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Contrarian Thinking

The hottest businesses right now have dad bods

May 14, 2026
4 min read
The hottest businesses right now have dad bods

By the end of this, you’ll understand exactly what that means.

Let’s start here: The future is going to be awesome.

Yes, it’s AI agents, automation, robotics, software, new tools, and new workflows.

BUT… It’s also a local fire sprinkler company with 30 years of happy customers and a truck.

It’s a roofing business using AI to quote faster. It’s an HVAC company with better dispatch software. It’s a plumbing brand with an ugly website and a customer who needs someone there by 3 p.m. because in 2050, water will still be doing things water shouldn’t do.

That’s what makes this moment we’re living in very, very interesting.

Over the last few weeks, we’ve been deep in the data, talking to Main Street business owners, operators, AI innovators, and buyers about where all these things are headed.

Then we turned everything we found into this…

» Our 2026 State of Main Street report:

It’s a beautifully crafted, 40-page report on Main Street business trends, AI adoption, financing, and ownership.

And we’re launching it… *checks watch…* now.

We probably shoulda charged for this… Oh well. Too late now.

For now, it’s completely free, and you can get it here:

Small businesses employ 46% of the workforce and create 64% of new jobs. So if you care about where the real economy is headed, this is required reading.

BUT before you dive in, it’s worth understanding some of the tectonic shifts shaping it all.

In fact, you should think of this report as a wake-up call, and here’s why…

Welcome to the Hot Dad Bod Economy

If there’s 1 thing that’s become clear, it’s that business builders everywhere are growing way less seduced by what looks “hot” on the outside and way more attracted to what’s actually considered “fit” when it comes to the bottom line.

In fact, this may be one of the most important economic frameworks of our time:

The hot guy bod vs. the fit dad bod.

A “hot” business is the guy with abs who takes 14 supplements but gets winded carrying groceries. A fit business is the 43-year-old dad in New Balance sneakers who can run a marathon, fix the sink, grill 40 burgers, and somehow still be early to soccer practice.

Lots of people think they want to be the hot guy. And there’s always a hot thing out there. Always.

In 2021, you could say “NFT community,” and people would hand you money like you discovered fire. In 2022, the metaverse arrived and tried to make everyone attend meetings as legless avatars.

Now it’s AI agents, AI wrappers, AI copilots, AI assistants, and AI agents for AI agents. Some of these waves are real. AI is very, very real. Crypto has produced major businesses. The internet looked a little ridiculous before it ate the world, too.

But “hot” often has baggage.

Hot gets crowded. Hot attracts tourists. And worst of all, hot makes people confuse attention for value, when most people should be focused on value (being fit) over attention (being hot).

Hot is the SaaS dream that sounds cool at a party. Fit is the fire sprinkler installation company that feeds a family. Hot needs some blind faith. Fit has code requirements, inspection cycles, service contracts, emergency calls, broken compressors, rodents doing rodent stuff, and a building manager named Larry who needs someone there by 3 p.m.

And more people want a piece of it.

That’s the shift we’re seeing.

The fire sprinkler company may not get the eyeballs. But it has a reason to exist when the market gets weird.

More young builders are choosing the business that’s actually fit over the one that sounds hot, but is not. Good rhyme, eh?

1 Big Ugly Problem: We’ve Got a Broken GPS, America

Somewhere out there, there’s a laminated life plan from 1988 still giving people directions.

Go to college. Get a job. Buy a house. Work 40 years. Retire. Develop strong opinions about lawn care and taxes.

That still works for many. But it’s becoming far less reliable because the terrain has changed.

It’s why the builders we show you in our report are doing something different. They’re not waiting for the GPS voice to go: RECALCULATING…RECALCULATING...

They’re drawing new maps. Charting new paths. Buying businesses. Fixing systems. Using AI. Learning sales. Building teams. Finding opportunity in weird local companies with bad websites and surprisingly sturdy cash flow.

But drawing your own map does not mean sprinting into the woods with a granola bar.

You need a compass.

Doesn’t matter if you’re an owner, an employee, or some undiscovered species.

Pick one direction on that compass, and you become useful.

Stack a few, and you become truly dangerous.

That’s Enough Thumb Twiddling For You

A compass is useful.

But at some point, Captain Spreadsheet, you have to stop staring at it like a tiny pirate and actually chart the seven seas.

On June 18-20, we’re hosting Main Street Millionaire Live, our 3-day virtual(!!!) business-buying accelerator where our team equips you with the skills to buy your first, or next, cash-flowing small business.

Right now, tickets are at the lowest price they’ll ever be.

Yes, we will keep bolding important details as long as necessary.

Because this is your last shot this year to get in the room with us to learn how to buy a business in 2026.

You’ll learn how to:

  • Find boring businesses worth buying
  • Do a deal without getting financially catfished
  • Finance acquisitions without having a trust fund named after a lake
  • Use AI to make that old business you bought run like a Ferrari

Deal breakdowns, expert sessions, live Q&As, tons of practical frameworks, and a lineup of lessons we’re super excited about await.

See you there,

-Codie


The information contained here is educational, may not be typical, and does not guarantee returns. Background, education, effort, and application will affect your experience and the profitability of any business. Individual results may vary.

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