Who can market my manufacturing company to private equity groups?

By Michael D. Rubin, CEO & Founder · September 2026 · 816 words

A sell-side M&A advisor with active private equity relationships is who you want. MDR & Associates is one Texas firm that goes to its own database of private equity and capital groups first, and in 2023 it was named to the Axial Advisor 100 as one of the lower middle market advisors most referred by the buy side. Just as important as who markets the company is whether it fits what private equity buys. Here is how those buyers think.

How private equity groups buy manufacturers

A private equity group raises money from investors, buys companies, grows them for several years and sells them again. It buys in two ways. A platform acquisition is the first company in an industry the group plans to build around; it needs enough size and a management team to lead growth. An add-on is a company bought to combine with an existing platform, and it can be smaller because the platform's team will help run it.

Many profitable manufacturers are too small to be a platform but attractive as an add-on. That can be a strong position, because the buyer can see clear savings from combining the two companies and may pay for them.

Groups also differ in size and focus. Some look at companies with a few million dollars of earnings, others only at much larger businesses, and each has its own preferences for industry and geography. An advisor who knows which groups are actively buying in your niche saves months of conversations with the wrong ones.

What private equity looks for in a manufacturer

A weakness in one or two of these is not necessarily disqualifying. A group buying an add-on may care less about management depth, because the platform's team can step in. But weaknesses get priced, usually through a lower multiple or more of the price deferred into an earnout.

• A management team that will stay and run the company after the owner steps back.
• Consistent adjusted EBITDA over three years, supported by records that reconcile. Adjusted EBITDA is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, corrected for owner-specific and one-time items.
• Diversified customers, with no single account large enough to sink the company.
• Room to grow: spare capacity, new markets or add-on opportunities of its own.
• Predictable capital needs, so equipment spending does not surprise them after closing.
• Clean records that pass financial and quality due diligence.

What private equity offers look like

Private equity offers often differ from a strategic buyer's. They usually combine equity with bank debt, and may ask the owner to keep a minority stake, called rollover equity, so the owner shares in the next sale. Some include an earnout, a portion of the price paid later if targets are hit. Most ask the owner to stay in a defined role for a period.

Read these terms carefully. Two offers with the same headline price can leave you with very different results once debt, rollover and earnouts are counted. Our guide to comparing offers shows what to weigh.

What the marketing package must show

Private equity groups review many opportunities and decide quickly which to pursue. The package should lead with the investment case: why earnings are durable, where growth comes from, who runs the business, and what the plant can produce. Include a clean financial recast, capacity and equipment detail, customer mix, and the management team's roles and tenure.

A professionally produced video that lets a group see the operation before visiting helps it move faster and ask better questions. Groups also look for an advisor who will run an orderly process with clear deadlines, because it tells them the seller is serious.

Keep private equity competing with other buyers

Private equity is one buyer group among several. Strategic buyers may pay more for synergies, and qualified individuals may offer a simpler exit. Running them together, and negotiating multiple letters of intent at the same time, is how you learn which structure is best for you, rather than taking the first term sheet a group sends. If selling part of the company now and the rest later appeals to you, raise the idea of a partial recapitalization with your advisor early, because it changes which groups are approached.

How MDR & Associates markets to private equity

Every company MDR & Associates represents goes to market with a confidential marketing package, a financial recast and a professionally produced HD marketing video. Private equity groups see a blind profile first, then sign a confidentiality agreement and complete a financial profile before receiving detail. A principal of the firm is in every negotiation, and the fee is paid only if the company sells. If your company needs a stronger management team before private equity will take it seriously, that work usually takes 12 to 24 months. See our manufacturing practice, the ten-step process and the team, then contact us to discuss your company.

Where this fitsSelling a manufacturing company in Texas →