Engagements usually combine two or three of these. Almost nobody needs just one.
01
Buyers discount for risk, and almost every discount traces back to the same handful of things. The business can't run without the owner. The books can't be verified. The revenue doesn't repeat. One customer is a quarter of the income. The paperwork was never done.
None of these are hard to fix with enough runway. All of them are expensive to fix under a buyer's microscope. I find them early, rank them by what they actually cost you, and work through them in order.
Typical engagement
02
Some companies shouldn't be preparing to sell — they should be buying. I run the full origination function: mapping the market, getting founders on the phone as a peer rather than a buyer's agent, qualifying on operational health instead of EBITDA alone, and handing off clean.
I also build the machine underneath it, because a pipeline without infrastructure stops the moment attention moves elsewhere.
Typical engagement
03
Not every combination needs cash or a private equity sponsor. Owners of similarly sized companies can merge on paper — equity for equity — keeping their brands and their teams while building something with the scale, purchasing power, and geographic reach none of them had alone.
The structure is where these live or die: who contributes what, who earns the upside for putting it together, how governance works, and what happens at exit.
Typical engagement
04
The wrong capital is worse than no capital. A single term loan covering three different jobs is the easiest thing to get and usually the worst structural fit.
I help owners figure out what each dollar actually needs to do, match it to the right instrument, and get in front of the right lenders and investors prepared.
Typical engagement
Most start with a short conversation and a scoping assessment. From there, engagements are typically fractional and retainer-based, sized to the work rather than to a calendar. I keep a small roster so the work gets real attention.
I'm not a business broker, a securities broker-dealer, or an investment adviser. I prepare companies and build the systems underneath them. I don't market companies for sale, represent sellers in a transaction, or take fees based on a percentage of equity capital raised. When a transaction needs a licensed intermediary, attorney, or accountant, I'll tell you and help you find one.