Asking strangers how they make $1.8M, $5M, & $12M/year (without tech)
Asking strangers how they make $1.8M, $5M, & $12M/year (without tech)
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Note: AI-generated summary based on third-party content. Not financial advice. Read more.
Quick Insights

Surging data center expansion and electrical grid constraints create strong long-term upside for industrial generator manufacturers Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), Cummins Inc. (CMI), and Generac Holdings Inc. (GNRC), which benefit from high-margin recurring service contracts. In private equity and search-fund acquisitions, commercial backup power service providers like On Point offer scalable cash flows by deploying AI tools to solve trade labor shortages and speed up diagnostics. Investors seeking immediate cash-flow opportunities can explore B2B cost-saving franchises like Smash My Trash, which drive rapid client adoption by cutting waste-haul expenses by up to 50%. In consumer products, niche medical and wellness hardware brands like Your TMJ offer high-margin direct-to-consumer growth, scaling past a $5 million annual run-rate on minimal initial research and development capital. Across both public and private markets, the highest-conviction strategy is building exposure to grid reliability and mission-critical power infrastructure to capture sustained secular demand.

Detailed Analysis

Industrial Power Equipment Manufacturers (CAT, CMI, GNRC)

  • Companies like Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), Cummins Inc. (CMI), and Generac Holdings Inc. (GNRC) control the majority of the commercial and industrial backup power market.
    • The sector is experiencing strong macro tailwinds driven by surging overall electricity demand and rapid data center expansion.
    • Mission-critical facilities—including telecom towers, hospitals, emergency service stations, and high-end residential estates—require high-capacity backup generation to prevent catastrophic downtime.
    • Servicing large industrial units (such as 3-megawatt generators at Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centers) can generate recurring maintenance revenue of approximately $25,000 per year per unit.
    • While major manufacturers dominate state and large corporate contracts, they often face operational friction, such as slow turnaround times for diagnostics, parts sourcing, and quotes compared to agile independent service operators.

Takeaways

  • Macro tailwinds in power grid constraints and data center buildouts provide a sustained long-term catalyst for commercial generator manufacturers and specialized maintenance providers.
  • Investors evaluating industrial equipment companies should assess their ability to modernize field service workflows and supply chain turnaround times, as smaller AI-enabled operators are actively competing on service speed.

Backup Power & Trade Infrastructure Services (On Point)

  • On Point is a private search-fund venture acquiring and scaling commercial generator sales and service providers.
    • The company raised $6.5 million (including $5 million in outside equity) to capitalize on the rising demand for electrical contractors, backup generation, and grid reliability.
    • The business generates roughly $12 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR), pacing toward $14 million, with contracted visibility toward $25 million.
    • Operational efficiency is scaled using proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) and retrieval-augmented systems to research parts, generate instant repair quotes, and create training material directly from field reports.
    • The primary bottleneck to scaling in this sector is a severe shortage of qualified electromechanical technicians, forcing service companies to build internal training and apprenticeship pipelines.

Takeaways

  • Blue-collar service consolidation (Entrepreneurship through Acquisition) remains a viable path for high-margin cash flow, particularly in highly regulated, mission-critical B2B niches.
  • Labor availability is the primary operational constraint; businesses that develop internal trade training programs and AI-augmented diagnostic tools will have a substantial competitive advantage.

Commercial Waste Logistics & Franchising (Smash My Trash)

  • Smash My Trash is a mobile waste-compaction franchise designed to reduce dumpster hauls for industrial facilities, agricultural plants, and distribution warehouses.
    • The business model uses truck-mounted compaction equipment to crush open-top commercial dumpsters (typically 40 cubic yards), reducing haul frequency by roughly 50%.
    • Revenue is structured around value-sharing: high-volume clients spending $10,000 per month (at roughly $1,000 per haul) can reduce their hauls to $5,000, splitting the net savings with the service operator.
    • The featured operator purchased five territories starting with an initial cash investment of $85,000, outside capital of $70,000, and a $350,000 SBA loan (starting with a $185,000 buy-in), reaching $450,000 in EBITDA ($300,000 take-home net after $150,000 in debt service) before exiting for $1.8 million.
    • Key operational risks include personal guarantees tied to SBA financing, fixed minimum royalty agreements on 10-year franchise contracts, and high maintenance costs for specialized hydraulic truck machinery.

