and defensive improvements.

7. Approach to AI and Modernization

• Pragmatic Experimentation:
  CPC instructed each company to run “five experiments with AI,” aiming to dispel fear and encourage learning, with the insight that AI is more about supporting growth than reducing headcount.

  “It may let you grow 10% on the same 100 people…Requires experimentation. Play with it—it’s going to leave you behind if you don’t.” (75:43)

• Current Reality:
  Large companies further ahead in AI adoption; in lower middle market, experimentation is still the norm.

8. Vision for the Future (2040 and Beyond)

• Enduring Impact:
  Wiley wants CPC to one day own more than 10,000 employees, all “crushing the five key battles.” The long-term ambition is not just financial, but to create a durable model others can follow.

  “In 2040, the model won’t be new anymore. More people are going to look like this, but we will have an engine that can find the next great business to buy…we’re buying businesses to keep them. Have you ever washed a rental car?” (79:34, 80:56)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Long-Term Ownership:

  “Have you ever washed a rental car, right? …When you own something, you vacuum it, you wash it, you wax it…If it’s a rental, we all know what happens, right? It was very clear that we wanted to buy businesses and hold them.” —Wiley (13:12, [80:56])

• On the Five Battles:

  “People, systems and process, execution, product leadership, customer intimacy…when you do those well, you don’t even need to look at the financials.” (18:40, 21:44)

• On Cultural Fit and Patience:

  “Add-ons are hard…you’re merging people’s brains…and you’re asking two cultures to have an arranged marriage…Some people have been competing against each other for a while and they’re still upset. It’s not simple.” (21:46)

• On Management Incentives:

  “You’re not earning shares that are only worth something if we decide we’re going to sell. They’re worth something if you want to sell.” (41:59)

• On Advice and Legacy:

  “If you do [the five key battles] well, the financials will take care of themselves…Hopefully in 15 years we have a team at the Holdco that can take it another 100 years.” (79:13, 81:54)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |------------|----------------------------------------------| | 03:13 | Leadership transition & restructuring | | 08:50 | CPC origin story & legacy | | 14:30 | Shift to perpetual holding strategy | | 17:07 | Five key battles framework introduction | | 24:09 | Deep dive on customer intimacy | | 31:16 | Internal structure: Firm Ops, Investment, Excellence | | 35:11 | Engagement manager role & project process | | 37:10 | Management incentives in hold-forever model | | 45:20 | Why just one acquisition per year | | 47:12 | Sourcing strategy: banks vs. proprietary | | 54:08 | What makes CPC’s offer unique | | 56:09 | First 100 days: Trust over action | | 59:40 | Diligence: what really matters | | 69:32 | Board meetings & CEO summit design | | 74:45 | AI experimentation vs. media hype | | 79:19 | Wiley’s vision for 2040 |

Final Reflection

Wiley Curran’s conversation is a masterclass in patient, principled business building. CPC’s approach—buying and holding great businesses, focusing on people and customer-centricity, and supporting management with real, actionable resources—offers a powerful alternative to traditional PE and fund models. The episode delivers wisdom on alignment, incentives, culture, and long-term thinking, relevant not just to investors but to anyone interested in sustainable business.

For those who want an authentic look at what building a multi-generational holding company really looks like—challenges, philosophy, tactics, and mindset—this is essential listening.