M&A · Exit readiness
We work with owners one to five years from a sale. We find the levers a buyer will price, fix them while there is still time, and open the right doors when you are ready. The hands-on work runs through Isleworth & Co., our business improvement and exit readiness practice.
Who this is for
Most owners sell once. The buyer has done it fifty times. The gap shows up in diligence, when the buyer finds the things you would have fixed if anyone had told you they mattered: a business that stops when you take a week off, numbers in three spreadsheets, a top customer that is a third of revenue, growth that depends on you.
We close that gap before the process starts. The work takes a year or more, which is why we start early. If you are thinking about a sale in the next one to five years, this is built for you. If you need to sell in ninety days, we will say so and point you to a broker.
Fit
Most of these should be true. If none are, we are not the right partner yet.
Diligence
Eight questions, in the order they usually come. Creator and service businesses get two more: does the audience stay if the face leaves, and does delivery still work if the founder is not the talent. Read the full checklist.
The work
A buyer prices five things. Revenue growth, margin, owner independence, systems and data, and capital structure. We work on each one in the order that moves the valuation most for your business.
Two weeks. We score the business against the five levers a buyer prices and show you what the discount looks like today.
Owner independence, systems and data, customer concentration, margin. Isleworth & Co. runs the work with your team, or hands the plan to yours. You see the numbers monthly.
Clean financials, a growth record a buyer believes, and a data room that answers questions before they are asked.
When the business is ready, we introduce you to buyers, bankers, brokers, lenders and counsel we have worked with. You choose the process.
The practice
Business improvement and exit readiness. A practice Troy and Los are building together. Working identity, final entity and terms pending.
Working site (in progress)More profit. Less dependence on you. Better options ahead. Isleworth & Co. is the hands-on half of this page. It runs the operating work and builds a management layer a buyer can keep. After the two-week diagnosis, engagements start at six months with one or two defined improvements and an accountable manager, and extend as the plan does. Assess the baseline, implement inside the systems you already use, embed as routine with clear ownership.
Sell-side brokerage is separately engaged and set out in writing before you sign anything. A sale or a higher valuation is not guaranteed.
The network
Introductions are earned by readiness. We make them when the business will hold up to the conversation, not before.
Strategic acquirers and holding companies in your category, introduced when the business will hold up to the conversation.
The right advisor for your size. Brokers work the small end. M&A advisors work the lower middle market. We know which is which.
Working capital and growth capital that cleans up the balance sheet before a buyer looks at it.
Deal lawyers and tax advisors who have closed the kind of transaction you are planning.
If you are a buyer, banker or lender who wants to see businesses after the work is done, write to us. We make introductions when the business is ready, and only with the owner's consent.
The numbers
Market medians and broker ranges, not a quote on your business. Below about $2 million the multiple is of seller's discretionary earnings (profit plus the owner's pay and perks). Above it, the multiple is of EBITDA, with a manager already paid.
| Deal size | Median multiple | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $500,000 | 2.0x | SDE | IBBA and M&A Source Market Pulse, Q2 2026 (255 brokers and advisors, 181 closed deals) |
| $500,000 to $1 million | 2.8x | SDE | |
| $1 million to $2 million | 3.1x | SDE | |
| $2 million to $5 million | 4.0x | EBITDA | |
| $5 million to $50 million | 5.8x | EBITDA | |
| Owner-run ecommerce, US | 2.5x to 3.75x, average about 3.0x | SDE | Quiet Light, closed deals, trailing 12 months |
| Ecommerce brands with a management team | 3.0x to 6.0x | EBITDA | FE International, September 2026 |
Owner-dependence, concentration, clean books and whether growth continues without you are what move a business within these ranges. That is the work on this page.
Compare
Each path is right for someone. Brokers work the small end, under about $2 million. M&A advisors work $2 million to $50 million. Private equity is the buyer, not your agent. We are none of those. We get the business ready and open the right doors.
| Studio | Broker | M&A advisor | Private equity | Going alone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| When they start | One to five years before the sale | When you are ready to list | When you are ready to run a process | When they want to buy | Whenever you do |
| What they do to the business | Fix the levers a buyer discounts | Package it as it is | Build a buyer list and run competing offers | Buy it and change it after | Whatever you have time for |
| Who does the work | Isleworth & Co., with your team | You | Their deal team, during the process | Their operating partners, after closing | You |
| How they get paid | Scoped to the business and the objective, in writing before you commit | A percentage of the sale price, agreed up front | A retainer plus a success fee | Equity and fees | You keep everything, and carry everything |
| Who they answer to | You | The deal | The deal | Their fund | You |
Questions
Straight answers. If yours is not here, ask it.
Track record
Three founder exits we can name today. Troy's three exits are below. Los's five: [names and years].
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