Views From the Market

As tariff threats loomed in early 2025, export-dependent Canadian midmarket businesses worried about what would happen next. In this podcast, Mario Nigro speaks with Andrew Gowan of National Bank about what he’s seeing in midmarket M&A as the new reality sinks in. Many of his entrepreneurial clients – even those that rely on the export market – are working through the situation with the help of An...

In this podcast, Karen Fisman of PwC joins Mario Nigro to discuss recent midmarket M&A trends – specifically the significant decline in deal flow caused by the trade wars. Karen explains that the deals that are proceeding tend to involve smaller, tariff-resistant services businesses selling to buyers that are highly familiar with the businesses’ market niches. Karen believes that we may start to s...

Professor Marc Busch of Georgetown University joins Mario Nigro for a discussion on the impact of tariffs on M&A. Professor Busch explains how current U.S. trade policy is affecting global commercial dynamics. While some moderation may be expected as “deals” are negotiated, sectoral tariffs may become a permanent fixture of U.S. trade policy. From a Canadian perspective, companies are adapting to...

Andrew Walton of Ironbridge Equity Partners joins Mario Nigro to discuss the current state of midmarket private equity and M&A in Canada. Ironbridge’s substantial portfolio includes industrial, manufacturing, and distribution businesses across most regions of Canada. Unsurprisingly, the discussion focuses on the ongoing impact of tariff-induced market uncertainty. Even transactions that are procee...

Representation and warranty insurance (“RWI”), a growing presence in Canadian M&A transactions, is the subject of Mario Nigro’s conversation with Rishi Dhir of Willis Towers Watson’s Transactional Insurance Solutions group. Rishi discusses the increased adoption of RWI in the Canadian midmarket, noting that it is now commonly used in transactions with enterprise values as low as $5 million. He exp...

Joining Mario Nigro for this episode is Wandrille Lefèvre of EC2, a Québec-based consulting firm that provides specialized M&A and corporate finance advice to midmarket companies. According to Wandrille, the Québec market, like other Canadian markets, is driven by factors like baby boomer retirements and a need for technology investment. The range of buyers in the province includes a similar mix o...

In this podcast, David Ritchie shares the story of CFO Hive, which provides businesses with contract CFOs on a fractional, full-time, or project basis, leveraging a network of experienced CFOs to offer expertise that matches client needs. Contract CFOs can add value in four ways: (i) help growing companies professionalize their finance functions, (ii) stabilize distressed businesses, (iii) assist...

Michael Wallace of TIMIA Capital joins Mario Nigro for an enlightening discussion of TIMIA's role as a lender to early-stage companies in the technology and software space. For many smaller businesses, firms like TIMIA are valuable sources of non-dilutive capital that can otherwise be difficult to find in the Canadian market. Michael and Mario discuss TIMIA's growth and prospects, with special att...

In this episode, Mario Nigro welcomes Tom McCullough, Chairman and CEO of Northwood Family Office, which he co-founded in 2003. Tom discusses the evolution of family offices, emphasizing their vital role as “general contractors” providing integrated management of all aspects of clients’ financial affairs, including the important part they play in preparing next generation leaders. He also highligh...

In this episode, Mario Nigro interviews Curtis Colbary, President and CEO of Rebel Vac Systems. Curtis discusses his background in accounting and financial due diligence, and how it led him to the search fund space and eventually, through a tip from a friend, to Alberta-based Rebel Vac, a manufacturer of hydro excavation and industrial vacuum trucks. He describes the challenge of successful search...

In this podcast, Lisa Hooey, CEO of Community Resources and Support Services (CRSS), shares her transition from a career in banking and operations to the very different world of search fund entrepreneurship. The desire to make a meaningful impact led Lisa to establish Freda Capital and eventually acquire CRSS, a company providing residential and support services for people with intellectual disabi...

Sid Nair, senior VP in EY Canada’s corporate finance group, joins Mario Nigro to explore the state of midmarket tech sector M&A in Canada. Sid has developed his EY team into one of the country’s leading advisors to founder-led tech businesses. He and Mario discuss how M&A in the tech space is rebounding from its post-pandemic lull, as buyers focus on quality assets with mission-critical software,...

