You built this business. What's next?
We run a confidential, competitive sale process for Southeast industrial and business services companies doing $10-$100 million of revenue.
There isn't one reason owners call us.
Most of our first calls start with one of these. Very few start with an owner who has already decided to sell.
"My kids aren't interested in taking over."
You want to protect what you've built while you figure out what happens next.
"A buyer already reached out to me."
You need someone independent to tell you whether it's actually a good offer.
"I think it's worth more than I realize."
Most owners are working from a rule of thumb. Buyers look at a lot more than that.
"I'm 2-3 years out and want to prepare."
You want to know what to fix now, before a single buyer conversation happens.
"I want liquidity, not necessarily a full exit."
A recapitalization or minority investment can free up value while you stay involved.
"I'm honestly just not ready to decide."
Plenty of owners start there. A conversation doesn't commit you to anything.
Our services
We work with lower middle market owners in three ways, depending on whether you're selling, buying or still planning.
Sell-Side Advisory
We run the sale of your company confidentially, from negotiating the LOI through diligence and closing. We stay closest in the stretches where deals usually fall apart.
Buy-Side Advisory
We represent lower middle market companies and investors buying businesses that add capacity, customers or a capability they don't have yet. We find the targets, run the diligence and negotiate the terms. We never represent both sides of the same transaction.
Strategic Advisory & Exit Planning
Straight advice on valuation, succession and the alternatives to a sale, including a recapitalization if you want some liquidity without a full exit. The groundwork gets done before you need it.
What happens to the company you've spent a lifetime building?
For second- and third-generation owners, a sale is usually about family and employees as much as price. We help families compare internal succession, a sale to a strategic buyer, private equity, a recapitalization and partial liquidity, or some combination of them.
Explore Family Business AdvisoryYour employees shouldn't learn you're selling from a buyer.
A sloppy process tips off your team, your customers and your competitors. This is the sequence we follow to keep that from happening.
Blind introduction
Buyers see a teaser with no company name, location, or identifiable details.
Buyer vetting
We confirm financial capacity before anyone sees more than the teaser.
Signed NDA
A buyer executes a non-disclosure agreement before receiving your name or financials.
Controlled access
Sensitive detail is released in stages, only as a buyer proves serious.
Discreet diligence
Site visits and management meetings are scheduled to avoid tipping off your team.
Confidential closing
We bring in only the people who have to be involved in closing, and only when they need to be.
A banker who has also run companies.
14 years in global banking and alternative investments at major institutions.
13 years personally owning and operating logistics, warehousing, and distribution businesses.
Meet Blackland
Blackland Advisors is an Atlanta M&A advisory firm focused exclusively on lower middle market businesses based in the Southeast. We work with companies generating $10 to $100 million in annual revenue, many of which are family-owned and preparing for generational transition.
We started Blackland after years of working alongside hundreds of business brokers and M&A advisors in the lower middle market. The ones who understood both the deal and the business behind it could be counted on one hand. Most know the deal side and little else. We wanted a firm that knows both.
Founder Chapman Syme has spent 27 years split between global banking and alternative investments on one side, and owning and running businesses himself on the other.
Bigger, more complicated deals take work to close. We stay on every buyer conversation, objection and diligence request until the right deal closes, and that isn't always the first one that shows up.
Chapman Syme, Founder & Managing Director
Big-bank discipline in how we structure a deal, negotiate it and run a competitive process.
We know what a deal does to the business after closing, beyond what shows up on the balance sheet.
We've sat where you're sitting, with our own capital and our own employees at risk.
The right buyer is about more than price.
A higher offer from the wrong buyer can cost you more than it pays. We've seen it from both sides of the table: buyers who walk from a signed LOI over a financing gap, a "strategic fit" that guts the management team within a year, term-sheet promises that are gone by closing. We screen every buyer on four things before they get in front of you.
Financial capacity
Can this buyer close on the terms they're proposing? We look for committed financing. A letter of interest with financing "to be arranged" doesn't count.
Strategic fit
Why does your business make sense for this particular buyer? If they can't explain it clearly, the deal often comes apart in diligence.
Management & employee continuity
What happens to the people who helped you build the company? We push for a specific answer early, before you're attached to a buyer who hasn't thought about it.
Closing discipline
Has this buyer closed deals like yours before, or do they have a habit of re-trading price and terms right before closing? We check, because the number on the LOI means little if they won't hold to it.
What should you expect from your advisor?
This list comes from watching hundreds of these deals from the other side of the table. It's the standard we hold ourselves to.
Execution
Targets real fitsGoes to a short list of buyers who fit your business and runs a real process with each one.
Persistence
Stays until it closesKeeps working the deal through buyer pushback and diligence until it closes.
Communication
Updates every timeGives you a real update after every buyer conversation, whether the news is good or not.
