Smart Business Dealmakers: The Middle-Market M&A Podcast

Amid the pandemic, Milwaukee-based A. O. Smith closed the acquisition of Canada's Giant Factories — a deal nearly a decade in the making. Although the deal went smoothly, there were some interesting aspects about it that kept both sides on their toes, says Jim Stern, executive vice president and general counsel of A.O. Smith.

Cor Hoekstra co-founded fintech company Amicus.io to align the incentives of donors, financial institutions, corporations and philanthropic organizations for charitable giving at scale. Shortly before selling the business to TIFIN in 2022, we sat down with Cor to talk about attracting investors and how his work for tech giants such as Oracle and IBM informed the venture.

Lou Schneeberger, Executive Chairman of Proformex, has been buying and selling companies for years. Today he is seeing what he calls a COVID backlog. Companies that were looking to sell but struggled during the pandemic chose to wait until the market stabilized. Now, many of those companies' M&A aspirations are waking up from their pandemic hibernation. Lou talks about those companies and how they're preparing to capitalize on their highest potential valuations.

Brand President Cesar Gueikian discusses Gibson Brands' 2021 acquisition of well-known guitar amp manufacturer Mesa/Boogie, as well as how he is helping to move Gibson forward by identifying its purpose.

CEO Matt Mastarone and the TTG Imaging Solutions team started a search for a new capital partner in January of 2021. By May, they were in New York City doing early-look meetings with potential private equity firms its investment banker thought would be interested. In August, the molecular Imaging company had narrowed the search to two firms and were close to getting a deal done; however, supply chain concerns scared those two firms off. As a result, TTG had to come up with a thorough study on its supply chain issues to ease concerns. After doing so, they reengaged another set of bidders and managed to get the deal done in time for Christmas.

Perimeter Solutions CEO Edward Goldberg worked with EverArc Holdings to complete in just a few months a merger process that normally would take years. And to make things even more problematic was the fact that they did it primarily in a virtual world.

The M&A market continues to be red hot with buyers competing for deals and sellers benefiting in the process. But what does it take to get your company ready for a sale? What is a quality of earnings report and how might it benefit sellers to get one done? Tony Montanaro, a partner with Louis Plung & Co., offers a look at deals from a buyer's perspective: what they like to see in diligence that speeds a deal to close, and what they don't like to find — problems that could mean they walk away.

The pandemic has been a major factor in the commercial real estate market. It's had an impact on everything from where companies are based to how long it takes to get things built. Paul Larson, CEO of Larson Financial Holdings, sits down to give his characterization of the market, where opportunities and challenges exist, and his advice for those looking to invest this year.

When it comes to the timing of a sale, there are things you can control, such as preparing your management team or tidying up your books, and there are things you can't, such as buyer appetite. Scott Bushkie, managing partner and founder of Cornerstone Business Services, says timing may be the most important element of a sale, and offers both his insight and advice on how sellers can leverage timing to their advantage.

Andy Vollmer, managing director of Bellmark Partners, discusses the record level of M&A activity in 2021, the factors driving that dealmaking, the consequences for buyers and sellers, and what we can expect throughout 2022.