Experience & Learnings

Background
The corporate owner wanted to divest the under-performing operating business while retaining the property. The outcome needed to stand up to scrutiny. The seller wanted to achieve their objective without any suggestion that the business’ future had been compromised by doing so.

What Was At Stake
If we had been unable to improve the performance of the business, there was a concern as to whether the property transaction could be challenged. Done poorly, it could have created reputational and financial risk for the seller.

What We Did
We identified a point of concern in the advice the seller had been given and raised it early. We proposed an alternative structure which resolved the issue. After completion, we worked with the seller at pace to relocate the operation into alternative premises, enabling them to realise the value of the property.

What We Didn’t Do
Even though the earlier advice didn’t disadvantage us, and even though pressing the point risked the deal, we made sure the structure was right so it couldn’t come back to harm the seller.

What We Learned
The deal reaffirmed our view that sellers genuinely value an honest and transparent buyer. Working with integrity is also good business sense.

Background
Despite the owner generously agreeing a manager-led buyout on favourable terms, the relationship deteriorated when advisers started working on the deal. What began as a straightforward transition dragged on for two years. The owner wanted a swift, clean exit, and to realise the business’ true value.

What Was At Stake
Two years of unresolved transition created personal strain for the owner and uncertainty inside the business. The longer it continued, the more friction was created between the owner and the manager, which ultimately threatened the value of the business.

What We Did
From first contact to completion took fewer than 20 working days. We paid a full seven-figure consideration in cash on completion, required minimal handover, and re-established clear decision-making so the business could move forward without lingering ambiguity.

What We Didn’t Do
We never asked what the manager’s favourable terms were, nor did we use the situation or the seller’s fatigue to govern the price we paid. We also didn’t stretch diligence and warranties into a drawn-out process.

What We Learned
Experience enables you to avoid unnecessary complexity. When you know what you are doing, you can move decisively, provided speed is matched with respect for the seller. Over time, that conduct also builds a reputation that opens doors.

Background
A corporate owner had a non-core operation occupying valuable space inside a wider factory. It wasn’t a standalone share sale; it required an asset purchase and a practical plan to separate and relocate. The business was unprofitable, but it had reputation, IP, industry know-how and a respected position in its market.

The seller had a clear target price but most offers received were for nominal sums. Other buyers treated the business as a problem to be acquired cheaply, rather than a business to be rebuilt.

What Was At Stake
This business supplied critical maintenance equipment into the UK rail infrastructure. The corporate had spent two years trying to exit it, growing increasingly frustrated because the operation continued to consume space needed for the core business.

What We Did
We focused on what the seller actually needed. They required a clean separation and an outcome that met their target. We structured an offer that got them to their number and designed the deal around relocation and stability. This gave the business the best chance of working once it was a standalone operation.

What We Didn’t Do
We didn’t let the current trading position dictate our behaviour. We didn’t treat it as “worth pennies” simply because it was non-core and underperforming. We stayed focused on what it could become under new ownership and structure.

What We Learned
Where others focused on a loss-making unit to be discounted, we focused on the business itself; its name, products, and people, and the potential they represented. That perspective allowed us to meet the seller’s objectives and, by extension, be trusted with the opportunity to take the business forward.