Summary
Sell-side advisory for a petroleum distribution business navigating a confidential sale process with a focus on preserving privacy and maximizing value.
Key Details
- Transaction Type : Sell-Side
- Industry : Petroleum Distribution Company
Background
After the death of their spouse, our client inherited a distribution business that they did not initially intend to lead. Our client was an entrepreneur by default, so they utilized the knowledge they learned from being on their spouse’s team and led the business for many years.
Several years later, our client had no further desire to grow the business and made the decision to place the business for sale on the market. We received a call from their attorney to help them sell their business.
Our client was very sensitive to their competition in Georgia, gaining knowledge of their business and its pending sale, so we were asked to begin the sell-side engagement with out-of-state businesses within our client’s industry.
Our Action
Following the terms of our agreement, the limiting search parameters resulted in a less-than-desirable bidding process that was not helping our client. Consequently, we requested permission to expand the list of potential purchasers to within the state of Georgia. We assured our client that we would run a controlled and confidential bidding process and gained permission to do so.
Results
We expanded our search of prospective purchasers within the state of Georgia and later expanded the search to include potential purchasers within the contiguous counties, and ultimately sold to a purchaser much closer to the seller’s headquarters. The sell-side process was extended by at least one year; however, confidentiality, which was the top priority of our client, was preserved, multiple offers were received, and the final purchase price exceeded their expectations.
