Vermilion Rock Advisors

We consistently meet with multiple $1M+ EBITDA owner represented M&A opportunities weekly. Here is a quick look at a great new off-market find. Comment below if you would like to access our full deal list across multiple lower-middle market industries. New owner represented M&A opportunity - Construction Design & Build Contractor: - $16M Revenue - $7M EBITDA - Roughly $25M of Backlog - Maintain 30%+ margin through their unique business model Comment below, message me directly, or tag any buyers that are acquiring in the construction industry.

Food & Beverage M&A Opportunity -

M&A Opportunity | Robotics & AI - Revenue: $10M - EBITDA: $2M (20% margin) Overview (feel free to share with any relevant M&A professionals): A fast-growing robotics and AI company revolutionizing industrial operations through advanced automation and sorting technology. Backed by long-term contracts with blue-chip customers and a 30-person technical team, the company is well-positioned for continued scalable growth. Highlights: Seeking a strategic partner to accelerate sales and expansion. Experienced ownership open to remaining onboard long term. Open to minority investment or majority buyout. Reach out directly to our team if you would like more information on this deal.

We Gave AI Our Entire Sourcing Process. Here's What Happened: "This is either brilliant or stupid," my partner said as we started switching a major portion of our sourcing process to AI. 6 months later, I can confirm: It was both. The brilliant part: - Found companies hiding in plain sight (medical device firm classified as "industrial") - Analyzed 4,200 prospects in the time it took to review 100 manually - Spotted expansion signals from permit filings we'd never have seen The stupid part: - First month, it contaced a company that had closed 5 years ago - Sent 50 emails with the CEO's name misplaced - Identified a "perfect target" that turned out to be a website filled with false data But here's what surprised me: Our AI systems continue to improve at a surprising rate. With every LLM improvement, our systems improve with it. It's been identifying targets our team had missed for years. The main lesson, establishing early systems to integrate AI into your workflow will continue to pay out with the exponential improvement in LLMs. #PE #investmentbanking #IB #privateequity #acquisition

Reading a Value Creation Deck That Made Me Laugh (Then Cry) A PE firm sent me their value creation plan for a company we were looking at together. 80 slides. Beautiful graphics. Arrows pointing up and to the right. Slide 47:"Leverage AI to drive digital transformation across the customer journey." I called the CEO of the target company. "What CRM do you guys use?" "What's that?" This is the problem with most value creation plans. They're written for investment committees, not operators. Here's what actually moves the needle in a 1MM EBITDA business: - Their receptionist was scheduling jobs on Post-it notes. Fixed that. - Sales rep had no comp plan. Fixed that. - Customers waited 5 days for quotes. Fixed that. - The website was built in 2009. Fixed that. Total investment maybe 50k, EBITDA impact 2X. Forget the 80-slide decks. Focus on the basics that seem obvious to you, but not so obvious to business owners. What am I missing? #IB #PE #investmentbanking #privateequity #acquisition

A Founder Showed Me His Inbox and Changed How We Do Outreach Forever: "Want to see something funny?" A business owner pulled up his email during our first meeting. Searched "strategic buyer." 138 results. All from potential buyers. All saying the same thing. "Watch this," he said, hitting reply to one: "Hi. I'm interested in selling. Can you tell me what makes you different from the other 138 firms that contacted me?" He never got a response. that conversation changed how we approach outreach entirely. Now, instead of sending capabilities decks, we send industry insights. Instead of "we have capital," we share specific ideas for their business. Instead of form letters, we reach out on a personal basis. Last month, sent a prospect a voicemail breaking down how a competitor improved margins. He reached back out ready to talk. The bar is so low in PE outreach that being genuinely helpful makes you stand out like a unicorn at a horse show. What tactics am I missing? #PE #IB #privateequity #IB #acquisition

I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as an Investment Banking Intern at Vermilion Rock Advisors!

How I'd Build a Proprietary M&A Deal Sourcing Strategy To Target Family Owned Businesses: Last Week, I had coffee with a founder who showed me his inbox. Seventeen identical PE outreach emails, all sent the same week. "Do you guys just share the same template?" he asked. He wasn't wrong. Here's what actually works after years of A/B testing: Most firms claim to do proprietary sourcing, but few actually do it right. Build trust before you build a deal. We created an industry guide for HVAC owners about succession planning. No pitch, just value. Downloaded hundreds of times and lead to multiple great warm intros. Go where others don't. Found our best deal from direct outreach on Linkedin & by touching base for months over email afterward. Play the long game. There's an owner we've been talking to for 18 months. The goal is connecting to catchup in a non-repetitive way. No pressure. Last week he emailed me: "I'm ready to talk M&A" The best deals aren't found in databases. They're built over time, one conversation at a time. Everyone wants proprietary deal flow. Few want to do the unglamorous work it requires. What unorthodox relationship building strategies am I missing? #investmentbanking #merger #acquisition #privateequity #PE

IB, M&A, Private Equity Professionals 👉 Drop your favorite in-person conferences to attend in the comments 👇 One thing I have learned while running Vermilion Rock is that nothing replaces meeting in-person. Proprietary deal flow is built on relationships, and conferences are often where those first conversations spark into long-term opportunities. I’m looking to be more intentional about the events I prioritize this year, both to connect with other M&A professionals and to stay ahead on trends that matter to the lower-middle market. For those of you who’ve been active in the space: Which conferences have been the most valuable for deal origination and networking? Any hidden-gem regional events worth attending? If you had to pick one or two “must attend” gatherings, what would they be? Appreciate any recommendations, and happy to trade notes on what’s worked for us in sourcing and nurturing proprietary deal flow. #MergersAndAcquisitions #InvestmentBanking #PrivateEquity #DealFlow

Another Humble Brag. This is what is great about having amazing & dedicated Interns: Getting these email updates from former interns is one of my favorite things. Knowing that Vermilion Rock Advisors is a part of their path into the Investment Banking scene is amazing! I continue to live by these 3 standards for interns: - Provide real growth experiences - Be a resource for questions and collaboration - Give them as many learning opportunities as possible What makes an internship program great in your opinion?