“A Big Warm Kiss Instead of a Hard Damaging Punch”

The Challenge: Doug built his business from 2006, surviving early setbacks including losing his anchor client just five months in. His business partner approached him in 2019 about a partial exit, then died suddenly 48 hours before three LOIs were scheduled to arrive. Eight-month buy-sell dispute followed. Then COVID hit. Then an LOI in 2022 that fell apart 48 hours before closing after 88 days of due diligence. Doug held the record for longest time to sell a company.

What We Did:

  • Provided straight-shooting, unvarnished truth from day one
  • Transformed raw TMS reports into comprehensive, professionally formatted analytics
  • Stayed in the fight through four years of setbacks and delays
  • Protected Doug from seller fatigue when he was “at the end of my rope”
  • Helped him navigate what buyer requests were standard vs. overreach

The Outcome:

  • Deal finally closed September 2023 after years of setbacks
  • Crushed earnout targets in both year one and year two
  • Last day: September 30, 2024—exactly two years after closing
  • Avoided the “hard damaging punch” Doug feared as a first-time seller

In Doug’s Words: “He never told me what I wanted to hear. He just told me how it was. He’s a straight shooter. I don’t know what I’m doing in the sales process. It’s a whole other animal from running a business.”

“I wrote Black Belt a letter at the end of the process. I said, you saved me more than your fee. That’s what I’ll call value.”

“They led me straight into a big warm kiss instead of a hard damaging punch.”