Josh Rosenberg on business, leadership, loss and finding perspective

How M&A activity in the convenience services industry is evolving, and the life-changing impact of personal challenges and loss, are front and center in a thoughtful and moving episode of Automatic Merchandiser & VendingMarketWatch’s Vending & OCS Nation.

In this part 2, podcast host Bob Tullio continues his discussion with Josh Rosenberg of Forward Thinkers, Josh shares why he believes the M&A market remains stronger than ever, with increasing interest from private equity groups, family offices and strategic buyers looking to enter the convenience services space. He explains how Forward Thinkers helps operators maximize company value before a sale by focusing on leadership development, organizational readiness, talent retention, customer relationships and operational excellence. (Miss part 1? Listen here.)

The conversation then shifts to Josh’s passion for building a family-centered business alongside his wife and sons, and the unique rewards and challenges that come with working together.

In one of the most emotional interviews ever featured on Vending & OCS Nation, Josh speaks openly about a series of serious health challenges, the unexpected loss of his son Isaac, and how those experiences have transformed his perspective on leadership, business and life itself.

He describes the overwhelming support he received from the convenience services community, the power of vulnerability, the importance of faith and family and why life’s greatest lessons often emerge from its most difficult moments.

This episode is an inspiring reminder that while business success matters, relationships, purpose, and perspective matter even more.

Thank you, Josh, for your honesty, courage and willingness to help others through your story.

No time to listen? Prefer to read? Here is an edited podcast transcript:

Bob Tullio: On this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, it’s part two of my conversation with Josh Rosenberg of Forward Thinkers. We talked about his company’s approach to M&A, and then, the challenges he and his family have faced in the last year, including some significant health issues and, of course, the tragic loss of his son, Isaac.

Josh has been quite open about this. You may recall a LinkedIn post four months ago, where he wrote, “Yesterday, my family experienced the unthinkable. We lost our son, friend, and partner, Isaac.”

Still, before I delved into this deeply personal matter, I asked Josh if there was anything that was off-limits. And here is what he said.

Josh Rosenberg: You don’t have to hold back. I think it’s the one thing I learned.

You know, I put that post out there on LinkedIn, [and] even some of my own family was upset with me. Well, part of it was control the narrative, but it was all from the heart. I was in a moment of vulnerability. And not only our industry… God, did they wrap their arms around me! People that I had differences with, right? And still may, but we’re not always — my wife likes to teach me we’re acquaintances. We’re not always just friends. We might be more acquaintances.

I had over 100,000 people engage on that [post], and over 2,000 private messages from around the world. Every nationality. And a number of them — a majority of them — had suffered a similar loss and never talked about it or been unwilling. Or even if they had, they either helped me or we helped each other.

And so, if this part of it can help others — young parents, parents with 20-something-year-olds that went through COVID, and people that have been faced with those that keep…because a lot of us hold it in, right? Then I’m all for it. Now I may not get through it very well because it’s still raw. It’s only been four months. And he was my life.

Bob Tullio: It was a courageous response, exactly what I expected. Later in this interview, we talked about those difficult topics and how Josh and his family are coping and moving forward. But first, I asked him about the state of the industry’s M&A market, an area that Forward Thinkers is increasingly focused on.

What’s your take on the state of the M&A market today for our industry?

Josh Rosenberg: We have more viable buyers of interest than we ever have. A week doesn’t go by that a financial buyer or even a wealthy family office or individual reaches out to me because of my experience in the industry, looking to get in, looking to understand.

I just had this call last week with a private equity company that’s starting to search. They want in the space. And it’s one of those things where I’m involved. I’m here for our board meeting, Alliance Vending Markets, we’re killing it. Not only just through acquisition — and they see the value of it — but they’re giving operators a different way out. Stay on, participate, put some of your money in, we’ll back it with ours. We’ll give you center of excellence. And we will, you’ll get two takes at it. You’ll get to double up on your outcome. And it’s proven to be very successful. We’ve got an incredible leadership team, incredible partner behind it. And people are seeing that. They’re taking notice of it, and they’re wanting in. And I think that is a testament to our space, where consumer market has shifted to, and the golden real estate that we have.

