# Slide Deck Outline — Friends Meeting June 4, 2026

> 12 slides used during 90-min Google Meet. Each slide = discussion prompt, NOT content dump. The pre-read brief is the content. The deck is the structure for in-meeting discussion.

## Design principles

1. **One idea per slide** — no walls of text
2. **Discussion prompt at bottom of each slide** — explicit question for the group
3. **Same Solutions branding** — #101820 black + #FFB612 gold throughout
4. **Visual data where possible** — charts/diagrams over text
5. **Sam moderates** — slides drive discussion, not narrate-and-listen

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## Slide 1 — Why we're here

**Title:** Three serious paths, structured exploration

**Content:**
- This isn't a pitch
- This is structured analysis of Sam's career fork
- Group input genuinely matters

**Visual:** Three-arrow diagram — GM return, Same Solutions, Venture

**Discussion prompt:** "Before we start — what's the question YOU walked in with?"

**Time:** 5 min

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## Slide 2 — The three paths honestly framed

**Title:** What's actually on the table

**Content:**
- Path A: GM return (Tony, Luke, others advocating)
- Path B: Same Solutions LLC continuation
- Path C: Venture with this group

**Visual:** Comparison table — autonomy, capital risk, time horizon, income shape, healthcare

**Discussion prompt:** "Which path do you see Sam taking? Why?"

**Time:** 8 min

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## Slide 3 — The reframe

**Title:** Not just metal 3DP — fabrication landscape

**Content:**
- Original question: "metal 3D printing service bureau?"
- Real question: "what fabrication best fits group + SE MI?"
- Includes: CNC, plasma, waterjet, welding, metal AM

**Visual:** Technology landscape diagram with positioning of each

**Discussion prompt:** "Does this broader frame change how you'd think about it?"

**Time:** 5 min

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## Slide 4 — Demand picture (SE Michigan 2026)

**Title:** Where the customers actually are

**Content:**
- 6 customer segments identified
- Tier 2/3 auto overflow, motorsport, EV R&D, vintage, tooling, specialty
- Battery Show Oct 12-15 noted

**Visual:** Segment ranking with addressable revenue estimates

**Discussion prompt:** "Which segments do we have actual contacts in?"

**Time:** 10 min

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## Slide 5 — Phase 0 — Sharpening

**Title:** $5K test → $50K decision

**Content:**
- Captive customers built in (CeCe, butcher, PA route)
- Sub-$5K equipment
- $500-$2,000/month achievable
- Funds Phase 1 equipment by fall 2026
- Tests service delivery model

**Visual:** Revenue ramp chart + capital comparison ($5K vs $50K Phase 1)

**Discussion prompt:** "Does starting with sharpening make sense as the proof point?"

**Time:** 10 min — this is the **highest-leverage** slide

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## Slide 6 — Phase 1 equipment lean

**Title:** Tormach as starting equipment

**Content:**
- Tormach (CNC mill) ~$30-60K
- Why not metal AM yet (cost, learning curve, market)
- Why not bigger equipment (capital risk)
- Cross-tech comparison summary

**Visual:** Equipment comparison matrix (preview — full version is interactive)

**Discussion prompt:** "Any equipment expertise here that should redirect this?"

**Time:** 8 min — switch to interactive matrix HTML during this discussion

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## Slide 7 — Per-person scenarios

**Title:** Where each of you fits in three scenarios

**Content:**
- Scenario A: Sam solo
- Scenario B: Sam + Chris
- Scenario C: Full group

**Visual:** 3-scenario card layout — capital required, time commitment, role per person

**Discussion prompt:** "Which scenario fits YOUR situation? Be honest."

**Time:** 12 min — this is where real reactions come out

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## Slide 8 — Partnership structures

**Title:** Five ways this group could legally exist

**Content:**
- Each-own-LLC + shared space
- Single multi-member LLC
- Hub-and-spoke
- Coordinated separate LLCs with master agreement
- JV-by-project