Selectivity
Tells you upfrontTells you upfront, before any fee changes hands, if we're not the right fit for your deal.
Operating Insight
Has run companiesHas owned and operated companies personally, and knows the cash pressures a spreadsheet won't show you.
Advice
Plain terms, your timelineExplains what to expect in plain English and lets you set the pace.
We will tell you if we are not the right fit.
No hard pitch. We'll talk candidly about whether Blackland Advisors fits what you need, and if we don't, we'll suggest alternatives.
Chapman Syme, Founder & Managing Director
What actually drives the number.
"Is my business worth more than I think?" is the question we hear most. This is roughly how the number gets built, before any buyer is involved.
Cash Flow Calculation
- Excess owner salary
- Personal vehicle & expenses
- One-time legal / cleanup costs
Value
Factors that Determine The Deal Multiple
Not Sure You're Ready to Talk to an Advisor Yet?
Ten questions buyers will ask about your business. See your score instantly. No email required.
Sectors we know from the inside.
Southeast companies with $10-$100MM in revenue, in sectors where we've been both buyer and operator.
Manufacturing
Buyers underwrite equipment condition, customer concentration and how tightly the plant is run. We present the business on those terms.
Explore manufacturing exits →Distribution
In wholesale, multiples turn on route density, supplier relationships and margin structure.
Explore distribution exits →Transportation & Logistics
Buyers price final-mile and warehousing businesses on fleet condition, driver retention and contract mix.
Explore logistics exits →Recent from the blog
View All Articles →How Rates & Debt Cost Impact M&A Multiples in 2026
Financing costs move exit multiples as much as growth does, because they set what a buyer using debt can afford to pay.
Management Buyouts (MBO): Structuring Mid-Market Deals
When your own management team is the buyer, the financing looks different and so does the negotiation. We cover what that does to structure and price.
Bridging the M&A Valuation Gap: PE Pricing & Structure
Sellers and PE buyers rarely start at the same number. The gap usually closes through earnouts, rollover equity and other deal structure.
Ready to see what your business is worth?
Schedule a confidential consultation for your $10-$100MM revenue business. Call (404) 689-7580 or send a message.
Answers to commonly asked questions.
Owners ask us a lot of the same questions. These come up most often, with the answers we'd give you on a call.
Is my business worth more than I think?
It might be. Most owners work from a rule of thumb they heard from a friend who sold years ago, and a simple multiple misses what buyers actually price: the quality of your earnings, how concentrated your customers are, and whether the business runs without you there every day. We'll give you an honest range early. We won't quote a high number to win the engagement and walk it back later. Read what actually drives valuation →
Am I selling at the right time?
There's rarely a perfect moment. Market cycles and buyer appetite matter. So does how much energy you still have for the business, and whether you're working toward a number or just tired of carrying it by yourself. We'll tell you if the market favors you right now, and we'll also tell you if we think you aren't ready. See how to weigh market timing against your own →
What does this cost me?
Our fees are primarily success-based, so most of what we earn depends on your deal closing. We'll go through the exact structure with you before you commit to anything, and nothing in the engagement letter should surprise you later. See the full fee structure →
How long does the process actually take?
Most transactions take 6 to 12 months from first preparation to closing. Where you land in that range depends on the state of your financials, how many serious buyers there are and how complicated the business is. We'll give you a realistic timeline at the start. See the full process, phase by phase →
What's the real difference between you and a business broker?
A broker lists your business and waits for interest. We go find the right buyers before they know you're for sale, negotiate structure and terms as hard as price, and stay on every conversation until the right deal closes. See the full comparison →
How do I keep this confidential?
Every buyer sees a blind teaser first and signs an NDA before your name or financials go anywhere. After that, sensitive detail goes out in controlled stages. A leak to employees, customers or competitors can cost you more than a lower offer would, and if key people leave before closing you can lose the deal entirely. See exactly how we control that →
Do my financials need to be in perfect shape before we start?
No. Most businesses need some cleanup, and that's normal. We find the gaps, help you normalize the numbers and put together financials that hold up once buyers start asking questions. See what buyers actually look for →
What if a buyer has already reached out to me directly?
Don't answer it on your own. This happens more often than owners expect. An unsolicited offer tells you the buyer is motivated, but with no competing bids you have no way to know whether the number is fair. We'll help you evaluate it before you respond. Learn how to handle an unsolicited offer →
What happens after the deal closes?
Earnouts, transition periods and other post-close obligations decide how much you actually walk away with and how long you stay tied to the business. They catch a lot of owners off guard. We negotiate these terms as hard as price and make sure you understand what you're agreeing to before you sign. Understand what an earnout means for you →
What if I'm not ready to sell, just exploring?
That's fine. Most of our conversations start that way, and talking to us doesn't commit you to anything. We'd rather spend an hour with you now than have you decide later without good information. If you want something lighter first, try the short readiness assessment. Take the readiness assessment →