Our Approach to Agency Acquisitions: Valuation Drivers and Deal Breakers | EP2
Release Date: 07/15/2025
Turning Every New Client Opportunity Into an Agency’s Compounding Asset | EP25
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Most agencies treat client work as a series of one-off transactions. But the most successful firms treat every engagement as an investment that compounds over time. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei Wook Kim introduce the concept of engagement yield: the tangible and intangible value that extends far beyond the invoice. They break down the four components of engagement yield; proof, leverage, relationships, and referrals. And explains how agencies can systematically capture this value. Peter and Sei Wook share practical strategies for turning client work into lasting assets: from...
info_outline
Why Peter Wrote a Book on Holding Companies | EP24
The AgencyHabits Podcast
In this special episode, host Sei-Wook Kim interviews Barrel Holdings co-founder Peter Kang about his new book, The HoldCo Guide: How Entrepreneurs Structure and Build a Holding Company That Lasts. Peter shares the organic journey that led him to write the book, from scaling a single agency to building a multi-agency holding company, and why no existing resource fully addressed the topic. He breaks down the core concepts every entrepreneur should understand: the spectrum between capital allocator and operational HoldCos, the critical balance of centralization vs. decentralization, and the...
info_outline
Breaking Down Agency Employee Compensation | EP23
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Compensation is more than just a number. It’s a strategic tool for attracting, retaining, and motivating talent. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim unpack the full spectrum of employee compensation in an agency setting. They start by acknowledging that while pay is crucial, it’s not the only factor. Culture, management, challenging work, and company trajectory all play vital roles. From there, they dive into the core components: base salary (and how to set competitive, geographically-aware bands), benefits (health insurance, 401k, PTO, and creative perks), and both short-...
info_outline
Annual Checkup: 9 Markers to Diagnose Your Agency’s Health | EP22
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Most agencies only seek help when something is broken. But by then, the problems are often systemic. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim shift the conversation from reactive fixes to proactive health. They introduce a holistic “annual checkup” framework, mapping nine critical agency functions to body parts and their vital signs: from positioning (vision) and client trust (heart rate) to revenue stability (blood pressure) and risk resilience (immune system). Drawing from their experience building and scaling Barrel, Peter and Sei-Wook explain how to spot early warning signals...
info_outline
Evolving from Managing Projects to Growing Accounts | EP21
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Growing from single-project engagements to managing multiple, concurrent work streams is a major turning point for any agency. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim unpack the structural shift required to turn this complexity into a sustainable competitive advantage. Drawing from their own hard-earned lessons at Barrel, they dissect the common pitfalls like team silos, client misalignment, and leader burnout, that can derail multi-faceted accounts. Peter and Sei-Wook break down the three critical roles needed for success: Account Leadership for strategy and relationships, Program...
info_outline
How Agencies Should Think About and Manage Risk | EP 20
The AgencyHabits Podcast
In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim break down how agency owners should think about risk, not as isolated problems to react to, but as ongoing exposure that needs to be actively managed. Using a simple risk matrix, they explain how to prioritize risks based on likelihood and impact, and why high-impact risks deserve disproportionate attention. They then walk through nine of the most consequential risks agencies face, from founder burnout and partner misalignment to legal exposure, cash flow insolvency, client concentration, and strategic drift. For each, they share practical ways to...
info_outline
Learning From Other Agency Owners | EP19
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Great agencies are not built in isolation. In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim explore the transformative power of community and peer learning for agency founders. The hosts share their personal journey from working in a silo to actively seeking mentorship and joining dedicated communities, revealing how these connections helped them avoid blind spots, gain crucial perspective, and accelerate their growth. Peter and Sei-Wook break down specific communities that have been instrumental to their journey, including Bureau of Digital, Society of Digital Agencies (SoDA), and Collective 54....
info_outline
Why Agencies Rely on Referrals But Few Treat It as a System | EP18
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Most agencies say they rely on referrals, but few treat them as a system. In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim dismantle the "hope-based" approach to referrals and lay out a strategic framework for building a consistent pipeline. Drawing from the book The Referral Code, they redefine referrals as a transfer of goodwill and share actionable tactics for intentional referral generation. Peter and Sei-Wook cover how to identify the right people to ask, the critical importance of timing your ask within a "state of appreciation," and how to craft effective, open-ended questions. They also...
