Matt Agnese

Business ownership. Strategic advisory. Ventures. The process starts with the person, not the opportunity.

I work with experienced professionals and businesses to assess where they are, create options, and determine what makes sense next. Matt Agnese, MBA, CFC works with experienced professionals who are thinking seriously about what comes next, including whether business ownership makes sense for them. Goals, strengths, lifestyle, finances, risk tolerance, and the role someone actually wants to have a

ll matter before evaluating a business. Ownership options may include franchises, existing business acquisitions, licensing, distributorships, independent businesses, and other structured models. Sometimes the right answer is not to pursue ownership at all. Matt also provides select consulting and advisory support in operations, procurement, supply chain, strategic sourcing, process improvement, and organizational stabilization. The goal is simple: understand the options, pressure-test the assumptions, and make a sound decision before committing significant time and capital.

08/31/2026

A conversation with SJ Barakony earlier this week has been rattling around in my head. We got onto Michael Ge**er and Robert Kiyosaki, and the distinction both make between self-employment and actually owning a business.

Ge**er's technician owns the company, but the company still depends on the technician. Kiyosaki draws a similar line between the self-employed and the business owner.

It made me wonder how loosely we use the term “business owner.”

If I own the company, but its revenue depends on my labor, relationships, expertise and continued presence, do I own a business? Or have I created a job for myself with equity attached?

There's nothing wrong with that. For many people, the autonomy alone is the objective. But it's very different from owning something that can function independently of you.

Maybe “absentee ownership” isn't the opposite. Maybe it's owner independence. You can be heavily involved because you choose to be, without the business requiring you to be.

So where does self-employment end and business ownership actually begin?

08/28/2026

Plan B and C got a refresh.

I’ve rebuilt the website and updated our social presence to better reflect what the business has become. Franchising is still part of the work, but it’s never been about finding someone a franchise. It’s about figuring out what they’re trying to accomplish and which path, if any, actually makes sense.

That same thinking applies to the advisory work we do with businesses: understand the problem before deciding on the answer.

Clarity before activity.

Different paths. The same operating discipline.

Assess. Stabilize. Create options. Move forward.

Real Guidance. Real Freedom.

Because Plan B Isn’t Always Enough.™

**Because Plan B Isn’t Always Enough.™**

08/26/2026

One of the questions I get pretty regularly is, “How much money can I make?”

Fair question. If you’re putting your own money at risk, you should be asking it.

But there’s another question that matters just as much: “What am I going to have to do to make that money?”

Two businesses can have similar revenue potential and require completely different owners. One might need someone who loves networking and selling. Another may depend on managing a large team. One could have you out in the community every day, while another has you managing systems, people and numbers from an office.

That stuff matters.

I’ve met plenty of successful people who could absolutely afford to buy a business that they would absolutely hate owning.

So yes, we talk about investment, revenue, margins and financing. Of course we do.

But we also spend a lot of time talking about you.

What are you good at? What kind of work gives you energy? What drives you crazy? How involved do you actually want to be? What do you want your life to look like a few years from now?

The goal isn’t just to find a business that can make money.

It’s to find one you’ll still be glad you bought after the excitement of buying it wears off.

08/25/2026

Sometimes the work behind the scenes matters as much as what people see.

Over the last few weeks, I've been rebuilding and tightening up Plan B and C, Inc. New branding, new logos, refreshed social channels, connected systems, and a much clearer picture of how the different pieces of the company fit together.

Plan B and C was never intended to be just one thing.

It's the umbrella for the businesses we build, operate and invest in, along with the consulting and advisory work I do.

Different businesses. Different opportunities. Different paths.

That's kind of why it's called Plan B and C.

Plan B and C, Inc.
Because Plan B Isn't Always Enough.™

08/24/2026

A recognizable brand doesn’t make a franchise a good investment.

Neither does a slick presentation, a growing market, or hearing that a territory is “almost sold out.”

I see people get excited about opportunities for all sorts of reasons, and excitement is fine. It just shouldn’t be confused with due diligence.

The real work starts when you get past the pitch and start asking harder questions. What do the economics actually look like? How much working capital will you need? How long does it typically take to build the business? What are existing owners experiencing? What does the franchisor do well, and where does the system struggle?

And perhaps most importantly, does the business actually fit you?

A franchise can have good unit economics, happy owners, strong leadership, and plenty of room for growth and still be the wrong investment for a particular person.

There’s a big difference between finding a good business and finding a good business for you.

That distinction can save you a lot of money.

08/23/2026

Running a consulting business takes you into some unexpected places.

Apparently, mine took me into publishing.

I wrote the CMS Session Notes Book, a purpose-built tool for keeping recurring session documentation organized and supporting CMS billing requirements.

It's available in 1x, 2x, and 3x weekly session formats.

A little outside my usual franchise and business ownership work? Sure.

But finding a problem and building a practical solution for it feels pretty familiar.

08/20/2026

I’m a franchise consultant, and I’ve told plenty of people not to buy a franchise.

There are some excellent franchise opportunities out there, but that doesn’t mean franchising is automatically the right answer. Depending on the person, buying an existing business may make more sense. For someone else, it might be starting something from scratch. And sometimes, once we’ve looked at the numbers, the risk, and what they’re actually trying to accomplish, the smartest move is to do nothing at all.

I think that’s an important part of this job.

When someone comes to me, I’m not looking for a reason to introduce them to a franchise. I want to understand what they’re trying to change, how they want to spend their time, what they’re good at, what they absolutely hate doing, and how much risk they’re comfortable taking.

Then we can figure out whether business ownership makes sense and, if it does, what kind.

Spending a few hundred thousand dollars on the wrong business is a pretty expensive way to learn something about yourself.

08/15/2026

“The unprecedented popularity of Keynesianism is due to the fact that it provides an apparent justification for the ‘deficit spending’ policies of contemporary governments.”

— Ludwig von Mises

Mises wasn’t simply arguing about economics. He was arguing about incentives.

Keynesian economics gave governments an economic rationale for deficit spending during downturns. Mises worried that politicians would embrace the permission to spend, but forget the discipline that was supposed to follow when conditions improved.

Decades later, persistent deficits are no longer unusual. They’re normal.

So was Mises right about the incentive?

Did deficit spending evolve from an economic tool into a permanent feature of government?

Curious where people land on this.

07/29/2026

Honest question.

What's more important to you?

Freedom.

Security.

Income.

Legacy.

You only get to pick one.

Address

Falmouth, MA

Website

https://mattagnese.com/, https://RealFranchiseGuy.com/, https://planbandc.com/, https://fzybr.com/

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