How Simon runs your sale, from first conversation to completion.
Simon runs the sale of your HVAC business himself, from the first confidential conversation through buyers, offers and due diligence to completion and the handover after it.
Part of the Reads Pre-Sale Programme. Led by Simon Read, Founder & Managing Director.
Why it matters who runs the sale.
Most owners sell a business once. The decisions that matter most, which buyers to talk to, which offer to accept and how the price is paid, come quickly once a sale is under way, and having one experienced person make them with you keeps them consistent.
HVAC buyers range from regional rivals looking for engineers and contracts to private equity-backed groups buying for geography and heat pump capability. Knowing which of them suits your business, your staff and your plans for afterwards matters as much as the price.
What the sale involves.
First conversation and valuation
A confidential talk about your reasons, timing and concerns, followed by a realistic valuation range and how it was reached.
An anonymised approach
A summary of the business that buyers can assess without learning who you are.
Finding the right buyers
Approaches to the trade acquirers, private equity-backed groups and investors who fit, with your approval before any detail is shared.
Offers and heads of terms
Comparing offers on more than the headline price, including how much is paid at completion and how much is deferred, then agreeing heads of terms.
Due diligence to completion
Keeping due diligence moving alongside your solicitor and accountant. If a buyer needs acquisition finance, Reads Commercial Finance handles it.
Handover and after
A handover period agreed in advance, and any deferred consideration or earn-out followed through on the terms you agreed.
Who leads it.
Simon Read, Founder & Managing Director
Simon runs every sale himself. He set up Reads M&A Advisory to specialise in trades like HVAC, and he has spent many years bringing owners together with trade companies, private equity-backed groups and strategic investors.
Where this sits in the programme.
The sale is the last stage of the programme, but it is also where many owners start. If you want to sell sooner, Simon starts here and brings in the rest of the team where it helps.
Start with a valuation.
It gives a first indication of what the business is worth, and a sensible place to begin the conversation.