Sell-Side Advisory and Valuation
A controlled process. By design.
Halvern represents owners, founders, and stakeholders in the confidential sale of privately-held businesses. The firm engages with discretion from the earliest valuation conversations and continues as senior counsel through definitive closing.
A sale process is, fundamentally, a control problem. The questions of who knows what, when, and on what terms shape the outcome more than the headline number. The firm structures each engagement to retain control of the narrative, the diligence, and the timeline.
We do not believe in auctions for their own sake. Some businesses warrant a broad outreach to multiple counterparties. Others are best served through a targeted approach to two or three qualified parties. The right process depends on the business, the owner, and the market.
What does not vary is the standard. Every engagement receives senior counsel, conducted with patience and discretion, from initial conversation through definitive closing.
An independent opinion of value, on its own terms.
The firm provides independent valuation services as a standalone engagement and as the first phase of every full sell-side process. A clear, defensible opinion of value is the foundation of any consequential decision about a privately-held business.
Standalone valuation engagements include succession and transition planning, buy-sell agreement analysis, and pre-sale advisory. Each is conducted to the same standard of independence and senior counsel as the firm's full sell-side practice.
Independence is structural. The firm does not condition fees on outcome and does not produce opinions designed to support a predetermined number. A valuation is a written argument, prepared to withstand scrutiny.
Five phases. Conducted in confidence.
Valuation & Strategy
The engagement begins with a comprehensive valuation and a candid conversation about objectives, timing, and acceptable terms. Strategy is set before any market activity, not after.
Confidential Marketing
The firm prepares discrete materials and approaches qualified counterparties under stringent confidentiality. The identity of the business is protected until terms warrant disclosure.
Buyer Selection
Halvern surfaces multiple paths to liquidity. The firm presents qualified offers with rigorous comparison and senior recommendations on which to pursue.
Diligence & Negotiation
The firm leads the negotiation of definitive terms and manages the diligence process, coordinating with counsel, tax advisors, and lenders throughout.
Definitive Closing
Senior counsel remains personally engaged through signing and closing, including post-closing matters when relevant. The relationship continues beyond the transaction.
A representative sample of sell-side transactions.
Adam Gorzov, Managing Partner
Mr. Gorzov leads the firm's sell-side advisory and valuation practice. He represents owners, founders, and stakeholders in the confidential sale of privately-held businesses, and provides independent opinions of value across the trades, healthcare, manufacturing, and professional services sectors.
Engagement begins with a private conversation.
The firm accepts a finite number of engagements each year. Initial consultations are conducted in confidence and without obligation.