And then you throw the strategics in. For the most part, one of them’s taken a pause, but they still want to actively acquire. All three strategics are looking at this space saying, “We’ve got to grow. And M&A is a way to get there.”

They aren’t buying the company, by the way. And that’s something that we work on at Forward Thinkers that I think is unique to our competitors. We work with the individual, the leader, the owner, the people that might be left behind. Because they’re not paying —

They’ll pay for your business. They’ll integrate it and take your synergies. But, if you understand that people are the driver, and you have competency in people, systems and controls, and good customer dichotomy, you’re going to get paid more. So, we work with customers to really focused there, because whether you’re a strategic buyer, financial buyer, individual: Nobody wants to come into a business that doesn’t have competency in people because they need them. Everybody needs talent first, diversity in business because it’s less risk, and then competency in your customer relationships. Stickiness. And so that’s driving a lot of continued M&A.

I think it’s only going to continue to accelerate our space. And the way that you optimize dollars is how you focus on readiness to go into market and then diligence during the process, to demonstrate credibility and confidence in your business, and then who you leave behind and how you leave it behind. And that’s our strategy when we work with partners on M&A, and that’s what buyers are looking for. But it’s only going to accelerate because people want in this space more than they ever have.

Bob Tullio: Give me an idea of what Forward Thinkers does to optimize the position of a company before a sale.

Josh Rosenberg: So, we come in, whether it’s 60 days or three years. And we work closely with that operator. We evaluate the business, the culture, the systems, the customer base, the integrity of the data. And we optimize every bit of that for the partner. We prepare and train and educate the owner on how to engage in the sale process because what they say and what they do matters a lot to the buyer because they’re going to be heavily involved face-to-face and influencing the best outcome. So, we spend a lot of time.

I’m a certified executive coach. I lean into that. Not only the owner, but I want to understand the owner’s position. Do they want to stay, or do they want to exit? If they’re going to exit, what’s level 2 look like? So, let’s make sure we have talent at level 2, and they’re prepared to represent your brand, and people want to buy them, because that’s the first thing they’re doing.

Then it’s about systems, controls and data. We run a very strong process where we lead. We don’t just ask the operator to give it to the buyer. We don’t just ask them to hand it off to us to hand over. We actually help them structure and optimize all their data into an external data room, highly secured, private equity, best practice data room. So, we have control over who sees what, how long they can see it, and whether or not they’re allowed to download or take it with them. That protects the operator’s IP.

It also creates a very competitive sequence of events. So, we’re able to bring in, I mean, we’ve had over 30 buyers engage on one of the deals we’re leading. So, we’re really creating a competitive marketplace for both strategics and external buyers. We control that outcome — we control the message, we prepare them — and then we help them all the way through to the end. So, once it goes into an LOI [letter of intent], we’re side by side with a comprehensive sell process and integration plan so that holdback and their business continuity is there.

So, they don’t see the business diminish during their sell process. They actually see it improve. And then post-sale, they got control over that holdback, which is a very important part of their takeaway. So, we’re hands-on all the way through. And that I think is our difference. And we’ve been very successful in getting top dollar for our transactions, well above the industry benchmark, for that reason.

Bob Tullio: You’ve built a family-oriented business with your sons involved in Forward Thinkers. What has that experience meant to you?

Josh Rosenberg: Personally, it was always my dream, thanks to this industry.

I grew up at people’s dinner tables. I grew up with their families. My kids grew up with their families. And when I became an operator, I thought, “Wow, this could be a family business.” Part to our success, part to the way the business went, and a lot to my kids’ desire — that wasn’t the business intended for us.

