M&A Advisory
For Owners of Founder-led Companies
Eventually, Readiness Becomes a Transaction
There comes a point when the conversation changes. You’re no longer wondering whether you might sell someday. You’re seriously considering it.
That’s when valuation, market preparation, buyers, due diligence, negotiation, and deal structure stop being theoretical.
I spent 27 years on the owner side of that table before selling the company I’d built. Today I’m also a founding partner at Optima Mergers & Acquisitions, working with owners as they consider and pursue transactions of their own.
For most owners, selling a significant company happens once. The people sitting across the table do it every day.
That difference matters.
Know the Number. Understand What’s Behind It.
There comes a point when the conversation changes. You’re no longer wondering whether you might sell someday. You’re seriously considering it.
That’s when valuation, market preparation, buyers, due diligence, negotiation, and deal structure stop being theoretical.
Knowing what your business is worth is important. Understanding why it is worth that number is even more important.
A valuation should show you what is creating value, what may be holding it back, and how a buyer is likely to view the business. Revenue and EBITDA matter, but so do things like customer concentration, recurring revenue, management depth, owner dependence, growth trajectory, margins, and the transferability of the business.
The number is a starting point. Understanding what is behind it gives you the ability to make better decisions about what to improve, when to go to market, and whether you are truly ready for a transaction.
Getting Ready to Sell Is Different From Selling
Eventually, improving the company gives way to preparing it for the market. Financial information has to be organized. Risks have to be identified. The company’s value has to make sense in the context of the market, and its story has to make sense to someone who didn’t spend twenty years inside it.
Then that value has to survive contact with an actual buyer.
A sophisticated buyer knows what they’re doing. They have advisors, they know what questions to ask, and they know where uncertainty creates leverage. Most owners don’t do this every day. Having experienced people on your side isn’t about giving up control. It’s about having enough information to make good decisions while you’re in it.
Start Before There Is a Transaction in Sight
This is the part owners put off. Not because they don’t understand it, but because something else always feels more urgent.
Documenting a process can wait. Developing the next leader can wait. Cleaning up the financials can wait. Moving an important customer relationship off the founder can definitely wait.
Until it can’t. A buyer appears, and now there are ninety days to solve a three-year problem.
Readiness isn’t something a company acquires when someone decides it’s time to sell. It gets built over years through the ordinary work of making the business stronger: financials that withstand scrutiny, a management team that can run the company, processes that are documented and repeatable, revenue that isn’t concentrated in a few relationships, and a growth story visible in the business rather than explained by the owner.
None of that guarantees a particular valuation. It gives a buyer fewer reasons to discount one.
And if you never sell, you still end up with a stronger company.
The Transaction Isn’t the Whole Plan
Owners spend years thinking about what the company needs to be worth and very little time thinking about what happens after they no longer own it.
I know, because I did it. I sold the company I’d spent 27 years building. I wasn’t fully prepared for how quiet it got afterward.
There are two things worth thinking about earlier than most owners do: what the business needs to become, and what you want your life to look like on the other side of it.
Both deserve more thought—and more time—than most owners give them.
Optima Mergers & Acquisitions regularly closes multiple transactions across manufacturing, services, distribution, and other industries.
Validation From Your Peers
Trent Success truly lives up to its name. David and his team elevated my business to new heights by activating comprehensive plans that energized my operation, skillfully transforming vision into reality and helping me exceed financial targets. David’s passion for client success is evident in every interaction, ensuring alignment towards our goals.
Being a business owner can feel isolating, especially at the top. Joining David Trent’s one-on-one coaching and CEO roundtable provided the mentorship and peer guidance I needed to conceive a plan, grow my business, and establish an exit strategy. My experience and growth as both an entrepreneur and as a person—along with the increase in my business’s value—have been profound. The insights shared by other business owners are invaluable. It’s a truly unique experience where you learn how to scale your business effectively.
As a business owner ready to exit, I found Trent Success invaluable. I had built my company but lacked the necessary M&A contacts and financial support to execute my exit plans. David Trent and his team provided the crucial connections and prepared my company to showcase its strengths when it mattered most. David’s experience in exiting his own firm brings a level of expertise that’s truly beneficial. His guidance as a business advisor drove real results, optimizing my company’s value and ensuring a smooth transition. For business owners planning their exit, Trent Success offers expert support.
Reserve a Private call
If you’re an accomplished Founder CEO, reserve a private call with David. In 15 minutes or less, you can determine whether a deeper conversation makes sense.
Your time is valuable, let’s make it count.