Library

A short shelf for the person doing the buying.

Books we would hand someone before a first acquisition or a first month as owner. The notes are ours. The links go to Amazon.

Book	Category	Why we picked it	Price
Business Valuation For Dummies (opens in a new tab)	Research	The gentlest introduction to how a business gets a price. It covers earnings multiples, discounted cash flow and asset methods, which makes it a good companion when a listing quotes a multiple and you want to know what sits behind it.	—
Lean Analytics (opens in a new tab)	Research	A guide to choosing the few numbers that tell you whether a small business is healthy, and to spotting vanity metrics. Handy when you are asking a seller which figures they actually track.	—
The Lean Startup (opens in a new tab)	Research	A reminder to test a change before you rebuild the store you just bought. The score is about the business as it is. This book is about the experiments you run after closing.	—
The Mom Test (opens in a new tab)	Research	How to ask customers what they do, instead of whether they like the idea. Use it when a listing's growth plan depends on a new product the seller has not sold yet.	—
Valuation: Measuring and Managing the Value of Companies (opens in a new tab)	Research	The standard reference from McKinsey on how value is created and measured. It is heavy going and aimed at larger companies, so treat it as a book to dip into once you want to check the logic behind a number.	—

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