Business brokerage & M&A
M&A advisory for owners and buyers.
Selling or acquiring a company is a negotiation, a financing, a legal transfer and a handover of people and contracts — all at once. M&A advisory gives you one accountable partner across all four, from the first valuation conversation through closing. Freedom to Build. Freedom to Own.
Who this is for
Business owners weighing a sale, a partial exit or a merger — and buyers, searchers and growing operators looking to acquire rather than build from scratch.
Every engagement is handled personally by Shane Proctor, backed by nine years in real estate and the business brokerage and franchise work the firm does today.
M&A advisory services
- Sell-side representation and exit planning
- Buy-side representation and acquisition search
- Broker opinion of value and valuation support
- Deal structure and negotiation
- Due diligence coordination
- Buyer qualification and financing pathways, including SBA programs
- Letters of intent and term sheet review
- Escrow, lender, landlord and legal coordination through closing
- Post-closing transition support
Why structure matters as much as price
Two offers with the same headline number are rarely the same deal. Payment timing, holdbacks, earnouts, working-capital adjustments and who carries the leases and liabilities all change what an offer is actually worth.
We negotiate structure deliberately — and keep every conversation confidential, so staff, customers and competitors learn nothing before you are ready.
How we work
- Confidential conversation. Your goals, timing and numbers. Nothing is shared and nothing is committed.
- Valuation & positioning. A defensible value range, then preparation of the financial and operational story a buyer will scrutinise.
- Marketing or search. Confidential sell-side marketing to qualified buyers, or a targeted buy-side search against your acquisition criteria.
- Negotiation. Term sheet, letter of intent and structure — price, financing and risk allocation negotiated together.
- Diligence & closing. Coordination of lender, escrow, landlord and legal work until funds move and keys change hands.
Frequently asked questions
- What does an M&A advisor do?
- An M&A advisor represents one side of a transaction — typically the owner selling — through valuation, preparation, confidential marketing, buyer qualification, negotiation, diligence and closing. The job is to protect price and deal certainty while the owner keeps running the business.
- What is the difference between business brokerage and M&A advisory?
- Brokerage usually covers smaller, straightforward sales of a going concern. M&A advisory applies the same discipline to more complex situations: larger businesses, multi-owner or multi-entity structures, acquisitions by strategic or financial buyers, and deals where deal structure matters as much as price.
- Can you help me buy a company, not just sell one?
- Yes. Buy-side work starts with acquisition criteria — industry, size, geography and financing — then moves to target search, valuation and underwriting support, negotiation, and coordination of diligence through closing.
- How is a deal structured?
- Common structures include all-cash at closing, cash plus a note, earnouts tied to future performance, and SBA-financed acquisitions. Structure determines how much risk each side carries, so we negotiate it deliberately rather than accepting the first draft.
- How long does a transaction take?
- It depends on preparation, buyer financing, and how quickly diligence questions get answered. We set a realistic timeline for your specific situation after the first confidential conversation rather than promising one up front.