Dallas–Fort Worth · Texas
Dallas business brokers and M&A advisors
MDR & Associates is a Metroplex sell-side M&A firm for owners of companies with $3 million to $100 million in annual revenue. For Dallas owners we act as business brokers and M&A advisors in one: we value the company, find qualified buyers in confidence and negotiate several offers at once, with a principal of the firm in every negotiation. Dallas is the ninth most populous city in the country, with 1,304,379 residents counted in 2020, and the metro area around it holds 23 Fortune 500 headquarters.
Cotton, oil money and headquarters: the economy Dallas owners sell into
John Neely Bryan founded Dallas in 1841 where the three forks of the Trinity River meet, and the railroads made it a market for cotton, cattle and later oil. After the 1930 oil strike about 100 miles east set off the East Texas boom, the city became the financial center of the oil industry in Texas and Oklahoma. During the Second World War its plants turned out more than 94,000 jeeps and 18,000 aircraft.
Today the city's largest sectors are defense, financial services, information technology, telecommunications and transportation. Eleven Fortune 500 companies are headquartered within city limits, among them AT&T, Texas Instruments, Southwest Airlines, Tenet Healthcare, Energy Transfer and Builders FirstSource, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas has been the seat of the Eleventh District since 1914. Dallas Love Field and DFW International Airport connect the market to the rest of the country.
The city is also the third most popular business travel destination, and the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center offers more than a million square feet of space. Next door in Richardson, the Telecom Corridor holds more than 5,700 companies, and the metro area counts more than 41 colleges and universities, the most of any metro in Texas.
Employers of that size need suppliers, service contractors, distributors and trade firms, and companies of that kind are what many private equity groups and strategic acquirers come to Dallas to find.
Dallas at a glance
- CountyDallas County (also Collin, Denton, Kaufman and Rockwall counties)
- Metro areaDallas–Fort Worth
- Companies we sell$3M–$100M
- Typical transaction3–9 months
- Fee if we do not closeNone
Selling a company in Dallas when every buyer already knows the market
Dallas buyers are experienced and plentiful, and that cuts both ways. A company that goes to market with loose numbers and one anxious bidder gets picked apart. A company that arrives with a clean recast of three years of financials, a clear marketing package and several buyers competing at once gets priced on its strengths. Our job is to create the second situation.
Confidentiality matters more in a big city than owners expect, because competitors, bankers and suppliers talk to one another. Buyers first see a blind profile; before they learn a name, they register, sign a confidentiality agreement and complete a financial profile that shows they can fund the purchase. Our own list of qualified buyers is worked first, and the major online marketplaces carry a blind listing only when more reach is needed. Each stage is laid out in our ten-step process.
For companies in the $3 million to $100 million revenue range, value most often falls between three and seven times adjusted EBITDA, meaning earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization after one-time and owner-specific costs are added back. Where a Dallas company lands in that range depends on growth, customer concentration and how much it relies on the owner. Plan on three to nine months from engagement to money in your account; the firm has closed a deal in eight days and has seen others take eighteen months.
How we work with Dallas owners
We are the Metroplex firm: our office is at 1518 Legacy Drive in Frisco, and we meet Dallas owners at their office, at ours or somewhere discreet. Since 2008 the firm has closed more than 250 transactions, concentrated in manufacturing, home services, distribution and business services. Every engagement starts with a free, confidential discovery meeting and an opinion of value after we review three years of financials, and the fee is paid only if the company sells.
Read more about selling your business with us, see the Dallas–Fort Worth region we cover, or set up a meeting through our Dallas contact page.
What we sell in and around Dallas
Industry decides the buyer, the multiple and the diligence. These are the four sectors we work in most.
Manufacturing
Equipment, real estate, backlog and customer concentration decide what a manufacturer is worth.
How buyers value itHome Services
Plumbing, HVAC, roofing, landscaping and other home service companies — where repeat customers, crews and technicians decide the price.
How buyers value itDistribution & Wholesale
Inventory, working capital and supplier agreements decide what a distributor is worth.
How buyers value itBusiness Services
Recurring revenue and owner dependence separate a two-times business from a six-times business.
How buyers value itStraight answers
Questions Dallas owners ask before they sell
Answered in full by the advisors who run the sales. Every Dallas–Fort Worth answer.
The process
How a Dallas sale runs
Ten steps in four stages, typically three to nine months. Click any step to see it in full.
- Prepare
- Go to market
- Negotiate
- Close
We also work with owners near Dallas
Questions owners in Dallas ask
Should a Dallas company expect a strategic buyer or a private equity group?
Either can win, and the best result often comes when both are at the table. Strategic buyers may pay for overlap with their own operations; private equity groups look for a platform or an add-on in a sector they know. We bring both kinds of buyer into the same process so their letters of intent can be compared side by side.
How do I keep a sale hidden from competitors in the Dallas market?
No one learns your company's name from us until they have registered, signed a confidentiality agreement and shown they can fund the deal. Marketing starts with a blind profile that describes the business without identifying it. Employees and customers hear about the sale on a timeline you choose.
Where do I meet MDR & Associates if my company is in Dallas?
The firm has one office, north of the city at 1518 Legacy Drive, Suite 220, in Frisco. Many Dallas owners prefer that we come to them, either at their office after hours or at a neutral place. The first discovery meeting is free and confidential, and it commits you to nothing.
Talk to an advisor about your Dallas company
Four fields, a reply the same business day, and nothing shared with anyone. If you would rather talk, call (855) 637-2776.