READY TO SELL YOUR BUSINESS

The biggest deal of your life deserves a financial planner.

What carries forward — your financial security, your employees, your legacy — is shaped by decisions made long before closing day.

Find Out If You're Ready See How We Work

Confidential. You set the pace. No pressure, no obligation.

75%

of business sellers experience regret after the sale… most often because they never clearly defined what they wanted from life afterward, not because the deal terms were wrong.

Source: Exit Planning Institute

79%

wish they had sought more advice during the selling process around post-exit identity, employee outcomes, and long-term financial security.

Source: Exit Planning Institute

WHAT MOST BROKERS MISS

Every broker will tell you what your business is worth. Very few will tell you what comes next.

The M&A industry is built around one thing: closing the deal. Brokers are measured by transaction volume, not by what happens to the seller six months later. But research is unambiguous: most sellers don’t regret the decision to sell. They regret how they were (or weren’t) prepared for everything that followed.

WHAT YOU’RE UP AGAINST

The buyers who will make you an offer are professionals. They do this every day. Most sellers do it once.

Private equity has fundamentally reshaped the home services market. More sophisticated, well-capitalized buyers are pursuing businesses like yours than at any point in history. That is good news for value (but only if you have someone in your corner who knows how they operate).

THE LANDSCAPE

PE activity has changed the rules of every negotiation

Private equity buyers have committed capital, experienced deal teams, and well-rehearsed playbooks. They are skilled at identifying what they want, moving fast, and structuring offers that look attractive on the surface. An owner negotiating alone (or through a broker unfamiliar with how these groups think) is at a disadvantage before the first call.

THE VALUATION GAP

What your business is worth depends on factors most owners don’t know to optimizeard

An HVAC business with strong maintenance contracts can command a multiple two to three times higher than an identical-revenue business without them. Service mix, employee tenure, and clean financials each move the number. Most owners learn what drives valuation from their first offer. Preparation is where value is built or lost.

THE DEAL STRUCTURE

The headline number and what you actually take home are rarely the same thing

Earnouts, seller notes, equity rollover, asset vs. stock election. These determine what the sale actually puts in your pocket and when. Most sellers focus on the offer price. TriStar focuses on the structure, because that is where retirement security is built or quietly given away.

HOW TRISTAR IS DIFFERENT

We match your values, not just your valuation.

Every broker promises maximum value. What they mean is maximum offer price. TriStar’s definition of a successful sale is different and the four things below are why.

01 — FINANCIAL PLANNING PERSPECTIVE

Your retirement plan shapes the deal (not the other way around)

TriStar’s financial planning orientation means the first conversation isn’t about EBITDA multiples. It’s about what your financial life needs to look like after you sign. What does retirement require? How does deal structure affect your tax position and income? Those questions determine which buyers are right for you and what terms to accept.

02 — LEGACY-FIRST BUYER SELECTION

The highest offer is not always the right offer

TriStar takes your business to multiple qualified buyers (typically seven to seventeen) and evaluates them on more than price. We look at track records with acquired employees, operational philosophy, and commitments about what happens to your team after close. The best outcome is the offer from the buyer who will honor what you built.

03 — SELECTIVE BY DESIGN

We work with good people. Full stop.

TriStar does not take every engagement that arrives. We select clients based on character as much as transaction size. This selectivity is a commitment to you: every TriStar client receives full, expert attention throughout the process. Not a junior associate checking in at milestones. When you become a TriStar client, you get access to TriStar’s deep expertise.

04 — PERSONAL UNTIL THE END

We stay in the deal (and with you) through every complication

Business sales are rarely linear. Key employees hesitate to sign. Due diligence turns up surprises. Buyers test resolve. Timelines slip. When those moments arrive (and they do) your TriStar guide shows up… which sometimes includes driving across the state or flying across the Country to sit with a client at a critical moment. What you were promised at the beginning is what you receive at close.

MEET SEAN DENNY, CFP®

30 years in financial services. Built to understand lives, not just deals.

Sean spent three decades in financial services before founding TriStar. His clients describe him the same way regardless of what they sold: trusted, calm, thorough, and present. He is the kind of advisor who stays in the conversation long after most brokers have moved on to the next deal.

Read Sean’s Story

Sean Denny, CFP® · Founder, TriStar Business Brokerage

IF YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT SELLING

The questions that keep sellers up at night and how we approach every one of them.

You may have spent years imagining this moment. The reality of it often surfaces fears that surprise even you. These are the ones we hear most often and what we do about each of them.

“What happens to my employees when this is done?”

TriStar evaluates buyers on how they treat the people they acquire, not just how they structure the offer. We ask the questions buyers don’t want to answer. And we build protections into the deal that survive the closing table: employee retention agreements, cultural commitments, and the kind of scrutiny that only happens when the broker cares about the outcome past the commission.

“How do I know I’m getting a fair price and not just their best number?”

TriStar knows how buying groups value businesses, what they budget for acquisitions, and where there is room to move. We take your deal to multiple qualified buyers because competitive tension is the only honest market test. Without it, you are negotiating against a single party’s interests with no way to know what you left on the table.

“I don’t understand the financial complexity. I’m afraid of being outmaneuvered.”

That concern is legitimate and it is exactly why a financial planner should be guiding this process. TriStar translates deal structure into plain language before you are asked to decide anything. We make sure the financial architecture of your sale serves your retirement goals, not the buyer’s return profile. You shouldn’t have to become a lawyer to protect yourself. That is what we are here for.

“Who am I when this is over?”

The identity question is the one most brokers never ask. TriStar does because three decades in financial services taught them that the transition after the sale is as important to plan as the transaction itself. What does purpose look like when the business is no longer yours? What does your financial life need to sustain the retirement you actually want? These are not afterthoughts. They are the first conversation.

WE KNOW YOUR BUSINESS

The businesses we serve.

HVAC. Plumbing. Electrical. Each trade has its own buyer landscape, its own valuation drivers, and its own due diligence demands. We know what matters in each one.

Heating and Cooling

HVAC businesses attract serious buyer interest from regional operators to private equity platforms actively building portfolios. We know who the right buyers are, what they want, and how to structure a deal that protects what you have built.

Learn more about selling your HVAC business

Plumbing

Plumbing businesses represent some of the strongest opportunities in the home services market right now. Recurring service relationships, licensed technician teams, and loyal customer bases command real value with the right buyer. We know how to find them.

Learn more about selling your plumbing business

Electrical

Electrical contractors are in growing demand, particularly those with commercial relationships or specialized certifications. We know what buyers value in this trade and how to position your business to attract the ones who will honor what you have built.

Learn more about selling your electrical business

THE FIRST STEP IS A CONVERSATION

You’ve built something worth protecting. Let’s talk about how.

No pressure, no obligation. A first conversation with TriStar is about understanding what you want: from the sale, from your team’s future, and from your own next chapter. We will tell you what we honestly think — including whether the timing is right. What you learn from that conversation is yours to keep.

Find Out If You're Ready See How We Work

Confidential. You set the pace. No pressure, no obligation.

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