info_outline
The Six Levers of Profitable Client Engagements | EP17
The AgencyHabits Podcast
Profitability is the lifeblood of any agency, yet it can feel elusive. In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim move beyond surface-level tips to reveal the six fundamental levers that directly impact the bottom line of every project, retainer, and service program. They break down how pricing, staffing, engagement design, scope management, reusable IP, and automation all interlock to create or erode healthy gross margins. Drawing from their experience across the Barrel Holdings portfolio, Peter and Sei-Wook share candid examples of where profitability leaks and provide a practical...
info_outline
Scaling Your Agency Beyond $2M | EP 16
The AgencyHabits Podcast
In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim dissect why agencies hit the $2M and what you can do to break through. They explain how founder-centric systems that work at a smaller scale become the primary constraint to growth, leading to breakdowns in client delivery, team management, and financial visibility. The hosts share actionable solutions, from improving onboarding and implementing debrief processes to strategically hiring for your weaknesses and deepening financial rigor. They also introduce the Agency Systems Playbook, a framework of five core systems that drive a scalable agency....
info_outlineIn this episode of Agency Habits, Peter Kang interviews Sei-Wook Kim on the inner workings of agency acquisitions and valuations at Barrel Holdings. They break down the exact criteria they use when evaluating whether to acquire an agency and explain the logic behind their valuation framework: what increases the price, what brings it down, and how seller goals shape the final deal.
If you're building an agency with the intention to sell (now or years from now), this episode will help you understand how experienced buyers actually think: what they're measuring, what red flags they catch fast, and what signals a business is built to last.
They also discuss the emotional side of selling, legacy, and the difference between cashing out and compounding long-term value.
Key Moments
1. Why Barrel Holdings pivots between building and buying agencies
2. The evolution of their acquisition criteria and "buy box" parameters
3. How specialization drives both defensibility and higher valuations
4. The critical importance of recurring revenue and client diversification
5. Why proprietary technology can actually hurt agency valuations
6. How seller motivations dramatically impact deal structure and pricing
7. The emotional side of agency sales and preserving legacy
Real Talk Takeaways
1. Recurring revenue and retention unlock higher multiples.
2. Agencies with clear positioning and playbooks stand out fast.
3. Client and lead source concentration are silent risks buyers notice immediately.
4. Founders who’ve stepped back (and trained successors) are more valuable.
5. Legacy matters. Some sellers will trade upside for story.
Timestamps
00:00 – Welcome to Agency Habits
00:33 – Why buy versus build? The acceleration advantage of acquisitions
02:08 – Inside Barrel Holdings' "buy box" criteria: $2-10M revenue, 15%+ EBITDA
03:23 – How deal size and structure constraints shape acquisition strategy
03:41 – The power of specialization: why niche agencies win
05:14 – Platform plays: riding the growth wave of Shopify and Webflow
05:31 – Top value drivers: what makes agencies worth more
06:44 – The importance of predictable, recurring revenue streams
07:10 – Revenue consistency vs. growth: why stable beats volatile
08:20 – Client concentration red flags: the 15-20% danger zone
09:30 – How agency reputation manifests in organic deal flow
10:08 – Business development diversification: avoiding single-source risk
10:49 – Team retention, margin efficiency, and operational excellence
12:17 – The nuance of employee retention: performance vs. loyalty
13:18 – What's less important: proprietary tech and unsustainable growth
16:07 – How seller goals affect valuation and deal structure
17:37 – Risk pricing: why seller involvement impacts multiples
18:28 – The emotional side: legacy, brand preservation, and life circumstances
20:26 – Wrapping up: the complexity beyond pure numbers
Notable Quotes
"Consistency helps give us the confidence that future years will look like the past years."
“Specialization isn’t just for SEO, it’s your valuation strategy.”
“High revenue with low margin? That’s not scale, it’s a red flag.”
“Legacy isn't soft. It shapes how sellers price the future.”
“The emotional story behind the numbers tells us more than the deck ever will.”
Links & Resources
Peter Kang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterkang34/
Sei-Wook on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seiwookkim/
AgencyHabits Website: https://www.agencyhabits.com/
AgencyHabits on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/agencyhabits/
Barrel Holdings Website: https://www.barrel-holdings.com/
Barrel Holdings LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/barrel-holdings/