SELL-SIDE ADVISORY
Chicago’s M&A market is active across manufacturing, distribution, professional services, and financial sectors. When you decide to sell, you’re entering a market with sophisticated buyers who know how to find leverage. Michelet Financial prepares your business for maximum valuation, manages the confidential marketing process, and negotiates the deal structure that puts the most money in your pocket.
We establish your business’s true market value through income-based and comparable-transaction analysis, then build a compelling Confidential Information Memorandum (CIM) that positions your company for maximum buyer interest.
We confidentially market your business to a targeted universe of qualified strategic buyers, private equity groups, and financial acquirers—running a controlled process designed to generate competition and maximize your sale price.
From LOI through closing, we negotiate deal terms, optimize transaction structure for tax efficiency, coordinate with your legal counsel, and manage due diligence to protect your interests every step of the way.
Chicago is the industrial and distribution backbone of the Midwest, with a deep base of manufacturing, logistics, financial services, and technology businesses. Business owners in Chicagoland face buyers ranging from regional operators to national private equity firms—all with significant deal experience on their side.
Michelet Financial provides sell-side advisory, buy-side acquisition support, and deal structuring for Chicago business owners in the $1M–$50M revenue range. Led by Brandt Michelet, former financial strategist at Landry’s Inc. under Tilman Fertitta, we bring institutional deal rigor to every Chicago transaction.
Experience That Closes Deals
When you sell a business, you are negotiating against buyers and brokers who do deals every day — so you want an M&A advisor who has operated at the highest level of corporate finance. Our founder, Brandt Michelet, served as a financial strategy lead at Landry’s, Inc. under Tilman Fertitta — one of America’s largest privately held restaurant, hospitality, and entertainment companies, with 600+ venues and billions in annual revenue.
That means your M&A advisor has structured, valued, and pressure-tested transactions at a scale most local business brokers never touch — and brings that same discipline to selling your Chicago business, acquiring a competitor, or planning your exit. We pair institutional deal experience with the tax strategy expertise of Michelet Financial, so your transaction is structured to keep more of the proceeds in your pocket.
Whether you need a sell-side advisor to take your company to market in Chicago, a buy-side partner to evaluate an acquisition, or business exit planning to maximize value before you sell, you work directly with a senior advisor — never a junior associate. Call (225) 396-5511 for a confidential consultation.
M&A Advisory Services
Most M&A advisors work exclusively on large deals. Michelet Financial brings institutional-quality M&A thinking to small and mid-market Chicago business owners — whether you’re buying, selling, or merging. Brandt Michelet’s background managing acquisitions and financial strategy for a Fortune-500 company translates directly to deals at your scale.
Preparing your business for sale: valuation, financial statement normalization, deal structure analysis, buyer identification, negotiation support, and tax optimization of the transaction. We represent your interests through close.
Finding, evaluating, and acquiring businesses in Chicago. Target identification, due diligence financial analysis, valuation, deal structuring, and integration planning. We help you avoid paying too much for the wrong business.
Quality-of-earnings analysis, financial statement review, working capital normalization, debt and liability identification — the financial due diligence that determines whether a deal is worth doing and at what price.
Asset sale vs. stock sale, earn-out structures, seller financing, rollover equity — deal structure has enormous tax implications for both buyer and seller. We optimize the structure to maximize after-tax proceeds.
SBA 7(a) loans, seller financing, PE partnerships, bank acquisition financing — we help you understand and access the capital needed to complete an acquisition without over-leveraging the acquired business.
Financial systems integration, cultural alignment, operational consolidation, and performance tracking — realizing the synergies that justified the acquisition and setting the combined business up for growth.
The Process
We start by understanding the strategic rationale — why this deal, why now, what does success look like. Acquisitions made without clear strategic logic rarely create value.
Deep analysis of historical financials — quality of earnings, normalized EBITDA, working capital requirements, off-balance-sheet liabilities, and cash flow reliability.
Independent valuation of the business, pricing strategy, and negotiation support. We make sure you know what something is worth before you offer a dollar for it.
Structure the transaction for maximum tax efficiency, coordinate with legal counsel, navigate closing conditions, and get you to a successful close with no surprises.
BUY-SIDE ADVISORY
Chicago’s acquisition market offers compelling targets—established family businesses with real assets, manufacturing companies with loyal customer bases, and distribution operations with durable routes to market. We help Chicago buyers identify and evaluate targets, avoid due diligence pitfalls, and structure transactions that create long-term value.
We map the Chicago market for businesses that fit your acquisition criteria—revenue size, industry, growth profile, and owner transition motivation—including off-market opportunities before they reach a broker.
Quality-of-earnings analysis, revenue quality assessment, working capital normalization, and liability identification. We find the issues before you sign a purchase agreement.
Asset vs. stock purchase, SBA vs. conventional financing, earn-out design, and integration planning. We structure the acquisition to maximize your return and reduce post-close risk.
INDUSTRIES WE SERVE
Michelet Financial works with business owners in the $1M–$50M revenue range across the industries that drive the Chicago economy. Our M&A advisory is tailored to the specific buyer dynamics, valuation benchmarks, and regulatory considerations that define each sector.
Don’t see your industry listed? We advise business owners across all sectors. Call (225) 396-5511 to discuss your specific situation.
FAQ
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