But I pivoted. I didn’t just get into this business. I got a great passion for it, but I got into it because my oldest went to school for fintech [financial technology], and he was teaching me things in automation and technology that I understood but didn’t know in depth. And [I] realized that many could benefit from it, and that my kids were passionate about it. And that’s all I ever wanted. And I wanted to have that family connector tissue that kept us close no matter where we were. And I wanted them to be able to have the best experience in life, and the business we have allowed them — allows all of us — to work remotely. So selfishly, when I moved off to Colorado, I didn’t have to worry about when I called them. They said, “Well, I got a job. I got to be out all week.” They could bring their work with them. Or if they wanted to go to Costa Rica, where my oldest has a passion for Costa Rica or anywhere else, [I say], “Hey, as long as the work gets done, you can work anywhere, anytime.”

But, we got to do it together, and I get to watch my kids grow. And it’s…. Like anybody that has their family in the business, it’s got its pros, and it’s got its cons. I’m still dad. It’s hard to always manage that, for myself and them. But it’s been a journey that I would never — and I’ve never — regretted. I get up every day excited because I’ve got that opportunity to work with my boys.

Bob Tullio: It’s great.

Josh Rosenberg: And my wife. And my wife.

Bob Tullio: Sure.

Josh Rosenberg: She’s the boss of all. She keeps us all moving. So, it’s fun.

Bob Tullio: You’ve experienced an incredibly difficult time personally, including the loss of your son, Isaac. And as a father of two boys in their 30s — I say boys — two men in their 30s, I can always understand passion, and I cannot even fathom the pain. But, you also had a few health challenges. And first, I want to thank you for being willing to talk about it.

How has all of this changed the way you see life and leadership?

Josh Rosenberg: Yeah, I mean, hell, I thought the health was enough.

In two years, I’ve had a cervical fusion, which I gotta go back and get a second one now, I just found out. Kidney stones that have been a three-year process. And I ended up having cardiovascular disease, and a full blockage in my left leg, and almost lost my foot. That alone will kill your ego. It makes it very hard to focus on what’s priority in life. And then you throw the tragedy…

If I can share for just a moment before I answer… The night before it happened, I talked to Isaac that day. I had what’s called a loop recorder put on my heart, and I was coming back from a cardiologist. He’s always the first to call, and he called me, and asked me how it went. And I wasn’t going to have to get a pacemaker. Business was killing it. I had one of the largest M&A deals I’ve ever done, closing. My boys were doing so well in the business, which was transformative because it took a long time to get there. Business clarity was there, and we were successful.

I sat on the edge of my bed at 10:38 the night before, just talking to my wife about how great life is. Finally, after six years of hard work, we’re back on top. The next morning, that changed forever. And it wasn’t expected.

This was not something that — and that’s what I’d say to parents. In today’s world, this tough world we live in, you gotta understand what’s going on. You may not be able to control, but damn it, you don’t know what’s around the corner. What it’s changed to me is life. Life is my perspective. The hell with everything else. The hell with the tough client, the hell with the challenged outcome — it’s just work. It’s just a transaction.

But my life was nearly taken, and still I’ve got significant risk the rest of my life. And our family will never be the same. You wake up every day with that burden of you’ve got to wake up, you’ve got to face your home where you live. And the thousands of people that have talked to me about this — that have been through over time — say, “It might destroy your marriage. It might destroy your business. It might destroy your home, your environment.”

And I’ll tell you: Every single one of them have been challenged. And I think everything I’ve been through in life helped me prepare for it.

Nothing ever prepares you for the loss of a child. But I face everything differently. There’s nothing — I used to get worked up because I was passionate about things, and I’m always driven to be on top and to be better and to…. I’ve always been willing to work around the clock and get something done.

Now, I’m focused on working smarter, not harder, and making sure that I enjoy the ride more than ever. And I think as a leader, that is critical for us, because the business can consume us. The number of operators over the years who used to talk to me because of my passion for my boys — and their broken relationship with theirs, because the business became first. I had some of that. I had a lot of that at Coke. I had more of it when I, toward the latter part of Accent [Food Services] because we got bigger than me.

