BLue Horizons Ai Consulting

9am - 5pm MST

About Blue Horizons AI

We've Built Businesses.
We Know What It Took.

We're not consultants who read about entrepreneurship in business school. We're founders who've done what you've done — built something from nothing, led teams, navigated crises, and made the hard calls. And now we help people like you exit the right way.

Trusted Advisors

If you've spent 30 or 40 years building your business with your own hands, your own sweat, and your own money — you deserve more than a generic broker handing you a listing packet and wishing you luck. You deserve advisors who understand what it actually feels like to be the one responsible. That's who we are.

Steve Walsh

Co-Founder · Business Transition Advisor

Steve Walsh is a builder. At 21 years old — with more ambition than resources — he founded Silkwood Manufacturing in Zimbabwe and grew it into the largest casket and furniture manufacturing company in the country, with over 120 employees and exports to seven nations including the UK. That's not a résumé line. That's a life's calling showing up early.

After leaving Zimbabwe as a political refugee with his family and starting over from scratch in Canada, Steve didn't fold — he rebuilt. He co-founded Inspirations Wall Art, scaled it into the largest vinyl home décor decal manufacturer in Canada, then grew Fireside Home into a 950+ dealer retail network spanning both countries. He sold the company, spent years consulting for manufacturers and e-commerce businesses, and has spent recent years at the forefront of AI-powered business transformation.

Thirty-plus years of building, leading, selling, and advising — across three countries and a dozen industries — gives Steve a perspective on what buyers actually value that no amount of classroom time can replicate.

Founded, scaled & sold multiple businesses across manufacturing, wholesale & retail
Built & managed international supply chains across Canada, US, India & China
AI integration specialist — workflow automation, KPI analysis, operational efficiency

Steve Pedersen

Co-Founder · Exit Readiness Advisor

Steve Pedersen brings a rare combination of academic rigor and founder-level experience to the work of exit readiness. Trained at Yale (MPH, 2005) and completing a Master's in Management at Penn State (2026), Steve has spent his career building and leading organizations across multiple sectors — from launching businesses and NGOs to teaching at the university level and working as a certified coach.

That depth of experience gives Steve an unusually clear view of what makes a business genuinely valuable in the eyes of an acquirer — and what gets in the way. He understands systems, people, and the analytical frameworks that sophisticated buyers use to scrutinize a business long before a letter of intent ever hits your desk.

At Blue Horizons, Steve works with business owners to close the gap between what their business is truly worth and what it looks like on paper — and to do it with enough runway to do it right.

MPH — Yale University, 2005
MS Management — Penn State University
Serial entrepreneur, NGO founder, university educator & certified coach
Qualified business buyers in our network — service businesses, $3M+ revenue, SBA-financed

"You didn't build your business to hand it off for less than it's worth. Neither did we. That's why we do this work."

— Steve Walsh, Co-Founder

Beyond the Business Card

We're Not Just Advisors.
We're Your People.

Here's what we've learned working with business owners like you: trust is everything. Before you share your financials, your fears, and the thing you've spent 30 years building — you need to know who you're talking to. So let us tell you a little more about who we actually are.

Steve Pedersen

Ivy League Education, Practical Application & Experience

I believe the most powerful thing you can do in any organization is create the conditions for people to do their best work. I don't just look at what a business does. I look at how it breathes, where it gets stuck, and what it would take to unlock the next level. That's where I do my best work.

My wife Naomi is my partner in everything — in business, in parenting, in life. Together we've raised 11 children, including four we adopted, and we're still very much in it — our youngest is 14. And right now, the brightest light in the room is our two-year-old grandchild — our first — who has a way of making everything else feel exactly the right size.

Naomi and I owned a candy and ice cream store right in the heart of our small town — and our kids absolutely loved it. They'd come in to visit, help behind the counter, and sample far more than we knew. It was fun, messy, community-rooted, and a wonderful experience together as a family.

I'm a cancer survivor — stage 2 colorectal cancer — radiation, chemo, surgery, and thirteen months with an ostomy bag. I'm a college basketball and sports fan through and through — have been my whole life. I

love to play for fun, and at 50+ I can still hold my own against my kids. They haven't put me out to pasture yet, and I hope to keep it that way for as long as possible.