**Visual:** 5-card layout, each with: complexity, exit ease, tax treatment, decision-making

**Discussion prompt:** "Which structure feels like this group?"

**Time:** 8 min

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## Slide 9 — Risk patterns

**Title:** How friend partnerships fail (and how we avoid that)

**Content:**
- Unequal commitment
- Capital disputes
- Decision paralysis
- Exit ambiguity
- Buy-sell agreement essentials

**Visual:** Failure pattern flowchart + mitigation columns

**Discussion prompt:** "What's our walkaway criteria? When do we kill it?"

**Time:** 8 min — heavy, important

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## Slide 10 — Realistic phasing

**Title:** Year 1 → Year 3 trajectory

**Content:**
- Year 1: Sharpening + Tormach
- Year 2: Equipment expansion, Chris's exit if applicable
- Year 3+: Shared facility, full operations

**Visual:** Timeline with milestones, decision gates, off-ramps

**Discussion prompt:** "What's realistic for each of YOU at each phase?"

**Time:** 7 min

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## Slide 11 — What we're NOT deciding today

**Title:** This meeting's job

**Content:**
- We're NOT signing anything today
- We're NOT making capital commitments today
- We're NOT promising timeline today
- We ARE having honest reactions
- We ARE setting follow-up homework
- We ARE deciding to reconvene in 2-3 weeks

**Visual:** Decision boundary visual — what's in/out for this meeting

**Discussion prompt:** "Any pressure to commit today? Let's drop that."

**Time:** 3 min

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## Slide 12 — Next steps

**Title:** Specific homework, specific dates, specific reconvene

**Content:**
- Each person: 2-3 week reflection
- Specific questions to think about
- Reconvene date scheduled live
- Sam's job: capture decisions, follow up individually

**Visual:** Calendar with reconvene date + per-person homework

**Discussion prompt:** "What's YOUR homework before we meet again?"

**Time:** 8 min — meeting ends with concrete next steps

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## TOTAL TIME

90 min scheduled (60 active discussion + 30 buffer for the inevitable overrun)

Breakdown:
- Slides 1-2: 13 min (intro + framing)
- Slides 3-4: 15 min (reframe + demand)
- Slide 5: 10 min (Phase 0 — highest leverage)
- Slide 6: 8 min (Phase 1 equipment)
- Slide 7: 12 min (scenarios — real reactions)
- Slide 8: 8 min (structures)
- Slide 9: 8 min (risk)
- Slide 10: 7 min (phasing)
- Slide 11: 3 min (what's not decided)
- Slide 12: 8 min (next steps)

**Total: 92 min** — fits in 90 min if Sam moderates tightly

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## Production approach

### Format

Two options:

#### Option 1: PowerPoint via pptx skill
- Claude generates .pptx file
- Sam reviews, edits in PowerPoint
- Screen-shares via PowerPoint during Google Meet
- Pros: familiar format, easy edits
- Cons: less polished than custom HTML

#### Option 2: HTML slide deck on substrate
- Custom HTML with each slide as section
- Brand-styled with Same Solutions colors
- Screen-shared via browser
- Pros: looks polished, lives on substrate (permanent), Same Solutions branding
- Cons: less editable, requires HTML changes

**Recommendation: Option 2 (HTML on substrate)** — better aesthetic, lives at canonical URL, demonstrates the kind of work Sam can produce.

### Build sequence

1. Wait for research chats to deliver content (May 22-29)
2. Sam reviews pre-read brief draft (May 30)
3. Planning chat builds HTML slide deck from approved content (May 31)
4. Sam reviews deck, requests edits (May 31-June 1)
5. Final deck committed to substrate (June 2)
6. Sam practices deck once (June 3)
7. Meeting June 4

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## Document metadata

- Version: 1.0 outline
- Created: 2026-05-11 04:30 AM
- Author: Planning chat
- Status: Outline only — slides built after research chats deliver
- Target completion: 2026-05-31 (full deck)
- Format final: HTML deck at /personal/friends-meeting-prep-2026/meeting-deck.html