The Middle Market Review Insights on the Middle Market.

Subscribe Subscribe

Subscribe Today

I want to receive:

Thanks for subscribing!

Advisors, Business Owners

The Winning M&A Advisor [Vol. 1, Issue 1]

Tags

Today we are launching The Winning M&A Advisor, a new publication from Axial. 

As a complement to our extremely popular annual M&A Advisory fee guide survey, the Winning M&A Advisor will anonymously unpack data, fees and terms from the winning M&A engagement letters of professional M&A advisors using Axial to win new sell-side business.  

Sign up HERE to get every issue of The Winning M&A Advisor directly to your inbox. 

Consistent with all of our publications, all identity data and related information are fully anonymized to protect the privacy and confidentiality of Axial members.

We are excited to continue surfacing meaningful data and best practices from the top M&A advisors and capital partners transacting in the American lower middle market.

Sign up below to get every issue of The Winning M&A Advisor directly to your inbox. If you have ideas or questions, please drop me a line at [email protected].



Engagement Letter Details
Retainer RequiredYes
Retainer Applied to Success FeeNo
Retainer Amount$5,000
Retainer DurationOne-time start fee
Success Fee StructureSliding scale based on the enterprise value
Minimum Fee$300,000
Special Terms
In the event that the business is sold to a buyer who already has an LOI in place, the Success Fee will be $150,000 plus 12% for any increase in the Enterprise Value above the current LOI.

Behind the Win:

As part of every Advisor Finder process, we ask business owners to provide a rationale for why they hired a given advisor:  

  1. Specialist: They are an industry specialist, focusing exclusively on representing owners of marketing companies in sales and capital raises.
  2. Track Record: The advisor had marketed 13 relevant deals on Axial over the last decade. The majority of the deals generated substantial interest from Axial buyers.
  3. Prepared & Tailored: the business owner was impressed by how prepared the advisor was for each of their conversations. The advisor took the time to deeply understand the owner’s objectives, and tailored their experience and value based on the owner’s preferences – rather than the process seeming cookie-cutter or one-sided.
  4. Persistence & Value Delivery: the business owner was impressed by their organization, thorough and persistent follow ups, and the value they provided at every stage of the evaluation process, before an engagement had been officially solidified.
  5. Favorable Fees & Terms: exhibited in the details from the engagement letter surfaced above.

Looking to exit your business? Find an advisor you can trust.


The Business Owner
Timeline
Owner Reaches Out To AxialMarch 15th, 2024
Owner Begins Interviewing M&A AdvisorsMarch 25th, 2024
Owner Signs The Winning Engagement LetterApril 4th, 2024
Owner
Age Range45 - 55
Tenure With BusinessInception. < 10 years
Business Data
IndustryMarketing Consulting Services
Revenue Range$3M - $4M
EBITDA Range$1M - $1.5M
Desired Transaction
Change of OwnershipMajority sale (50%+)
Reason For TransactionReceived an unsolicited offer

Advisor Recommendation #1
Firm TypeM&A Advisory Firm
Generalist or SpecialistGeneralist
Relevant Deals Marketed9
Deals Marketed on Axial L1210
Average Revenue of Deals$17,222,800
Average EBITDA of Deals$3,787,199

Advisor Recommendation #2
Firm Type M&A Advisory Firm
Generalist or SpecialistSpecialist
Relevant Deals Marketed13
Deals Marketed on Axial L124
Average Revenue of Deals$4,599,229
Average EBITDA of Deals$1,333,789

Advisor Recommendation #3
Firm TypeM&A Advisory Firm
Generalist or SpecialistSpecialist
Relevant Deals Marketed16
Deals Marketed on Axial L123
Average Revenue of Deals$3,700,758
Average EBITDA of Deals$1,481,250

The Winning M&A Advisor – 1, 2 or 3?

Recommendation #2

Learn More About Joining Axial

Request Information

Subscribe to Middle Market Review

Subscribe to Middle Market Review

Subscribe Today

I want to receive:
Subscribe

Thanks for subscribing!