“ALWAYS DELIVER MORE THAN EXPECTED”
– Larry Page
When I first met Matt Gilbert, Founding Partner of Gilbert & Pardue, a lower middle-market Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) firm, I was impressed with his knowledge, experience, and world class team that he had assembled. After speaking with Matt for this month’s installment of The Entrepreneur’s Expert, I was blow away. Not only did Matt share some very cool stories about how he has lived the entrepreneurial dream (growing and selling 4 companies, and acquiring 9 more), but the purpose and the “why” he does it is as clear as a Waterford crystal. His “why” is to serve entrepreneurs, who have spent a life-time building their business, achieve success – however they define it.
I will post a link to the video in the comments below, but please do yourself a favor and spend the next few minutes getting to know Matt better. I am willing to bet that you will be as blown away as I was and this is a man that always delivers more than expected.
Q: I talk a lot about how #entrepreneurship is a team sport – with entrepreneurs having a “Fab 5” or a circle of 5 trusted advisers. How can a M&A expert bring maximum value to an entrepreneur’s Fab 5.
A: Most of the entrepreneurs that we work with in the lower middle-market space (business with revenue generally between $3 million to $50 million), don’t have the structure of the strength of a board of directors, or a senior management team. This means that often times, they are making decisions in a vacuum, often feeling lonely at the top. That is where we provide tremendous value by being outside of the organization and filling the role of a sounding board. A good M&A adviser not only knows the business, employees, and goals -but they truly care about you being successful. The best time to prepare to sell your business is the day you start. The next best time is now.
The reason that it is now is that a business that can be sold for maximum value is enjoyable to operate, right now. It is profitable, right now. It has processes and procedures, right now, and it has actively engaged and productive employees, right now. A M&A adviser helps entrepreneurs hone in on each of these areas to make them better; even if that means investing years to get to that point. In the process, it will give the entrepreneur more time, transparency and visibility into the operations of the business, and help increase employee engagement. Overall, that is a fun company to operate.
Q: What is the top thing that most entrepreneurs don’t realize about how you do M&A and the impacts that it has on their companies?
A: Most of the M&A firms that focus on the lower middle market entrepreneur are highly transactional. From our many experiences of being on both the sell and buy side, we found that there was a real need for a wholistic approach to M&A advising. So, we founded our firm with the focus of finding out what is most important to the entrepreneur and then we build a program around them that is supportive and responsive to those areas and issues. Overall, it is mostly unheard of in this space; but we feel that it is the right way of operating.
Q: What are one thing that you are always keeping top of mind about marketing/ brand building with all the entrepreneurs that you are working with?
A: Be sure that you have someone that is looking out for you. In the M&A world today, there are many potential buyers that may be doing nothing more than “kicking the tires” of their competitor under the guise of a potential acquisition. When all they are really doing is trying to understand their competition better. Even when the offer is legitimate, having someone on your side can greatly increase the value of your company. For example, we were originally engaged by an entrepreneur to review an $18 million offer that they had just received. After looking at the company and the industry, we knew that the market value for this company was much greater than the offer. After about a year of work, the client sold their company for almost 4 times the original amount. The moral of the story is that having an adviser that is dedicated to you and your objectives is so critical.
Q: Describe the entrepreneur that gets maximum value from working with you.
A: A family owned or privately held business that has been in business a while. They have developed a good track record and history. They have a solid reputation in their industry and community. Their employees are solid employees that are sought after and recognized in the market. A strong customer list.
They have all these amazing things going for them, but they have no board of directors or advisers that help them see strategically or act as a sounding board. In short, they may have a Fab 1 or Fab 2, but they just don’t have the Fab 5. These are the best customers because they can benefit the most from the depth and breadth of professionals that we bring into the relationship for them. These professionals then surround the entrepreneurs and find out how they define success and we work tirelessly to achieve THAT.
Q: What is 1 thing that the world doesn’t know about you?
A: I am going to give you 2 – you asked for 1 but I will give you a bonus.
- There is nothing more important to me in the world than my family and God and Christ. I have 5 grand kids. I live on the same street as my mom and one of my daughters. I LOVE Thursday nights as that is family dinner at my house. I love playing Barbie and kickball with my grand kids.
- One of my earliest companies that I built and sold was an environmental company. After the non-compete ran out, we established another environmental company. This is so important in this part of the world because if you have any property at all, you probably have some type of environmental issue. This can be a real sticking point for a buyer, so we have a very unique set of expertise can knowledge that can overcome this potential challenge.
Be sure to connect with Matt at 800-694-6950, mgilbert@gap-advisors.com, and www.gap-advisors.com. If you check out their website, be sure sign up for their newletters. They are packed with value bombs, much like this episode.
Being an entrepreneur is one of the most difficult and demanding things you can do. The good news is that entrepreneurship today is a team sport. Hit the connect button on LinkedIn or Facebook NOW and together we will work towards hitting your 10-year target. Along the way we will increase your profit, strengthen your leadership skills and transform your banking relationship into one that is a strategic competitive advantage. This will lead to confidence in your path, freedom to dream up bigger targets and a strategic banking relationship. When we connect, tell me what medium works best for your marketing activities.
Greg Martin is an entrepreneur’s insider to the banking industry and passionately believes that every person was uniquely designed for a higher purpose and calling. Greg guides entrepreneurs in defining and achieving their purpose and calling. His deepest passion is living life with his wife and their wonderful son.
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