Selling Your Business

For many founders and business owners, a sale represents one of the most important events in their professional lives. A successful exit requires significant planning to ensure you secure the right buyer, the optimum valuation and the best outcome for your future.

We advise founders, shareholders, family offices and corporates on lower mid-market business sales and disposals, typically valued between £10 million and £50 million.  Our particular focus is on founder exits, corporate divestments and sales to strategic and private equity-backed buyers.

Whether you are a first-time or an experienced seller, we can guide you through the legal, commercial and personal issues required for a successful exit.

We can help with a variety of transactions, including:

• Founder and shareholder exits
• Full and partial business sales
• Sales to trade buyers and private equity-backed purchasers
• Disposals of family office portfolio investments
• Management buy-outs
• Corporate disposals
• Carve-outs and divestments
• Cross-border sales processes
• Competitive auction processes
• Pre-sale preparation and transaction structuring designed to maximise value and reduce execution risk

We are particularly active in technology and regulated, consolidation-driven sectors, where transaction processes can be fast-moving, competitive and value-critical. We regularly advise businesses operating in sectors attracting strategic buyers, private equity investors and acquisitive groups pursuing consolidation strategies.

Our practice includes a significant amount of cross-border work. We regularly advise on sales involving overseas buyers and international deal teams, and frequently act alongside US, European, Middle Eastern and other international law firms as English law counsel on cross-border transactions. This experience enables us to help clients navigate cross-border complexities whilst maintaining momentum and focus on deal execution.

Transactions are led by experienced M&A partners who remain closely involved throughout the process, helping clients navigate due diligence, negotiations, disclosure and completion efficiently whilst protecting value, managing risk and supporting successful execution of their exit.

Where required, we work closely with colleagues across our Private Wealth, Tax, Employment, Regulatory, Real Estate and other specialist teams to provide coordinated advice before, during and after a transaction.

So whether you are considering a disposal, preparing for a future exit or require English law support on an international transaction, please contact John Young, Anthony Macpherson or Glafkos Tombolis.