The Four Levels of Business Ownership
From solo venture to market leader — know which rung you're actually on.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~ongoing to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 88%
Sanchez maps business ownership onto four levels. Level 1 (Solo Venture) is a people-light, owner-operated business like a vending route or laundromat, a gateway that requires work but little cash and won't make you rich. Level 2 (Hands-on CEO) adds an operator like a laundromat GM while you stay involved. Level 3 (On-Deck Operator) has a capable operator with employees beneath them, doing millions in revenue while you do 'Financial Fridays' oversight. Level 4 (Market Leader) has a full C-suite and tens of employees, at the boundary where private equity might buy or compete with you. The organizing test across all levels is whether the revenue supports the infrastructure that lets you work on the business rather than in it.
Origin
Drawn from Sanchez's own portfolio journey, starting with a website and a laundromat and building to a Main Street holding company, codified in Main Street Millionaire.
Core principles
- 01The key question at each level is whether revenue supports the infrastructure that lets you work ON the business not IN it
- 02Smaller businesses require more of your own labor and less cash
- 03Bigger businesses require operators, teams, and oversight instead of execution
How to run it
- 1
Level 1 — Solo Venture
Start with a people-light, owner-operated business (vending, small car wash, laundromat, podcast production) doing $1-3M or less. It requires your labor but little cash and won't make you independently wealthy.
Pro tip Treat it as a gateway drug to learn deal-making, not a wealth engine.
- 2
Level 2 — Hands-on CEO
Add an operator (like a laundromat GM) so you invest and track while someone else runs the specifics. Slightly bigger and more complex with some employees.
Watch out Most of your time is still dedicated to this single business.
- 3
Level 3 — On-Deck Operator
Install an operator who knows more than you about the business, with employees beneath them. You move to oversight mode, reviewing performance while the business does millions in revenue and potentially $1M+ profit.
Pro tip This is where rollups and true 'work on it not in it' begin.
- 4
Level 4 — Market Leader
Build a business with a CEO plus C-suite and tens of employees generating real revenue and profit, at the stage where private equity may buy you or compete with you.
Watch out Still 'micro-PE' below the middle-market level; don't assume you're competing with true PE yet.
In the wild
In her first laundromat, Sanchez had a general manager running the laundromat specifics while she invested and tracked things overall, placing it at Level 2.
→ She stayed involved but avoided buying herself a full-time job.
Common mistakes
Buying a job instead of a business
Staying the owner-operator (Level 1) forever means the business never generates the infrastructure to free your time.
Is it for you?
Best for
Anyone deciding which size and type of business to acquire based on their capital and time.
Not ideal for
People seeking a single fixed formula rather than a staged progression.
From the transcript
“the way that we think about these levels is mainly does the revenue support the employees and infrastructure that allow you to work on the…”
“level one solo Venture so a good level one business might be something like a vending machine these are what I call people light businesses”
From the episode
Codie Sanchez: How to Make Extraordinary Wealth Buying Boring Businesses
Codie Sanchez