Leak Electric, 48-Year Tulsa-Area Electrical Contractor

$1.2M

Revenue

$750K

SDE

2.0x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

This is a family-owned electrical contracting business founded in 1978, serving the greater Tulsa metropolitan area for nearly five decades. The company works across residential, commercial, and light industrial sectors, handling everything from panel replacements and service upgrades to new construction, generator installs, and lighting work. Nearly 50 years of operating history in one market has produced a loyal customer base and a trusted local brand, which matters in the trades where reputation drives referral flow.

The financials are clean and simple: roughly $1.2M in annual revenue against $750K in seller discretionary earnings, a 62.5% cash flow margin, and zero debt. The operation runs on 7 people (3 journeyman electricians and 4 helpers) plus a fleet of 6 fully equipped service trucks, all owned free and clear. The team operates out of a leased 7,000 sq ft facility at $3,000/month with a lease running through January 2027.

What makes this notable is the price. At $1.5M asking against $750K SDE, this is a 2x multiple, which is cheap for an essential-trade services business with this margin profile and history. The catch is understanding how much of that $750K is owner labor versus true transferable earnings, since a heavily owner-dependent shop justifies a lower multiple and requires a hiring plan on day one.

Why we like it

The earnings quality is strong on paper: $750K SDE on $1.2M revenue is a 62.5% margin with a debt-free balance sheet and 6 trucks owned outright. Electrical contracting is a real cash business with predictable demand, and clean financials at this size are more the exception than the rule.
Durability is baked in after 48 years in one market. Electrical work is non-discretionary, code-mandated, and cannot be offshored or DIY'd safely, so the demand is sticky through cycles. A near-half-century local reputation is a genuine moat in the trades where homeowners and GCs buy on trust and referral.
Market tailwinds favor Tulsa metro, which continues to grow in population and construction activity. Residential upgrades, generator demand, and the emerging EV charging install market all layer onto a proven base of repair and new-construction work.
The operator advantage here is price and simplicity. A 2x multiple on essential-trade SDE is well below typical asks for this profile, giving an experienced electrician or trades operator immediate cash flow with room to expand crews and add recurring maintenance revenue.

How to improve it

Build recurring maintenance contracts with commercial and light-industrial clients in the first 90 days. Converting one-off service calls into annual service agreements smooths revenue, raises the multiple at exit, and reduces dependence on transactional new-construction work.
Add a fourth journeyman and a second crew to break the throughput ceiling. With only 3 journeymen and 4 helpers, the business is likely turning away or delaying jobs, so hiring one licensed lead can unlock incremental revenue that is nearly all margin.
Launch a focused EV charging installation offering. The residential and commercial EV charger market is growing fast, the work fits the existing crew skillset, and it is an easy cross-sell to the existing customer base and builder relationships.
Invest in basic digital marketing and lead capture. A 48-year-old family shop almost certainly relies on referrals and phone calls, so a modern website, Google Business Profile optimization, and paid local search can generate a measurable new-customer pipeline.
Formalize the generator sales and install line as a standalone profit center. Generators carry strong ticket sizes and margins, pair naturally with storm-prone Oklahoma weather, and can be marketed proactively rather than sold reactively.
Systematize dispatch, quoting, and job costing with field-service software. Tightening scheduling and per-job margin visibility protects the 62.5% margin as crews scale and reduces the reliance on the owner's institutional memory.
Deepen builder and general-contractor relationships to lock in repeat commercial volume. A handful of preferred-vendor agreements with active GCs can provide a steady base load of work that fills crew capacity between service calls.

Diligence notes

The single most important question is how much of the $750K SDE is the retiring owner's labor and relationships. Quantify the owner's day-to-day role, hours, and job functions, then model the cost of replacing him, because that directly determines the real transferable earnings and whether the 2x multiple is truly cheap.
Verify the financials against tax returns and bank statements since revenue was listed as Not Disclosed in the headline but $1.2M in the body. Confirm the 62.5% margin is sustainable and not inflated by underpaying the owner or deferring truck and equipment replacement.
Assess licensing and key-man risk on the journeymen. Electrical work requires licensed personnel, so confirm which license the business operates under, whether it transfers with the sale, and how tenured and retention-safe the 3 journeymen are.
Review the customer and revenue concentration across residential, commercial, and light-industrial segments. Understand what share comes from repeat customers versus one-time new construction, and whether any single builder or client drives an outsized portion of revenue.
Confirm the lease terms and renewal risk on the 7,000 sq ft facility, which expires January 2027. Given the trucks and inventory are stored there, understand landlord intentions, likely renewal rent, and relocation cost if the space is not extended.

Source

Originally listed on BizBuySell. View original listing →