A Modern Holding Company
for Founder-Led Businesses
Acquiring and Growing Companies
with Strong Fundamentals
Who Are We?
Rustica Strategies is a Calgary-based acquisition firm led by Managing Partner Jason Dagenais.
We focus on buying and operating Canadian small and mid-size businesses in service-based industries through founder-aligned, growth-focused transitions.
What We Do?
- Acquire & Transition: Owner-first buyouts and exit-aligned paths.
- Operate & Optimize: Systems, automation, and operations expertise.
- Optimize & Scale: Prioritize durable cash flow, operational resilience & long-term success.
Founder-Aligned Deal Structures
Buyout: Clean exits for owners seeking liquidity
Equity Rollover: Keep upside with partial ownership
Earnouts: Incentivized continued growth post-close
What We Look For
- Location: Canada-based business (Alberta or Western Canada preferred
- EBITDA: Between $500k - $2M; profitable, cashflow-positive businesses
- Revenue model: Reoccurring contracts (service, subscription, or long-term arrangement)
- Team & Ops: A loyal, non-founder dependent team; solid systems in place
- Owner Transition: Owner open to exit or strategic rollover, with flexible timeline
Post Acquisition Playbook - What Would Success Look Like?
Here is how it could work:
Evaluate all standard operating procedures and playbooks. Understand processes and have well defined documentation & workflow analysis.
Deploy AI tools and automation to cut operating costs
Install dashboards for real time KPI
Support operations during first 12 to 18 month
Case Study: Rustica acquires a $1 million EBITDA service firm, then implement Stragentic automate job costing and paperwork (EchoDrop, SnapTrak, Custom agents and other AI assistance, etc.) and up-skill/trains team
Result: ~20% EBITDA improvement within one year
Contact
Interested in selling your business, partnering on an opportunity, or working with one of our portfolio brands?
Reach out directly at
jason@rusticastrategies.com
or visit us at
STRAGENTIC.AI
