A week and a half later I’m still recovering from the SEMA AAPEX show. Wow, what a whirlwind of chaos Vegas is for that week. A week of early mornings, late nights, and meeting after meeting in smoky hotel casino’s is enough for me to make me want to crawl into a hole after a few days. (But it sure was fun at the time!)
I had over 30 meetings over 3.5 days. Not to mention the many many after-hours receptions and happy hours. These meetings included private equity groups looking to invest into the industry, equity analysts looking to better understand industry dynamics, executives from a variety of paint, equipment, and other companies looking to develop a competitive edge in the marketplace, and a host of business owners evaluating the opportunities in front of them. The businesses ranged from parts distributors, to tire distributors, to paint distributors, to collision repairers, and even technology companies.
Throughout all these meetings a common question I received was “Brad, how can we work together.” After answering that question about 30 different times, I thought it may be useful to tell you here.
Supplement is an advisory firm focused on increasing the value of your business. We do that through three main pillars:
- Sell-Side M&A Advisory
- Buy-Side M&A Advisory
- Strategic, CFO and Capital Advisory
Sell-Side M&A Advisory
Sell-side M&A advisory is a structured set of activities designed to maximize the price and terms of your business in a quick, efficient and confidential transaction. Put simply, we help business owners sell their business. We do that by engaging in a very specific set of activities that have been proven to maximize the price and terms in a business sale.
When I was working as an equity research analyst, I saw firsthand that the way businesses transactions took place at the higher levels was very different from the way many privately held businesses transact. A company raising capital, filing an IPO, or going through an M&A transaction would go through a specific number of actions, designed to bring the maximum number of qualified buyers and/or investors to the deal to inject the maximum amount of competitive tension into the process. This process is expected by the buyers and investors, and sophisticated buyers accept the process and manage accordingly. Unfortunately, many private companies do not follow this strategy.
When we represent a company on the sell-side, we bring these same processes and competitive dynamic used by the largest Wall Street M&A firms to play in world of privately held businesses. The results can be impressive.
Buy-Side Advisory
Famed investor and corporate raider Carl Icahn says “One of the best ways for companies [to grow] is to use excess cash, together with advantageous borrowing opportunities, to purchase other companies in their industries and take advantage of the meaningful synergies that could result.” Our buy-side services help your company take advantage of these advantageous factors to significantly build scale and significantly increase the value of your business.
Whereas the sell-side process seeks to enhance competition and bidders, an effective buy-side process is one that seeks to identify what is referred to as “non-auction deal flow”. In other words, the ideal buy-side process is one that is the effective opposite of the ideal sell-side process designed to minimize competition.
But it is more than simply finding proprietary deal flow. Growing a business through acquisitions is challenging even in the best environments. Our structured buy-side process is designed to help you minimize common risks associated with acquiring existing businesses and/or developing new locations. Our deal experience and financial models give you clarity around future expected financial performance of the target so you can confidently move forward in a deal.
Strategic, CFO and Capital Advisory
Perhaps the most enjoyable aspects of my job, this pillar is a bit of a “catch-all”. Strategic advisory, broad by definition, includes developing M&A strategies, custom research and analysis, and corporate strategy and positioning. It also includes general consulting for investors and analysts looking to rapidly get up to speed on an industry, as well as presentations to industry groups, 20 groups, and other organizations seeking to understand broad industry trends.
CFO services are driven by your unique needs. Our CFO services range from reviews of a company’s P&L to identify potential cost improvements, balance sheet reviews to unlock hidden sources of cash, or budgeting, forecasting and general corporate finance management to name a few. The services are intentionally open ended and very client specific, and can evolve substantially over the duration of the relationship.
Lastly, our capital advisory services are designed to assist companies with the often complex process of raising capital. Capital advisory may include assistance with traditional bank financing, equity raises, Private Equity or Venture Capital, or more exotic capital sources depending on your need.
Which is right for you?
Each one of these three pillars is designed to significantly increase the value of your business. The fascinating part of my line of work is that there is no single “one size fits all” approach. Every business is on a unique trajectory, with a unique set of needs. The ideal engagement is one where a company takes advantage of all three pillars as it grows.
But most companies do not fit that trajectory. Many have more immediate needs in mind. I’m curious to hear from you – which one best suits your needs? Are you more focused on sell-side M&A advisory, buy-side M&A advisory, or strategic, CFO and capital advisory?
Subscribers, you have access to my inbox so simply hit REPLY to let me know. If you’re not a subscriber, you can use my contact page to confidentially reach me. I’m always eager to chat with people passionate about increasing the value of their business.
Until next week!