So far this year, we have been the sell-side advisor on 4 completed A&D business sales: two were family-owned and operated (one of which was a carveout), and two were private equity/institutionally owned. Those deals spanned all four major aerospace and defense subsectors and multiple business types. Each one of those businesses had a unique story: different ownership, customers, rationale for sale, growth plans, etc.
One of the most important things to do when preparing for a sale process is to develop the story to optimally position the business to the potential buying marketplace.
This means capturing the essence of the business and presenting it in a compelling way. The story of the business needs to be understood by your advisor, captured in the marketing materials, and optimally communicated to potential buyers.
We encourage you to think about the story of your business and how you think it would be interpreted by a potential buyer. Over the past 25 years we have learned that every business has a story, but not every owner tells it the way that would resonate best with potential buyers. We recommend spending significant time working with your M&A banker, during preparatory due diligence, drafting the optimal story of your business.
If you have a topic you would like us to write about, or if you have any comments or questions on this Deal Note, please don’t hesitate to reply here: rk@aldermanco.com.
Have a great day everyone,
Ryan Kirby
Junior Partner
