For owners
Sell to the person who will run it.
FM Enterprises buys established, cash-flowing businesses and operates them after close. If you built one and are thinking about what comes next, this is a direct conversation with the buyer. No listing. No broker in the middle. Priced against what the business actually earns.
This is for you if
- Your business has three or more years of profitable history, and books a third party can read.
- It runs when you are not in the room. There is a team, or at least a second in command, and the customers belong to the company rather than to you personally.
- Annual revenue sits roughly in the range in the criteria below. If you are outside it, submit anyway. We will tell you where it goes.
- You are thinking about retirement, a partner buyout, a next chapter, or you simply want a straight answer on what a buyer who would actually close would pay.
It is not for you if
- The business is pre-revenue, or its case rests on a projection rather than a record.
- It needs a turnaround. We buy businesses that work. We do not buy fixes.
- The business is you. If revenue stops when you stop answering the phone, there is nothing to buy yet. There may be something to build toward, and that is a different conversation we can also have.
- You want a listing, an auction, or someone to shop the business around. We are the buyer, not a broker.
The box
What we buy, in plain parameters.
Stated rather than implied. If a business clears this, it gets a real look. If it does not, you find that out quickly and with the reason attached.
| Parameter | Criterion |
|---|---|
| Annual revenue | $1M to $15M. Lower middle market. |
| EBITDA margin | 15% or better. 25% and above preferred. |
| Track record | Three years or more of established, profitable operations. |
| Ownership | Control. Majority stake preferred. |
| Geography | United States, all fifty states. |
| Customer concentration | Under 25% from any one customer. |
What happens when you submit
Five steps. Each one ends with you knowing more than you did, in writing.
Introduction
A 30 minute call to establish fit in both directions. If it is there, we sign a mutual NDA the same day so the numbers stay between us.
Evaluation
Three years of revenue and cash flow, a look at how the business operates, and a preliminary view of value in writing. We price against what the business earns and what a lender will finance, because that is the number a deal can actually close at.
Letter of intent
Price, structure, and terms in writing. No open-ended negotiation and no moving targets.
Due diligence
Thorough, and organized so your team and your customers do not feel it. Confidentiality holds throughout.
Close and transition
Funding, closing, and a handover built around your timeline rather than ours.
How a deal can be structured
Four structures. Most deals use two of them together.
The structure follows the business and what you want from the next chapter, not a template.
All-cash buyout. Full purchase price at close. The cleanest exit for an owner who is ready to step away.
Seller financing. Part of the price paid over time on a note. Often used where the owner stays through the transition and wants the handover to be gradual.
Earn-out. Part of the price tied to the business’s performance after close. Appropriate where the growth ahead is stronger than the record behind.
Equity rollover. Sell the majority, keep a stake, and stay involved in what the business becomes.
The splits above are illustrative rather than an offer. Which structure fits, and what it means for you personally, is a question for your own tax and legal advisors. We put every structure in writing before you are asked to decide anything.
A business that runs when the owner is not in the room.
Why owners talk to FM
An operator, not a fund.
We run what we buy. In-house marketing, operational systems, and a growth playbook built on companies we have owned and exited. Your business gets invested in, not stripped.
Capital already in place. Our capital relationships are settled before the first call. That is why we can answer quickly, and why a letter of intent from us is a plan rather than a hope.
A straight answer, every time. Every submission ends with a number or a route. If the business is a fit, it goes to the deal track. If it is a real business below our acquisition range, or not yet ready to transact, we say so and point you to a paid evaluation that tells you what to do about it. Nothing gets dropped and nothing gets a polite no.
Confidential by default. Mutual NDA on day one. No listing, no public process, no calls to your competitors. Your staff and your customers learn about a sale when you decide they should.
Founder-friendly transitions. Stay and grow with us. Transition out over 12 to 24 months. Or exit cleanly at close. Your timeline, your terms. We do not gut teams. The people who made the business worth buying are usually the reason it stays worth owning.
What we need from you
Less than you think. Send what you have.
If the books need explaining, tell us that up front. It shortens every conversation after.
| What | Detail |
|---|---|
| Three years of revenue and cash flow | Tax returns, P&Ls, or your accountant’s summary. Perfect is not required. Honest is. |
| Who does what when you are not there | Headcount, key roles, and whether a manager runs the day. |
| Customer mix | Roughly what share your largest customer represents. |
| What you own and what you lease | Premises, equipment, vehicles, contracts. |
| Why now | And what you want the next chapter to look like. |
Start the conversation
Ten minutes to submit.
Confidential, no obligation, and you hear back from a person rather than an autoresponder. Every submission is read. If the business fits the criteria on this page it goes to the deal track, and if it is a real business below the current acquisition range it routes to FM Advisory for a paid evaluation rather than being dropped, so you leave with a straight answer either way.