There is a system behind the flood of letters. Here is how it works.
If you own a trade business, you've probably gotten a barrage of people reaching out over the last few years. Handwritten letters. Non-stop cold emails. LinkedIn messages. Mid-day phone calls. All of them want to buy your company. We know because we've done it all, and when we speak with owners they often tell us about just how many people reach out. While some find this sudden interest in their business flattering, others express obvious frustration with the volume and persistence of these overtures.
Here is our honest perspective, from the other end of the cold email, text, phone call, etc. It is not personal, but it's not random either. There is a system behind the flood. Once you understand it, the calls get a lot easier to handle.
For a long time, big investors chased software and healthcare and left the trades alone. That has flipped, and a few things changed at once.
The trades are made up of thousands of small, local, owner-run companies, and no national brand owns much of any single market. That kind of fragmentation is like catnip for private equity and other investors, because it means there's opportunity to consolidate. On top of that, the work is essential. There are certain expenses consumers and businesses can put off, but not a broken door, a backed-up sewer line, or a leaking roof. That demand holds up even when the economy does not. What that means for investors: steady, recession-resistant cash flow.
So the trades went from overlooked to one of the most sought-after places to put money. What is landing in your inbox is the result of that decision.
This is the part that pisses most owners off, but we want to be upfront. You were not discovered because you are special. You were found because it was easy (and getting easier).
There are databases and tools that map out nearly every business in the country by what it actually does, not just by some tax code. Layered on top of that, buyers watch for signals that an owner might be getting ready to step back: many years running the same company, specific job postings, steady growth, a growing fleet. When your business triggers a few of those signals, prospective buyers notice.
Most of the people contacting you are not planning to buy your company and run it exactly as it is forever. They are assembling several local businesses into one larger regional company, because a bigger, more organized business is worth more. Buy a handful of good local operators, combine the back office, run them under one roof, and the whole is worth a higher multiple than the individual businesses cost them to acquire. That gap is the engine driving most of this activity.
We are telling you this because you should know it. The buyer is usually making money on that math, and there is nothing wrong with that. But you should come to the table with a clear understanding of what they are looking to do.
The letters can blur together, but the buyers behind them are very different. Some are large funds looking for a business to anchor a new regional platform, and they often want you to roll a slice of your proceeds into the bigger company. Some are individuals who want to buy one business and personally run it, which can be a real succession answer if you want out cleanly. Some are competitors who can move fast and pay mostly in cash. Some are private families looking for a business to hold for decades. Each one comes with a different plan for your money, your people, and your own role after the sale.
You do not owe any of these people a reply, and you certainly do not owe them your financials before they have earned a look at them. If a caller is serious, they will happily prove they are real and funded before you share a thing. Look at the whole offer, not just the headline number, because the devil is in the details.
Getting an offer is not the same as being ready to sell. If all this attention has you wondering what your business is worth, that is exactly where the rest of these pieces pick up. And yes, we are a buyer too. We would just rather earn the conversation than talk you into one.
What your business is actually worth, and why the number in your head is probably wrong.