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For a rural business planning an acquisition, facility expansion, equipment purchase, or modernization project, the financing challenge is not always whether the project is viable. Sometimes the obstacle is whether the financing structure gives a commercial lender enough comfort around credit, collateral,…
Read — USDA Guaranteed Business Loans: How They Work and Why They Matter
The next generation of business owners may not be pitching an app from a glass-walled office. They may be standing in a warehouse at 7:30 a.m., trying to figure out why yesterday’s shipment never went out. That’s roughly where Anica found herself…
I was watching The Bear the other night, the award-winning television series about a young chef trying to transform his family’s chaotic Chicago sandwich shop into a world-class restaurant, and one moment stood out. There’s a scene in Season Two that isn’t about the…
Read — The Smudge: Why Great Leaders Obsess Over Small Things
Last year, U.S. companies raised approximately $2.4 trillion in capital outside of public markets. Most of it moved quietly, through a mechanism most people outside of finance have never heard of: the private placement. No roadshow, no SEC registration, no prospectus filed…
Read — Raising Capital Without Going Public: Why Private Placements Matter for the Middle Market
The Program Is Over. The Workout Is Not. When we first wrote about the Main Street Lending Program, the issue was straightforward: borrowers were approaching a five-year maturity wall and needed to prepare. That phase has now passed. The program stopped purchasing…
Read — The Last Main Street Loans: What Borrowers Need to Do Now
Not Every Private Company Is a Middle-Market Business Why understanding where your company fits is one of the most important decisions in any sale process When business owners begin thinking about a sale, the conversation usually starts with valuation. What is the…
Read — Main Street vs. Middle Market: Why It Matters When Selling Your Business
In any M&A transaction, the identity of the buyer matters as much as the price. Strategic buyers, in particular, influence how a process unfolds, how a deal is structured, and the likelihood of a successful close. Unlike financial acquirers, strategic buyers evaluate…
When business owners start contemplating a sale, the conversation usually centers on timing, potential buyers, and headline valuation. Those are important—but they’re not where value is created. Long before a formal process kicks off, the real drivers of enterprise value take shape…
Read — Building a Sellable Business: Preparing for a Premium Valuation
In middle-market M&A, the treatment of debt is often one of the most critical yet misunderstood aspects of transaction structuring. While enterprise value determines the gross consideration, how debt and debt-like items are defined and settled can materially affect negotiations, closing mechanics,…
“In middle-market M&A, failure isn’t random. It’s the result of identifiable – and avoidable – pitfalls.” Not every company that enters a sale process reaches the finish line. Some fail to attract serious offers, while others collapse during due diligence, leaving owners…
Read — Why Some Businesses Don’t Sell – And How to Avoid Their Fate