“I Know I Would Have Missed Something”
The Challenge: Ross joined Sutton Transport in 2019 as VP of Finance. By 2024, they’d grown from $45M to $130M in revenue, 6 terminals to 13 terminals across five states, and over 800 employees. But the risk profile had changed—nuclear verdicts drove insurance costs up, financing costs tripled, and freight rates stayed suppressed. They’d executed acquisitions before, but selling a 13-terminal, 800-employee operation was “a different animal.”
What We Did:
- Helped buyers outside trucking understand what made Sutton valuable
- Protected Ross and ownership from “abnormal” buyer requests during negotiations
- Used analytics to help them see their business through buyers’ eyes
- Stayed responsive nights, weekends, and holidays during Q4 year-end close
- Ensured 800+ employees would be placed with capable buyer
The Outcome:
- Generated competitive interest: 6 parties interested, 3 offers submitted
- Protected from buyer overreach during complex negotiations
- Successfully closed year-end transaction under tight timelines
- Clean ownership exit with employees in good hands
In Ross’s Words: “Next Mile was really good at saying, ‘Hey, that’s an abnormal ask.’ They would let us know if we needed to push back. I can’t tell you what I would have missed, but I know I would have missed something.”
“You want to take a chance on a $1 million purchase with 10 or less employees? Okay. But when you have multiple locations and a head count like we had, and you’re talking about the dollar amounts that we were talking about, it’s worth getting an expert in your corner.”