Strategic Buyer

The seller, Christian Network International, is one of the largest independent Christian product fulfillment and distribution companies in the world. CNI represents various book, music, and film publishers and ministries from around the USA to the retail, church, and consumer end markets. Their award-winning service and state-of-the-art computer networking systems enable them to attract and retain customers.  

In the world of mergers and acquisitions, the adage, "knowledge is power," holds particularly true. This essential process involves meticulous investigation, analysis, and assessment of various aspects of the target company. It is critical to conduct thorough due diligence for multiple reasons, as it helps ensure buyers are making an informed decision and mitigating potential risks. Asking the following seven questions will help assess if the business is the right fit and potential synergy:

Strategy is crucial to any merger or acquisition (M&A) for many reasons. Any deal should have a specific plan to accomplish a company's objectives and produce successful results. Making strategic choices can achieve targeted desired outcomes. It involves finding the right company to merge with or purchase, how to approach the negotiation of a deal, evaluating the synergies that may be possible, how the culture aligns, and what integration will look like after the deal closes. M&A strategy is how an organization's goals become actionable.

The seller, Worldwide Technologies, LLC (WWT), was founded in 2006 by Mike Jones and Kenny Whitworth out of a small facility in Franklin, KY. Under Mike and Kenny’s leadership, WWT expanded operations through continued investment in people, cutting-edge new technologies, and an unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction.

Benchmark International is pleased to announce the transaction between Z Consulting, LLC and The Bridge.

Benchmark International is pleased to announce the acquisition of TMCADD Consulting & Services, LLC dba myBIMteam by NV5 Global, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVEE).

Benchmark International has successfully facilitated the transaction between Fredericksburg, VA-based Fredericksburg Machine & Steel, LLC dba Viking Steel Fabricators and Norfolk, VA-based SRF, LLC dba Chesapeake Bay Steel, Inc.

Benchmark International is pleased to announce the successful sale of DBox, Inc. to CBS Property Management Inc.

Benchmark International has successfully facilitated a transaction between Fishkill, NY-based Computer Systems Integrators, Inc. (“CSI”) and Albany, NY-based Acture Solutions (“Acture”). CSI is a trusted hybrid information technology (IT) services partner primarily for K-12 schools, providing IT solutions, security, and support for schools’ IT networks.  

Benchmark International is pleased to announce the transaction between Talent Framework, LLC and Savard Labor and Marine Personnel.

Benchmark is pleased to announce the transaction between Tygra Industries, LLC and Fugue Capital. The transaction represents a significant opportunity for Fugue Capital to help a long-established company enter a new era of growth.

2024 is on pace to be a record-breaking year for retirement in the U.S. This year, an average of 11,000 Americans per day are expected to celebrate their 65th birthday. Now through 2027, we will see the most significant surge of retirement-age Americans than ever before. Yet, at the same time, data from the Pew Research Center shows that one in five people over the age of 65 are choosing to continue working, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics is projecting that Americans over the age of 65 will continue to rise in labor force participation over the next ten years. This trend is being mirrored around the world. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, over the past 25 years, labor force participation at older ages has increased significantly.

Reps and warranties insurance is a policy secured for corporate transactions such as mergers and acquisitions. In recent years, the amount of this type of insurance sold has increased significantly. It covers the indemnification for certain breaches of the representations and warranties in transaction agreements, either partially or in full. Reps and warranties insurance usually doesn’t cover losses for breaches of covenants (other than pre-closing tax indemnification) or purchase price adjustments. 

While you may be hearing that the M&A market is currently active, numbers speak volumes. A recent article from U.S. News cited that private equity (PE) has inked more than 2,300 deals for the first five months of 2021. Year-over-year, this is just over a 21% increase in deal volume. In fact, according to Pitchbook data, in the first half of 2021, PE firms closed on 3,708 deals worth a combined $456.6 billion. That’s almost two-thirds of the $711.6 billion deal value recorded in the entire year of 2020, and the two years prior. It is estimated that there is roughly $3 trillion of dry powder—also known as available funds—on hand for investment, with even a large amount of assets under management.

Over the years, we’ve collected the questions acquirers most often ask about our relationships with our clients. We hope you will find working with us to be a beneficial experience and invite you to learn a bit more about our relationship with our clients by looking over these most frequently asked questions.

At Benchmark International, we work exclusively on the sell-side, so we would love to say, “The way to do a re-trade is to never do a re-trade.” However, when you have completed countless deals, there are times when we are tied so closely into those deals that we know the terms of the original offer do not stand up to the target company’s actual position following due diligence. In other words, we will admit when there is a legitimate reason to re-trade a deal term, including the price.

At Benchmark International, we see hundreds of letters of intent (LOI), term sheets, and heads of terms every year. And though the title of the document changes from location to location, we see acquirers making the same mistakes across the globe. These mistakes cause delays, lead to good LOIs not being signed, and lead to LOIs being signed but then resulting in nothing more than blown deal costs (and angry sellers). We would like to offer a little advice from the sell-side about how to make your offers come across in the best possible light. 1. Do not include an automatic extension to the exclusivity period.

Our seller clients know that we see quite a few offers come through every week, month, and year and they expect us to provide our input on the timeframes that are “market.” As this is a buyer-seller neutral point and a strong set of mutual expectations is productive to achieving a closing, we want to give you an idea as to what is happening on our side of the table.

Acquiring an existing business can offer great advantages over starting a new business from scratch, especially if the target business is thriving and holds more opportunities for growth. When considering the purchase of a company, you should take certain steps so that you can be confident that you are minimizing your risk and making a smart move. Use this comprehensive checklist to help you ask the right questions and guide you through the process. 

As we work exclusively in the mid and lower-mid markets, we see many deals succeed, and some wither. In an effort to have more of the former and less of the latter, we would like to share our core philosophies with the belief that helping you understand them will make working with us a more rewarding experience.