Live at ACES with Brian Best (EP 1006)
Live from the ACES Conference in Minneapolis, I sit down with longtime friend and Apple MSP veteran Brian Best to dig into what makes this business‑focused Apple event so different from the typical tech show. We talk real‑world lessons from twelve years of ACES, scaling a Mac‑centric MSP, and how Windows and Apple shops can actually win together instead of avoiding each other’s worlds.
Recorded on‑site at the Elliott Park Hotel during ACES 2026, this conversation kicks off with a quick behind‑the‑scenes look at the venue, the vibe, and why this Apple‑centric event cares more about P&L than power users. I walk through how ACES is structured as a business‑first conference for Apple IT providers, covering topics like pricing, marketing, HR, scaling, and work‑life balance, with zero tool pitches from the stage and everything bundled into a focused two‑day experience.
Then I catch up with Brian Best from Best Mac, who has attended and spoken at all twelve ACES events, and we get into the real talk about running a Mac‑focused MSP in a Windows‑dominated world. Brian shares how the Apple side of the channel is mostly small to mid‑sized MSPs, how his own M&A experience with LogicNow and SolarWinds reshaped his business, and why co‑managed Apple support is a powerful play for Windows‑first MSPs serving mixed environments.
Chapters
- 00:17 ACES Conference Intro
- 02:01 What ACES Is
- 04:37 Conference Venue Tour
- 06:50 Reconnecting With Brian Best
- 08:22 Why ACES Matters
- 12:00 SolarWinds Deal Backstory
- 14:54 Windows And Mac Blend
- 15:54 Getting Mac Help
=== Guest: Brian Best
- Company: BestMacs – IT support for Apple-powered businesses
- Website: https://bestmacs.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-j-best
=== Shout-outs
- Justin Escar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinesgar
- Eric Anthony: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esanthony/
=== Companies / Vendors / Products / Books
- ACES Conference: https://acesconf.com/
- All Things MSP (podcast / community): https://www.facebook.com/allthingsmsp
- The Brit (pub in Minneapolis – likely “Brit’s Pub”): https://www.britspub.com
- Elliott Park Hotel: https://www.elliottparkhotel.com
- Macworld Expo: https://www.macworld.com
- N-able: https://www.n-able.com
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Brian Best is the founder and president of BestMacs, an Apple‑focused MSP that helps businesses run reliably on Mac, iPad, and other Apple platforms. For more than two decades he’s built, scaled, and supported Apple environments for organizations ranging from small creative shops to larger mixed Mac/Windows teams, with a focus on stability, security, and predictable managed services.
He’s also a long‑time leader in the Apple IT community and the only person to have spoken at every ACES Conference, where he regularly shares real‑world lessons on pricing, automation, and building a sustainable service business. Drawing on his experience creating and later exiting a popular Mac maintenance tool to LogicNow/SolarWinds, Brian now spends his time growing BestMacs and partnering with Windows‑first MSPs on co‑managed Apple support so they can confidently serve mixed environments without stretching their teams too thin.
