Case Study

Vayden Anderson decided at 78, it was time to sell his business and retire. With no heirs interested in acquiring Overland Sand & Gravel, on the recommendation of his attorney, Anderson turned to CFA. He retained CFA to sell his business, the fourth largest ready mix concrete producer in Nebraska, to a buyer he pre-approved, a buyer who would retain all of Overland’s employees and operations. CFA quickly identified the right prospects and received several offers. Ultimately, CFA negotiated a transaction favorable for both parties (and significantly exceeding the seller’s value expectations). The transaction closed in less than 6 months from when CFA was hired and helped and achieved all of the seller’s goals.

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Business owners interested in selling their business can readily see the benefits of hiring an investment banker to identify qualified buyers. However, the issue which routinely arises in negotiations between the business owner and the investment banker is whether or not the owner will pay an initial retainer and/or monthly work fee.

Owners often maintain that they only want to pay for the result of an actual sale, and, therefore, are willing to pay success fees upon closing, but they are not willing to pay any up-front fees. However, this view assumes that the risks of not closing a transaction depend solely on the investment banker’s performance, whereas, in fact, closings also depend upon the owner’s determination that he is receiving the highest price, the best terms or the business is being sold to the “right buyer.” Read the rest of this entry »

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