Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sean Ivester. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Sean, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?

My goal is to build a successful business that will outlive me and continue to have a tremendous positive impact on the lives of young students — setting them up for college and beyond. But it’s not just about what we do, it’s about how we do it. I strive to create a supportive and empowering environment where students not only, excel academically but also develop the confidence and skills they need to thrive in all aspects of life. By fostering a culture of excellence, integrity, and continuous improvement, my ambition is to inspire both my students and my team to reach their highest potential.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Before becoming a small business owner, I was a Product-Marketing Manager (PMM) for about 10 years at tech companies (Google, Ripple) in the SF Bay Area. Feeling burnt out, I decided to take a new path and bought Pivot Tutors. It was a big learning curve since I had no background in education services, but I was up for the challenge!

My company helps high school students achieve academic excellence in school and on standardized tests like the SAT and ACt. What really sets us apart is the quality of our tutors. I spend a lot of time vetting and training tutors to ensure they are best in market . We also lean on technology to improve our services, like having an AI notetaker that records and summarizes sessions..

I’m most proud of the positive impact we have on students’ lives. The main things I want potential clients to know about us are that we are dedicated to helping students succeed and we use top-notch tutors and innovative tools to do so.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been focusing on where our business was already coming from: word of mouth and referrals. I noticed that many of our new clients were being referred by private college advisors. So, I dedicated a lot of time to building and nurturing relationships with these advisors. Now, they regularly send us new customers, which has significantly helped our business grow.

Can you talk to us about your experience with buying businesses?

The first and only business that I have bought so far is called Pivot Tutors, based in San Diego. It’s a tutoring company that offers academic tutoring and test prep, mainly for high school students. I decided to buy it because I wanted to be my own boss, and thought a tutoring company was a straightforward business that I could easily understand and also feel good about the work.

When I started, I knew nothing about buying a business, but I learned quickly through a course I took. The acquisition process was fairly straightforward. The seller had an experienced business broker who guided me through the steps, and I secured an SBA loan, which also helped outline the process. From my first inquiry to taking over the business, it took about two months to close the deal.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.pivottutors.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pivottutors/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanivester/

Image Credits

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