Smart Business Dealmakers: The Middle-Market M&A Podcast

Supply chain issues are a real problem for buyers. Jonathan Hatch, president of Little Mountain Industries, says diligence now has to be much more thorough, which means the indepdendent sponsor group has become  pickier with its targets. Hatch talks about buying manufacturing companies at a time when labor shortages and supply chain hang ups change the M&A math.

Compass Group Equity Partners goes into every investment with a 100-day plan. They're ready and prepared to move quickly, which they did when they purchased Sunpro Solar in 2020. Compass Group's playbook includes augmenting the team and building a board deck with metrics and key performance indicators and having a written strategic plan. John Huhn, founder and managing partner of Compass Group, ta...

Early on in his career, Stu Clark downplayed concepts like culture and team when it came to strategic acquisitions, opting instead for a finance- and execution-driven mindset. But he's since changed his mind. Today, the CEO of Premise Health says culture is key, so much so that he'd rather spend more on a company with a great team than get a bargain on a company that has a poor culture. In this ep...

There are a number of important steps that happen between the time a seller is ready to take their company to market and when buyer diligence starts. One of the tools used in the negotiation process at that stage is a letter of intent. Signet Enterprises Chairman and CEO Anthony Manna breaks down this early stage of the deal and what choices sellers need to make as they take their company to marke...

Amid the pandemic, Milwaukee-based A. O. Smith closed the acquisition of Canada's Giant Factories — a deal nearly a decade in the making. Although the deal went smoothly, there were some interesting aspects about it that kept both sides on their toes, says Jim Stern, executive vice president and general counsel of A.O. Smith.

Cor Hoekstra co-founded fintech company Amicus.io to align the incentives of donors, financial institutions, corporations and philanthropic organizations for charitable giving at scale. Shortly before selling the business to TIFIN in 2022, we sat down with Cor to talk about attracting investors and how his work for tech giants such as Oracle and IBM informed the venture.

Lou Schneeberger, Executive Chairman of Proformex, has been buying and selling companies for years. Today he is seeing what he calls a COVID backlog. Companies that were looking to sell but struggled during the pandemic chose to wait until the market stabilized. Now, many of those companies' M&A aspirations are waking up from their pandemic hibernation. Lou talks about those companies and how they...

Brand President Cesar Gueikian discusses Gibson Brands' 2021 acquisition of well-known guitar amp manufacturer Mesa/Boogie, as well as how he is helping to move Gibson forward by identifying its purpose.

CEO Matt Mastarone and the TTG Imaging Solutions team started a search for a new capital partner in January of 2021. By May, they were in New York City doing early-look meetings with potential private equity firms its investment banker thought would be interested. In August, the molecular Imaging company had narrowed the search to two firms and were close to getting a deal done; however, supply ch...

Perimeter Solutions CEO Edward Goldberg worked with EverArc Holdings to complete in just a few months a merger process that normally would take years. And to make things even more problematic was the fact that they did it primarily in a virtual world.

The M&A market continues to be red hot with buyers competing for deals and sellers benefiting in the process. But what does it take to get your company ready for a sale? What is a quality of earnings report and how might it benefit sellers to get one done? Tony Montanaro, a partner with Louis Plung & Co., offers a look at deals from a buyer's perspective: what they like to see in diligence that sp...

The pandemic has been a major factor in the commercial real estate market. It's had an impact on everything from where companies are based to how long it takes to get things built. Paul Larson, CEO of Larson Financial Holdings, sits down to give his characterization of the market, where opportunities and challenges exist, and his advice for those looking to invest this year.

When it comes to the timing of a sale, there are things you can control, such as preparing your management team or tidying up your books, and there are things you can't, such as buyer appetite. Scott Bushkie, managing partner and founder of Cornerstone Business Services, says timing may be the most important element of a sale, and offers both his insight and advice on how sellers can leverage timi...

Andy Vollmer, managing director of Bellmark Partners, discusses the record level of M&A activity in 2021, the factors driving that dealmaking, the consequences for buyers and sellers, and what we can expect throughout 2022.    

COVID was a game wrecker for those in the entertainment business. Pyrotecnico President & CEO Stephen Vitale saw this firsthand when his special effects and fireworks display company had to make major cuts to remain operational. But amid the chaos, he also saw opportunity. He found a financial partner and made five acquisitions that helped Pyrotecnico grow significantly. We talked with Vitale, as...

Bob Norton, founder and CEO of AirTight Management, has been a serial entrepreneur for more than 30 years. In that time, he's seen startups launch, grow, succeed and fail. He talks about what separates those who succeed from those who don't, what investors are looking for at the earliest stages, and how insisting that your buddy from college remains your CTO for life might not be the best strategy...

Daniel Walsh formed Citymark Capital with the intent of acquiring properties in numerous high-growth markets across the nation. But before he could do that, he had to build the initial fund. Walsh talks about the real estate investment platform he launched in 2018, its progress so far and his plans for its future

When Chris Molaro returned home after a five-year stint in the U.S. Army, he saw firsthand the gaps in the behavioral mental health system. So the West Point and Wharton MBA grad created NeuroFlow, an app that helped healthcare providers better assess the mental health of vets and civilians. Chris shares his thoughts on changing the way mental health care is delivered, his most recent M&A deal and...

As COO of WinTrust Financial, Paul Carlisle has a front-row seat to the financial concerns of CEOs feeling their way through continued market uncertainty. Despite significant disruptions, Carlisle sees a market that's ripe with liquidity and subject to generationally low interest rates. That's why he says it's a great time to get deals done. Carlisle gives his sense of the challenges facing the ma...

The challenges facing minority-owned businesses are many, including access to capital. By the time many reach $20 million in sales they have a misaligned debt-to-equity ratio. Della Clark, CEO of The Enterprise Center, has been on a mission to change that dynamic and has spent decades working to help provide minority business owners better access to early- and mid-stage capital. She shares her tho...

Independent sponsors are experiencing somewhat of a resurgence in the M&A market. That's a little strange, specifically because they more often play a role when markets are sluggish — something this market certainly is not. George Nemphos, founding partner and attorney at Nemphos Braue, talks about Independent Sponsors — their recent resurgence, their role in a deal and how they can help sellers,...

Taylor Burke-Gilman and Lauren Burke-Devere didn't plan on joining their father at Fire-Dex, the family-owned manufacturer of head-to-toe PPE for first responders. But in 2019, they did. As they continue to settle into their roles as president — Lauren of Fire-Dex and Taylor at sister company Gear Wash — they're also learning the acquisition ropes. They discuss their transitions into the business,...

As the CEO of a second-generation business, Kareem Afzal is continuing the legacy started by his father, who founder PDC Machines more than years ago. The company, which designs and manufactures specialty gas compression systems, is in the midst of a growth journey that includes a recapitalization led by PE firm Arcline Investment Management and two recent acquisitions. Kareem shares his thoughts...

CHAMPtitles is a SaaS startup that aims to help people, companies and governments digitally create, manage and transfer vehicle titles. Led by CEO Shane Bigelow, the company recently raised a $8.5 million Series A that will help it grow its footprint across the country and beyond. Bigelow talks about the venture, its recent raise and progress in the market, as well as the challenges of being based...

When you're building a business, having a solid team of M&A professionals is paramount to success. But do you know if you have the right team? Are they thinking beyond just their piece of the transaction? Brian Baum, managing director of Interchange Capital Partners, offers his thoughts on why you might want to re-evaluate advisors, and why you should start thinking about your company as the first...