Things I love: Unlocking potential in people and systems · Family · My 11 kids · One perfect grandkid · Travel & adventure · The candy store years · Building and starting things · College basketball and sports · Genealogy & history · AI & applied technology · A really good conversation around a table

"I've built businesses, learned hard lessons, and looked my own mortality in the eye. When I sit down with a business owner who's given 30 years to something they love, I don't just see a transaction. I see a life's work. And I take that seriously."

Contact at: [email protected]

Steve Walsh

the one with the accent

Contact at: [email protected]

I'm a Christian, and my faith is the foundation of how I do business and live my life. I believe in doing right by people — giving an honest word, following through, and treating a handshake like it still means something. Because it does.

My family is everything to me. My wife and I have built a life together across two continents — Zimbabwe, Africa & N. America, - US and Canada. We have 5 children, 4 boys and a princess. I also have 4 grandkids and counting.

We love to travel, we love to dig in the dirt, and we love hosting family around a fire pit on a summer evening.

I'm a car guy. Not just any cars — I have a deep passion for pre-war classics, especially vehicles from the 1920s and 1930s. There's something about the craftsmanship of that era — every rivet was intentional, every curve meant something — that speaks to me as a builder. I see the same in the businesses our clients have built.

I love dogs — especially German Shepherds. I run a Facebook page with over 80,000 followers celebrating the breed. If you've got a GSD, we already have something to talk about.

I build things with my hands — water features, pergolas, BBQ areas, outdoor living spaces. I'm currently experimenting with hydroponic tower farming. And when I get the chance, I'm underwater — Advanced Scuba certified, and always looking for the next dive, especially wreck dives.

I'm also deeply curious about technology — particularly AI and how it can help real businesses work better. I've been integrating AI tools into operations long before it became a buzzword, and I use that knowledge every day for our clients.

Things I love:

Faith & family, Grandkids, Pre-war classic cars, German Shepherds, Scuba diving, Hydroponic farming, Outdoor living builds, Travel & adventure, AI & technology, Intelligent Design, DIY & restoration.

"I've rebuilt my life from nothing twice. I know what it means to work hard and to have something to show for it. When I sit down with a business owner who's spent 35 years building a company, I don't just see a file — I see a legacy. And I take that seriously."

What We Stand For

The Values We Bring to Every Engagement

Faith & Integrity

We believe in doing honest work and telling you the truth — even when it's not what you hoped to hear. Our word is our bond, and we won't take on a client we can't genuinely help.

Earned Expertise

Between us, we've founded companies, managed hundreds of employees, navigated recessions, sold businesses, and rebuilt from zero. This isn't theory — it's hard-won experience.

Legacy Thinking

Like you, we think about the next generation. We understand that your business isn't just an asset — it's the thing you want to be proud of. We help you exit in a way that reflects that.

Respect for What You've Built

We know what it costs — in time, sleep, sacrifice, and sheer determination — to build a business that lasts. We don't take that lightly, and we'll never treat you like a transaction.

Honest Assessment

We've owned businesses. We know that the most valuable thing an advisor can give you is an accurate picture of where you stand — not a sales pitch. You get that from us, every time.

Commitment to Excellence

Whether it was running a market leading business or building a dealer network of 950 locations, our standard has always been to do it right. That standard comes with us into every client engagement.

Why We Focus on Texas & the South.

You Built It in Texas Dirt. You Should Exit on Texas Terms.

Texas has more small businesses per capita than almost any other state — and a disproportionate share of them are owned by men and women in their 50s, 60s, and 70s who built something genuinely valuable in the trades, services, and skilled labor industries.

These are people with strong work ethics, deep community ties, and a rightful pride in what they've built. They're not looking for a slick pitch from a Wall Street advisory firm. They want someone who gets it. Someone who's been there.

That's why we work with service businesses in Texas and across the South. We understand the culture, the values, the handshake relationships, and the faith-driven approach to business that defines the people we serve. And we bring those same values to every engagement.