Sean McAuliffe didn't invent anything. He was a distributor. If you lost your car keys and went to a locksmith to cut a new set, chances are your locksmith got the replacement key from Sean's business. He bought cheap keys from Asia and sold them to locksmiths. Nothing fancy. Like so many businesses, Sean was a middleman. He'd never really thought about selling—didn't think anyone would want to buy it—but when a private equity group offered him millions, Sean realized he was sitting on a potential goldmine.