Takeaways

  • B2B services that offer direct, demonstrable cost savings with zero upfront customer friction have rapid sales cycles and high customer retention.
  • Prospective franchise investors must carefully model downside risk: 10-year franchise royalty floors and SBA personal guarantees create fixed liabilities that remain regardless of revenue performance.
  • Regional franchise systems offer built-in liquidity through roll-ups and sales to neighboring franchisees seeking geographic consolidation.

Niche Health & Consumer Wellness Hardware (Your TMJ)

  • Your TMJ is a bootstrapped consumer wellness device brand that developed the TMJ Pen, a portable heated and vibrating jaw massager.
    • The company generates approximately $430,000 per month (~$5 million annualized run-rate) at an estimated 20% net income margin with a retail price of $249.
    • The product addresses Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) disorders—a condition that affects up to 1 in 3 people temporarily and leads approximately 5% of the population to seek clinical relief.
    • Initial research and development was bootstrapped for under $3,000 by using low-cost 3D printing and custom printed circuit board (PCB) design, scaling to automated production via third-party logistics (3PL) and overseas manufacturing.
    • Customer acquisition relies heavily on viral, founder-led social video marketing targeting unaddressed chronic pain communities.
    • Primary business risks include the lack of repeat purchases (one-time hardware sales), single-product concentration, potential competition from overseas manufacturing clones, and heavy reliance on top-of-funnel social media advertising.

Takeaways

  • Significant direct-to-consumer opportunities exist in underserved chronic health and pain-relief niches where traditional medical treatment options are limited.
  • Modern rapid prototyping and digital engineering tools have drastically lowered the initial capital needed to bring hardware products to market.
  • To achieve a high enterprise valuation upon exit, one-off hardware businesses must diversify beyond a single product by introducing consumables (such as creams or supplements), establishing proprietary IP, or expanding into broader wellness device categories.
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Video Description
*30+ blue-collar business ideas:* https://clickhubspot.com/5r97 Episode 853: Sam Parr ( https://x.com/theSamParr ) and Shaan Puri ( https://x.com/ShaanVP ) ask 3 founders to tell them the juiciest number behind their businesses and get advice live. — Show Notes: (0:00) Nick Haschka, OnPoint Generators (17:39) Kevin Moyer, Smash My Trash (36:54) Noam Eisenberg, TMJaw — Links: • OnPoint Generators - https://onpointgen.com/ • Smash My Trash - https://howitworks.smashmytrash.com/ • Your TMJ Pen - https://yourtmj.com/ — Check Out Sam's Stuff: • Hampton (joinhampton.com): My community for founders. Average member does $25m/year. Many of the guests are members. Get after it...apply: http://joinhampton.com/mfm — Check Out Shaan's Stuff: • Shaan's weekly email - https://www.shaanpuri.com • Visit https://www.somewhere.com/mfm to hire worldwide talent like Shaan and get $500 off for being an MFM listener. Hire developers, assistants, marketing pros, sales teams and more for 80% less than US equivalents. • Mercury - Shaan uses Mercury across all of his companies. you can too: http://mercury.com/ Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column, N.A., Members FDIC • I run all my newsletters on Beehiiv and you should too + we're giving away $10k to our favorite newsletter, check it out: beehiiv.com/mfm-challenge My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by HubSpot Media // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano /
About My First Million
My First Million

My First Million

By @myfirstmillionpod

two guys, talking about business. we've done it (sold our companies), and now we talk about new ideas, opportunities, and investments. hosted by Shaan Puri & Sam Parr -- produced by Hubspot. sometimes we bring on guests ranging from billionaires to stay at home moms who've got side hustles that are bringing in $10k a month. we like to have fun, and talk about business stuff.