For Search Curious as well as Advanced ecosystem members.
RMETA grew out of entrepreneurship through acquisition work at CU Boulder in collaboration with Denver ETA Meetup. It launched with a pilot course and grew with partnerships from Colorado School of Mines, Colorado State University, and many community partners. And the ecosystem is still growing!
What entrepreneurship through acquisition actually means.
Most people picture entrepreneurship as starting from nothing. An idea, a laptop, a long wait for the first customer.
Acquisition is the other route. You buy a company that already works, with customers, revenue, staff, and a track record behind it, and you take over running it.
The work runs from deciding whether it suits you at all, through finding a company worth pursuing, financing the purchase, checking that the numbers hold up, and getting to a close. Then comes the part that lasts longest, which is actually leading the business you now own.
Why it matters
Every year, owners who spent decades building something durable decide it is time to step away. Some hand the business to family. Some sell to a competitor. Some simply close the doors. Acquisition is the route where a new owner steps in and the company, its staff, and its customers carry on.
Where the conference came from.
The first RMETA Conference was built to test a straightforward idea: that the searchers, operators, investors, lenders, and advisors working on acquisitions across this region would get more done if they were in one room.
It drew a strong response, and the collaboration widened well beyond where it started.
November 7, 2026 is the second annual RMETA Conference. It is now run in collaboration with six regional universities and the Denver ETA Meetup.
See who collaborates on RMETA
October 2025 · Inaugural conference
Where it all started.
The inaugural Rocky Mountain ETA Conference brought the region's acquisition community into one room for the first time at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Searchers, operators, investors, lenders, advisors, students, and faculty spent the day together, and the response made the case for turning it into an annual gathering. What began from a single pilot course closed with a community ready to do it again, only bigger.
Who the conference is for.
Acquisition is not a solo pursuit, so the room is built to hold every seat around a deal at once.
- People considering a search
- Interested in owning a business but not looking yet. The fundamentals, honest guidance about the career, and a clear picture of what the process actually asks of you.
- Active searchers
- Looking right now. Relationships with investors, lenders, brokers, attorneys, accountants, and other searchers, plus practical ground on sourcing, diligence, valuation, financing, and closing.
- Operators
- Current and former owners who can pass on hard-won experience, meet the next generation of owners, and see how other leaders grow a company after the deal is done.
- Investors and lenders
- Capital partners looking to meet strong searchers, understand what is happening regionally, and compare approaches across the ecosystem.
- Attorneys, accountants, and advisors
- The professionals who help buyers evaluate opportunities, structure transactions, complete diligence, reduce risk, and operate well once the deal closes.
- Students and faculty
- University participants exploring acquisition as a career path, developing research and courses, and connecting academic programs to the working business community.
The conference is one day. The need is year-round.
RMETA connects a fuller regional network for entrepreneurship through acquisition: university courses, executive education, the Denver ETA Meetup, and clear routes to the operators, advisors, and capital partners doing this work across the Rocky Mountains.
The annual conference brings those communities together for a focused day of practical learning and relationship-building.
Questions people ask first.
Do I need to be planning to buy a business to come?
No. A good share of the room every year is people working out whether this path suits them at all. The Search Curious track exists for exactly that, and nobody will ask you where your search is up to.
I advise, lend, or invest rather than buy. Is there anything here for me?
Yes, and the day is built assuming you are in the room. Acquisitions do not happen without attorneys, accountants, lenders, and investors, so the program covers building a deal team, financing, and the legal and earnings-quality detail alongside the buyer's side of it.
I am a student. Is it worth a Saturday?
Students come every year, and the universities behind RMETA are a large part of why it exists. It is a rare chance to spend a day with people who have actually bought and run companies, rather than reading about it.
Do I need to be based in Colorado?
Not at all. The collaboration is regional and the focus is on the Rocky Mountain ecosystem, but attendees and speakers come from outside it and are welcome.
Who organises it?
RMETA grew out of entrepreneurship through acquisition work at CU Boulder and is now run in collaboration with six regional universities and the Denver ETA Meetup.
Is there anything between conferences?
The Denver ETA Meetup runs year-round, with university courses and executive education offering additional ways to learn and connect across the region.
What actually happens on the day?
One day, two tracks running at different depths, hands-on workshops, an opening keynote, and a good deal of deliberately unstructured time to meet people. The agenda lays out the full day.
Something we have not covered?
Ask us directlyCome and see who is in the room.
Saturday, November 7, 2026 · Limelight Boulder · 8:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.