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Articles Valuation

Beyond buyers: The real role of an M&A intermediary

The intermediary is the quarterback of the sell-side process, not the running back. For Canadian business owners, understanding what that means, and which work belongs to which member of the advisory team, is the differe...

Why working capital matters for your shop

Working capital management plays a critical role in the financial health of every shop

Canada's M&A market closed 2025 at record highs

Canada's mergers and acquisitions market ended 2025 above the 2021 all-time record on aggregate deal value, posting US$389.69 billion for the full year. If you own a Canadian business and have been waiting for the right ...

HOLD OR SELL? THE MATH YOUR GUT DOESN'T KNOW

A disciplined yearly exercise turns intuition into strategy and protects the wealth you have spent a lifetime building.

YOUR BUYER DOES THIS EVERY DAY. YOU DO IT ONCE.

The research on who wins in a business sale negotiation is unambiguous. Here are the eight strategies that determine the outcome, and why most Canadian owners are on the wrong side of all of them.

WHO CONTROLS THE CLOCK CONTROLS THE DEAL

Research confirms that most concessions in any negotiation happen in the final stretch of available time. In a Canadian business sale, experienced buyers engineer the clock deliberately. Here is what that costs sellers w...

WHO CONTROLS THE PROCESS CONTROLS THE OUTCOME

Who controls the process controls the outcome

IN A BUSINESS SALE, SILENCE IS NOT EMPTY SPACE

The most underused tool in any negotiation costs nothing, requires no preparation and is available to every seller at every moment. Most Canadian business owners never use it because the discomfort of not filling it is m...

GIVE BUYERS OPTIONS AND WATCH WHAT THEY CHOOSE

Most business sale negotiations move one issue at a time. Research at Harvard Business School shows this is the worst way to structure a deal conversation — and that presenting multiple complete offers simultaneously pro...

SELL SMARTER: FIND WHAT BUYERS REALLY WANT

Most business sale negotiations get stuck because both sides argue over positions. The owners who get the best outcomes are the ones who stop arguing over what and start asking why.