Archive

Deal Diligence #011 — A 54-Year Manufacturers Representative Firm at 3.58x SDE, and Why Principal Relationships Are the Asset

Jul 5, 2026

"A 54-year-old Tulsa manufacturers representative firm asking 3.58x SDE. The published valuation rule of thumb for rep firms is 100% of trailing gross commission. The buyer of a rep firm acquires principal relationships, not products, and the transaction structure reflects that."

Issue 012 — SBA-range SMB Market, Week of June 29

Jun 30, 2026

"Issue 012: A New York Cash Discount App at 9.74x SDE on 73% margin. The Deal Diligence #009/#010 buyer pool signal framework continues to apply across categories with sufficient strategic and PE buyer pools."

Deal Diligence #010 — A Texas Environmental Services Company at 9.92x EBITDA, and the Buyer Pool Framework in Practice

Jun 28, 2026

"A 20-year-old Texas environmental services company asking 9.92x EBITDA. The highest multiple in Issue 011's sample. Texas is the country's most active environmental services M&A market. The pricing fits the consolidation environment, not standalone valuation norms."

Issue 011 — SBA-range SMB Market, Week of June 22

Jun 23, 2026

"Issue 011: Twenty-six valid SBA-range listings, median 4.43x. The Business Service category reaches the n=3 threshold for the first time in the publication's eleven-week dataset. The 11-week rolling mean holds at 4.22x across eight consecutive observations within a 0.15x band."

Deal Diligence #009 — A Specialty Machine Manufacturer at 7.97x SDE, and What the Multiple Signals

Jun 21, 2026

"A Minnesota specialty machine manufacturer asking 7.97x SDE. The highest multiple in this week's valid sample. The headline is not about whether the business is overpriced. The headline is about which buyer category the seller is engaging."

Issue 010 — SBA-range SMB Market, Week of June 15

Jun 16, 2026

"Issue 010: First weekly issue under the 27-category framework. Twenty-six valid SBA-range listings, median 4.04x. The ten-week rolling mean holds at 4.19x. The most stable stretch in the publication's history extends to seven consecutive observations."

Deal Diligence #008 — A 30-Year Market Leader at 1.82x SDE, and Why the Market Is Not Wrong

Jun 14, 2026

"A Lee County Florida luxury flooring operation asking 1.82x SDE. Thirty-plus years of operating history. Market leader framing. Thirty-one percent margin. The lowest multiple in the publication's nine-week dataset is not a pricing inefficiency."

Special Edition #001 — One Month, 103 Listings, Eight Categories with Analyzable Samples

Jun 10, 2026

"Special Edition: One month of SBA-range listings reviewed under a new 27-category framework. Eight categories now have sufficient sample size for category-level analysis. Three findings change how the publication will report going forward."

Issue 009 — SBA-range SMB Market, Week of June 8

Jun 9, 2026

"Twenty-seven listings in this week's sample, fourteen in the valid SBA-range count. Median 4.29x. The nine-week rolling mean holds at 4.21x, the most stable stretch in the publication's history."

Deal Diligence #007 — Pain Clinics at 2.50x SDE, Where Cheap Is Not Cheap

Jun 7, 2026

"A Florida pain clinic asking 2.50x SDE. The lowest multiple in this week's valid sample, in a category where Florida specifically maintains the most aggressive enforcement framework in the country. The discount is not what it appears to be."