Our guest, Sumit Aneja of Gulmohar Capital Partners, shares his journey from the New York financial industry to his current home of Montréal, where as a searcher, he acquired Voxco, a software and tech-enabled services business. After successfully growing Voxco’s business, Sumit negotiated a successful exit and, together with several U.S. and Canada based colleagues, founded Gulmohar Capital Partn...

This episode highlights the growing role of competition and foreign investment law in Canadian midmarket transactions. Special guest Michael Kilby, head of the Competition and Foreign Investment Group at Stikeman Elliott, highlights the increasing regulatory scrutiny of small and medium-sized transactions in the wake of recent amendments to the Competition Act. Scenarios that are attracting regula...

In this episode, Mario Nigro interviews entrepreneur Rob Luck on his transition from engineering to search funds, and particularly Rob’s experience acquiring, operating and eventually exiting Hathorn Corp., a builder and supplier of camera equipment for drain and sewer inspections. Rob provides detailed observations on being a first-time business owner tasked with turning a legacy business into a...

This podcast features Tom Stevenson, the former owner of Hub Equipment, a GTA-based heavy equipment rental company. Tom discusses the experience of selling the business, which was founded by his grandfather in 1946. He and host Mario Nigro focus on the importance of finding a strategic partner that shared Hub’s values and offered growth opportunities for key employees, while retaining Hub’s histor...

Special guests Nick Rotundo and Claudio Martellacci from Grewal Guyatt LLP join Mario for this edition of the podcast. Claudio and Nick discuss the unique aspects of working with mid-market companies, emphasizing their valuation specialization, one aspect of Grewal’s comprehensive advisory services in this space. They highlight the differences between low/mid-market deals and big Bay Street deals,...

In this episode, Mario Nigro and special guest Tiara Letourneau of Rewrite Capital Advisors discuss employee ownership trusts (EOTs) – both their history in the U.S. and U.K. and the work that Tiara and others have put into a successful push for similar, but even more flexible and innovative, legislation in Canada. The new Canadian EOT model allows employees to become owners without financial cont...

Mario Nigro interviews Peter Stefanovich, president of Left Lane Associates, which assists transportation, logistics, and supply chain companies with exit and acquisition strategies. Left Lane’s rapid growth shows that, with exceptional industry expertise, a sector-specific Canadian M&A shop can achieve major success. Peter and Mario discuss the volatility of the market through the pandemic period...

Mario’s guest, Jim Friesen of Portage M&A Advisory, discusses his experiences as a sell-side advisor to Canadian owner-operators. Portage focuses on setting realistic seller expectations, preparing the businesses for sale and finding the right buyers in a pool that’s deeper than ever (with private equity, family offices, searchers and high-net-worth individuals in the mix, in addition to strategic...

In this podcast, Mario Nigro speaks with Don Hilton, founder of Distinct Capital Partners, an M&A advisory firm catering to owner-operated lower midmarket businesses. With 40 years of experience at every level of corporate finance and M&A, Don has seen the sell-side market shift toward baby boomers looking to sell their businesses outside the family. As he and Mario discuss, the key to Distinct Ca...

In this podcast, Mario speaks with Liz MacRae about the unique Village Wellth platform, which provides entrepreneurial acquirors – often in the market for the first time – with the preparation, resources, advisory services and contacts they need to find, evaluate and finance business acquisitions. The other side of the Village Wellth coin is the opportunity it gives to sellers to increase their vi...

In this episode, David Planques of Revival Capital Partners discusses the fascinating and important role of chief restructuring officer. Distressed businesses hire CROs to solve the problems that must be overcome before a successful restructuring can proceed. Seasoned CROs like David have the skills and experience to keep stakeholders, employees and suppliers on board as the process unfolds. David...

Mario Nigro’s guest for this podcast is Karl Sigerist, a business advisor focusing on the lower midmarket. Many of Karl’s clients are owner-operators who are thinking about exits. He and Mario discuss the value of engaging an outside advisor and, in particular, the impact that the pandemic has had on the succession strategies of many long-time operators who recognize that new energy may be needed,...

Mario’s guest for this podcast is Jas Dhaliwal, Managing Director at Vancouver-based Lark Street Capital. Jas and Mario discuss current trends in the market, with a focus on Lark Street’s midmarket M&A advisory work. Jas is seeing an uptick in private equity interest, likely in anticipation of rate cuts later in 2024. Baby boomer retirements remain a driving force, as many owners of quality busine...