But the reality is, life and work don’t have to coexist, but family’s important, and you can’t take this damn thing so seriously. And I think because of that, if there’s a… I always try to look for the positive. It’s going to make me a better person, a better father, a better leader, a better business owner and a better partner to our clients. Because my urgency to do more is now diminished by my desire to do great — but not take it home with me, not wear that burden. I think that clarity and that opens you up to do a lot more. I don’t know how else to say it.

Again, every day is heavy. I would say until the last two weeks, I have not been really that good at business or life. But I had to wake up and realize that I can’t let this define us. And so having…. You got to stand up. You got to move on. And I’d say that’s the leadership learning that I’ve had and trying to take away from it.

Bob Tullio: Well, it’s obvious your priorities have changed, but what role did family, faith, friendships or the industry community play in helping you navigate this difficult season?

Josh Rosenberg: Well, I couldn’t go to NAMA because I couldn’t have 5,000 conversations. I went to a smaller event, and everybody was so great. They were so amazing that, while I felt really loved and appreciative, it tore me down because it was a constant discussion about the tragedy. And I have to live with that. And I’m not saying I don’t want to talk to people like you do, like I need it. And many times, I can talk about it one-on-one, but when you’re in a compounding factor — I haven’t been very good at that yet. So, I chose to skip NAMA.

But even during NAMA week, the number of texts I got from people [saying], “Hey, I heard you’re not here. I’m thinking about you. I’m with you. I’m praying for you.” It was overwhelming. And it has been from the beginning.

So, the industry, again, whether I’ve got adversaries or people that may or may not be on the best side of me, everybody regardless, has been incredible and risen to the occasion. And I will never forget that ever. Because they watch my kid grow up in this industry.

Bob Tullio: Yeah.

Josh Rosenberg: Hell, they watched me grow up. I was 19 when I got into this industry, and they’ve watched me grow up. They’ve raised me, many of these people.

Faith has been challenged. How do you lose a child?

Bob Tullio: Yeah.

Josh Rosenberg: But you’ve got to be grounded in the fact that there’s a purpose and a reason for everything. And if you allow it…. Every moment in my life, I’ve had a lot of hardship; I’ve had a lot of gains. Every moment in my life, there’s been a reason or a rationale you could see clearly after your mind is clear, and after you’re past the event.

And as tragic as this is, that’s how I wake up every day. And that’s what I encourage my family to do, that we got to do better. I mean, my youngest is thriving because this was a wake-up call. My oldest turned 25 yesterday. Talk about a difficult day, but he’s living his best life, and he’s trying to be the best person he can be because they realize how precious life is, but they’re hurting. So…my wife, same thing.

I mean, our family’s been rocked, but we’ve leaned on faith, we’ve leaned on each other, we’ve leaned on industry and other people we know, and everybody’s been so amazing. I’m just grateful.

Bob Tullio: Well, if you look at the outpouring after you put that post up on LinkedIn, a lot of love in your direction. It took courage, a lot of courage, for you to put that post up there.

Josh Rosenberg: I was flying home on a plane where — God, no wonder what people might have been thinking about our row. My wife and my son were flying home to get our baby. And I just, I wanted to… the message was getting out there, and it was conflicting. And I wanted to honor Isaac and honor the moment.

But equally, I never could have imagined the response. I mean, it was global. People from China, Australia, Europe, Russia — that had gone through this, lost a sibling, lost a child, nearly lost a child. Multiple people reached out and said they were considering suicide, and this helped them. I don’t know where they ended up.

But the other side of it was the number of people from industry — not just vending operators, but suppliers that I’ve known a long time — who shared they’d been through this and had never talked about it publicly. But they were doing great things to honor their loved one and to give back. And that’s where I was trying to get to. And I still am.

I’m trying to find my courage, and my voice, and my place because God, this can’t happen the way it’s happening, at the pace it is. impulsive as mine was, never seen, no signs. Others, they struggle with it every day.

You and I have dear friends who have been through this, whether it’s drugs, alcohol or a mental loss that drives them to it. We’ve got to be better stewards of our society and community. And that’s all that was meant to be. And it saved me. The responses I got carried me until I could get on my own feet. So, I’m very thankful.