Discover what your business is really worth.
A free, confidential valuation — and a clear picture of what’s driving your number up or down. Because value is decided long before you go to market.
- A Division of SD Business Advisors
- 800+ Businesses Sold
- CA Broker Lic #01980017
Value = cash flow × the multiple.
Adjusted cash flow
x
Risk-based multiple
=
Your value
The multiple rises with predictable, transferable earnings and falls with risk. Move the multiple and you move the number — often by more than a year of growth ever could.
Most owners think that timing the market will help their value. In actuality, their value is determined by how well prepared they are.
Value is determined by preparation, positioning, and the risk profile of the business before buyers begin their analysis. The Value Discovery process is our structured framework to help you build value, reduce risk, and keep leverage on your side.
Value is Established.
Clean books and reports, standardize procedures, reduce owner dependency. These are the levers that justify a premium valuation.
Value is Proven.
Buyers verify what you built during diligence. What isn’t ready by now becomes a discount, a re-trade, or a reason to walk. Preparation is leverage.
Buyers pay a multiple of cash flow — not revenue.
This is the single most common thing owners get wrong. A big top line doesn’t set your price. What the business actually earns for its owner — and how safely it keeps earning it — does.
“The business does about $10M in revenue, that should be close to market price.”
The revenue may be attractive, however, profit creates value. A high-revenue business with thin margins, one major customer, and an involved owner is often worth far less than its top line suggests. Buyers pay for sustainable, predictable cash flow—not revenue alone.
Value = cash flow × the multiple.
Adjusted cash flow
x
Risk-based multiple
=
Your value
The multiple rises with predictable, transferable earnings and falls with risk. Move the multiple and you move the number — often by more than a year of growth ever could.
Plain-English on the terms owners get tripped up on
Cash flow (SDE / EBITDA)
The true earnings of the business after normalizing financials with appropriate add-backs. This is the foundation buyers use to determine value.
The multiple
The number applied to your cash flow to determine value. It’s driven by risk profile, consistency, and transferability.
Working-capital peg
The agreed-upon amount of working capital the business must have at closing so it can continue operating normally.
Seller Carry Note
Part of the purchase price financed by the seller and repaid by the buyer over time, usually with interest. Common, and must be structured carefully.
A proven 5 stage framework from initial conversation to successful sale.
Each stage is designed to increase value and protect the sale outcome. Skipping stages doesn’t save time, it costs money.
A disciplined assessment of readiness
through the eyes of a buyer — to surface gaps, risks and friction points that move the valuation.
Determine what buyers actually value.
Not every improvement matters equally. We build a prioritized plan that rewards the specific value drivers that buyers pay for — and neutralizes the risks they penalize.
Turn performance into a defensible story.
Valuation isn’t just math — it’s interpretation. We align your numbers with a credible narrative buyers can understand, trust, and justify, backed by evidence rather than optimism.
Confidential Marketing Outcome
A controlled, strategic go-to-market plan that attracts the right buyers.
Protect value through the finish line.
Most deals lose value during diligence, not for lack of interest, but due to poor deal execution. We manage with a disciplined process so the value you built earlier isn’t given back at the table.
Skipping stages doesn't save time. It costs money.
What pushes the multiple up — and what drags it down.
Two businesses with the same revenue and profit can sell for dramatically different prices. Buyers don’t just evaluate what a business earns today—they evaluate the quality, predictability, and transferability of those earnings.
Pushes it up
- Recurring Revenue: Long-term service agreements and predictable customer relationships.
- Revenue weighted to service over one-off projects
- Management Depth: A business that operates successfully without the owner being there.
- Customer Diversification: A broad customer base without overreliance on one account.
- Clean Financials & Systems: Accurate reporting, documenting processes, and organizing records
Drags it down
- Owner Dependency: The owner is the primary salesperson, estimator, operator, or relationship holder
- Customer Concentration: A significant portion of revenue depends on one or two customers
- Unpredictable Revenue: Heavy reliance on project-based work with inconsistent performance
- Financial Uncertainty: Commingled personal expenses, inconsistent reporting, or incomplete records
- The owner who needs to sell: Something is triggering the sale: burnout, a health scare, a relocation, a key employee leaving.
Who we help
Which owner are you?
However you got here, it starts the same way – with your number. Find yourself below, and see what Value Discovery does for you specifically.
The retiring owner
60s–70s, built it over decades, ready to turn a lifetime of work into liquid wealth – often with no obvious successor.
Confidence in the best possible price, and a clear process so you’re never lost.
The owner planning ahead
Knows they want out in one to three years and wants to do it right – not leave money on the table.
A roadmap to raise value before market – books, owner-dependency, concentration.
The owner with an offer on the table
A competitor, supplier, or PE buyer approached directly – and it’s flattering. The “I’ve got this handled” trap.
What you’d leave on the table going solo – and protection against a professional buyer.
The "what's it worth" owner
Not committed to selling – just wants a number. Curious after a competitor sold, or after some back-of-the-napkin math.
A credible, defensible valuation – in plain English, no obligation.
Passing it to family or employees
Wants to keep it in the family or reward a loyal crew – an internal handoff that preserves legacy and relationships.
A transfer that pays you out and keeps relationships intact, with financing options for the buyer.
The owner who needs to sell
A trigger put a clock on the sale – burnout, a health scare, a relocation, a key employee leaving.
Moving with discretion and speed, backed by a real buyer network – without giving the business away.
Not sure you’re a fit? We work with profitable service & contracting businesses doing $2M–$20M, 5+ years in, across California. If you’re not a fit, we’ll tell you on the first call.
What you get
A free valuation, and the truth about your business.
Every engagement begins with a free valuation and analysis – the business seen through a buyer’s lens, before you commit to anything.
Owner dependency & management depth
Whether it can run without you — and what that's worth.
Financial clarity & credibility
How your cash flow really reads to a buyer.
Operational risk & documentation
Where the business is exposed on paper.
Customer, revenue & concentration risk
How dependent your value is on a few accounts.
Diligence readiness
What a buyer will dig into — and what's missing.
You leave with: a clear understanding of what will help - or hurt - your value in a sale.