Amid a backdrop of election-year uncertainty, the Calder Capital/SBDA team successfully completed transaction #34 of 2024. While rising rates and seller sentiment played less of a role in the M&A landscape YoY, broader economic concerns surrounding the political climate have driven cautious optimism among buyers and sellers alike. Despite this, the Calder Capital/SBDA team remains on track to surpass records.
“2024 has been a year of unprecedented investment in our team and infrastructure,” noted Calder Managing Partner Max Friar. “We have grown our team significantly, implemented processes and procedures with the goal at continued scale, and are heading towards 2025 with the capacity to handle what I believe will be a robust and more balanced year.”
Friar continued, “Our goal heading into 2024 was an ambitious 30% growth YoY and 60 closings. I may have gotten ahead of myself a bit with the 60 closings, however, more importantly, I believe we will achieve our revenue growth goal and we have a genuine shot at breaking our closing record of 48 deals.”
Q3 Highlights:
- New Client Engagements:
Calder's Sell-Side team brought on 19 new clients, while the Buy-Side team secured 11 new engagements. - LOIs in Play:
The team is currently managing 28 executed letters of intent, a testament to the strong momentum across both buy-side and sell-side operations.
Here is an overview of the transactions closed thus far in 2024 (sell-side unless otherwise noted):
| SELLER | LOCATION | INDUSTRY |
|---|---|---|
| Lloyd’s Cabinet Shop, Inc. | Pinconning, MI | Manufacturing |
| Furniture Manufacturer | Edmore, MI | Manufacturing |
| Established General Contractor | Midland, MI | Construction |
| Primo Hoagies | Edwardsville, PA | Restaurant |
| Bear Stewart Corporation (Buy-Side) | Chicago, IL | Manufacturing |
| Machine Shop | South Bend, IN | Manufacturing |
| Once Upon a Child | Clarksville, TN | Retail |
| Rehabilitation Health Center | Ann Arbor, MI | Healthcare |
| American Gear & Tech Tool | Westland, MI | Manufacturing |
| Automotive Metal Manufacturer (Buy-Side) | Portland, MI | Manufacturing |
| Cookies by Design | Grandville, MI | Food Service |
| Thread-Craft, Inc. | Sterling Heights, MI | Manufacturing |
| Advertising Firm | Ann Arbor, MI | Service |
| OJS Building Services, Inc. | Mishawaka, IN | Construction |
| Flooring Retailer | Northern, MI | Distribution |
| HSV Redi-Mix | Lake Odessa, MI | Distribution |
| Access Companies | Saginaw, MI | Distribution |
| Food Service Distributor | Western, MI | Distribution |
| Electrical Contractor | Western, MI | Construction |
| Hi-Tec Building Services | Jenison, MI | Service |
| Envision Engineering | Lowell, MI | Manufacturing |
| HA Campbell Supply | Distribution | Grand Rapids, MI |
| Agricultural Service | IA | Service |
| Leisure Product Retailer | MI | Distribution |
| Excavating Contractor | MI | Construction |
| Precision Machine Shop | PA | Manufacturing |
| Driver's Education Company | MI | Service |
| Machine Shop | MI | Manufacturing |
| Landscape Business | MI | Service |
| Waterproofing & Repair Business | IN | Service |
| Drafting & Engineering Services Business | MI | Manufacturing |
| Sports Bar & Grill | MI | Food Service |
| Flooring Contractor (Buy-Side) | IL | Construction |
Regarding industries, manufacturing companies led the way making up 33.3% of Calder’s 2024 closings.
Noteworthy Offer Activity:
A continuing trend in Q3 has been the surge in offers on listed businesses. In 2024, we’ve seen unprecedented interest from the market, breaking previous records for offers received. Notably, our clients received 32, 49, and even 53 offers, surpassing our earlier record of 28. Additionally, we witnessed weeks where more than 1,000 CIMs were requested by potential buyers, underscoring the high demand for our sell-side clients.
Buy-Side Team Expansion:
On the Buy-Side, engagements spiked nearly 5x year-over-year. To meet this surge, we expanded the Buy-Side team by welcoming Jim Oren as a Buy-Side Advisor, Ben Sundquist as the Buy-Side Search Director, and two new Buy-Side intern positions.
New Service Launch:
In addition, Calder formalized and launched its Exit Planning & Advisory Services in Q3, providing clients with actionable steps to maximize their business value. The key to a successful business transition is having an exit plan in place long before the sale process begins. Calder’s Exit Planning Services focus on creating detailed plans that uncover blind spots and prioritize the business owner's needs across four key pillars—personal plan, financial preparedness, business development (sales), and recruiting and retention of key employees. By addressing these areas, Calder helps mitigate potential surprises and ensures business owners are well-prepared for the next phase of their lives.
Strategic Staff Investments:
Our investment in human capital was a top priority this year. We were pleased to announce the hiring of Mya Stone as our new Director of HR, further enhancing our internal operations and supporting continued growth. We also added advisor Bradford Wallace as we expanded to Dallas, TX.
Friar concluded, “Calder has once again grown YoY in terms of new clients and staff, however, we find ourselves less stressed out organizationally. Our team is more prepared to professionally handle a strong influx of clients heading toward 2025 while delivering a full market experience whether you are a buy-side or sell-side client.”
About Calder Capital, LLC
Founded in 2013, Calder Capital, LLC is a lower middle market investment bank providing mergers and acquisitions advisory services to business owners, entrepreneurs, family offices, and investors across the United States. Our dedicated team of professionals combines extensive industry experience, technological innovation, negotiation savvy, and key relationships to exhibit exceptional execution. Calder’s services include mergers and acquisitions advisory, private funds and capital markets advisory, and business valuations.