BUSINESS BROKER SERVICES
Understanding the Difference between Business Broker Services and Mergers and Acquisition Services.
The market served by business brokers generally involves the sale of businesses with low transaction values, where the owner is typically asked to hold a promissory note for the buyer. Larger or more complex privately held companies are classified in the Middle Market and will employ firms such as Houlihan Smith that specialize in Mergers and Acquisitions, or M&A. As a Mergers and Acquisition expert, Houlihan Smith has the expertise to handle the most complex business transaction. As opposed to a business broker, Houlihan Smith has the ability to take a business owner through all of the critical steps leading to a successful sale or merger, starting with a true understanding of the fair market value of the company and ending with the successful sale of the business. Houlihan Smith has the expertise to recognize the best selling structure for the business owner, as it never comes down to just selling price. Unlike business brokers, Houlihan Smith will confidentially market a business so that employees, vendors and clients are not affected. Our experts recognize that the successful sale is most often in the art of the negotiations taking place on your behalf. That’s why Houlihan Smith never forgets the human aspect of every negotiation. As a licensed and regulated specialized investment banking group, Houlihan Smith has multiple options available for financing that would not be typically available to a business broker. These financing options and expert knowledge of the financing markets allow Houlihan Smith to prepare the buyer for financing so that you, the seller, doesn’t have to sell the company and carry the debt of the new owner.