Discover our mergers and acquisitions consulting services in Burlington, Oakville & Hamilton.
Preparing To Sell a Business?
A key thing to keep in mind is that you will have to open the doors and the books. Take some time to:
- Mitigate business risks, risks where possible
- Increase and/or maintain earnings and cashflow
- Have a succession plan in place
- Be prepared to sell at anytime as who knows when a prospective buyer may knock on your door
Get in touch today to learn more.
Mergers and Acquisitions Process
Being prepared for mergers or acquisitions is the best way to get the most value out of a transaction.
Having a team of trusted advisors throughout the process to advise you from cradle to grave and provide you with the right information makes the transaction smoother, and increases the probability of a successful transition.
Contact us today for next steps.
Finding A Target
When you are ready to find a business to acquire you have several options. You can reach out to your network to find out if anyone is retiring or looking to sell or even work with a business broker to find the ideal target or suitor.
Business Valuation
Work with us to ensure you are not overpaying for a business, or under-pricing yours. The accuracy of financial reporting and numbers is crucial at this stage. It will be the basis of all negotiations going forward. Our team of experts will help you properly vet potential businesses, their operations and financial reporting or maximize the value of your existing ones.
Letter Of Intent
A Letter of Intent, often referred to as an “LOI”, is a non-binding proposal in the form of a letter that sets the framework for a transaction to take place, typically provided in the early stages of negotiations. It often contains a price, timelines for meeting milestones, and may include additional details pertaining to the execution of the transaction.
Due Diligence
For forty years we have been helping businesses in a range of industries. When you work with us on merger and acquisition due diligence you will have a team of knowledgeable experts assisting you in determining:
- the pricing reflects the value
- financial assets have been documented correctly (assets and employees)
- possible existence of unrecorded corporate liabilities
- income tax exposure with tax authorities
- legal review
Types Of Mergers & Acquisitions
Mergers are two companies combining into one where both owners retain their ownership of the business.
Acquisitions refer to a majority purchase of a target company with a controlling interest.
A minority interest is acquired when a buyer obtains less than 50% ownership and therefore does not obtain outright control of the subject company.
Smooth transactions, better transitions
Maximizing returns on investment and minimizing risk requires planning and preparation. From due diligence, valuation, quality of earnings reporting to assisting with the exchange of information, our team will be there from start to finish.
FAQs
Failed M&As can be the result of a number of things including a lack of proper planning, cutting corners on due diligence, conflicting cultures amongst companies, and unexpected market conditions etc.
Proper planning and an implementation strategy will help smooth transitions. Though challenges will be sure to present themselves. Some ones to look out for are:
- Employee buy-in;
- Proper introductions, transitions and transfers among suppliers, vendors and customer relationships to new owners/management
- Failure to spend sufficient time required to integrate due to solely focusing on the core existing operations of the target companies, an acquisition is often distracting as it is not a core competence of the buyer or seller.
Typically a merger or acquisition takes between 6 months for the transaction to take place. And an additional 6 months to 3 years for the transition to take place. This usually depends on the extent to which the original business owner is involved in the day to day operations.
Areas Served
Our team of chartered professional accountants (CPAs) work with clients across Southern Ontario, including:
- Burlington
- Oakville
- Hamilton
- Mississauga
- Brampton
- Guelph
- Kitchener
- Milton
- Cambridge
- Grimsby
- St. Catharines
Our Mergers & Acquisitions Team
Related Services
Litigation Support & Family Law
Make informed decisions to help avoid costly litigation, reach an equitable settlement in the division of family assets where a business is owned and reach position yourself for a favourable outcome with legal proceedings for damages in tort law.
Quality of Earnings
We'll deliver an accurate, current and objective report outlining how your company generates earnings and creates value.