David Braun
Author's posts
The Loblaw Companies to Acquire Shoppers Drug Mart
The trend of consolidation continues. Just one week after Kroger announced it would buy Harris Teeter, there’s another big deal in the grocery industry. Canada’s number one grocer, the Loblaw Companies, announced it would buy the top pharmacy chain, Shoppers Drug Mart, for $11.9 billion in cash and stock. It’s likely this acquisition is a direct …
Kroger Acquires Harris Teeter to Attract High-end Market
Big news from the grocery sector: Kroger will buy Harris Teeter for $2.5 billion following the trend of consolidation in the grocery industry. Earlier this year, Empire Ltd, the owner of Canadian grocery chain Sobeys, bought Safeway’s Canadian business for $5.7 billion in a “game changing” deal. As the supermarket industry becomes more competitive, companies …
Uncovering Liabilities Early On
The message I want to share with you here is simple but critical: start your due diligence early. In fact, start it the moment you begin the acquisition process. Conducting due diligence uncovers liabilities or hidden problems that can decide the success or failure of an acquisition. This could include issues such as past litigation, …
Researching “Brother-in-Law Companies”
As I head off to celebrate July 4th with my family and friends, I’m reminded of what we call “brother-in-law” companies. In some ways, the close relationship between family members can resemble the relationship between a buyer and an acquisition prospect. These “brother-in-law companies” are prospects that a CEO believes are a great deal because …
How to Buy a “Not-for-Sale” Company: Sell Your Vision
As an M&A consultant, I’m often asked exactly how we persuade the owners of not-for-sale companies to sell. My years of experience speaking with owners and facilitating acquisitions makes the process easier, but the real secret is understanding owner psychology. In contacting an owner, you can’t lay out a detailed acquisition plan. The key is …
How a Letter of Intent Can Save Your Deal
About 70% of completed acquisitions fail, and even more attempts at M&A fail to reach a deal. Part of the challenge is the mix of buyers and sellers who envision dissimilar outcomes. In the pursuit of a deal the two sides have different goals and different perspectives. As in a house sale, buyer and seller …
How to Grow Your Company During a Recession
American individuals and corporations are playing it safe, according to The Wall Street Journal, contributing to a slower employment rebound: “[After the recession] of the early 1990s, it took 32 months for payrolls to rebound fully. After the even milder recession of 2001, it took four years. Today, nearly four years after the end of …
Why Google Wants to Acquire Waze
There are many reports that Google will buy Israeli mobile traffic app Waze for $1.3 billion. This acquisition would allow Google to solidify its dominant position while actively preventing Apple or Facebook from acquiring the technology. If you have the number one product or service, one way to keep your customer base is by keeping your …
Deals in Cloud: IBM, Salesforce & SAP
The future looks cloudy. IBM, Salesforce and SAP all announced big deals in cloud this week. IBM announced it would buy Softlayer, a cloud computing company, in a deal estimated to be worth $2 billion. IBM plans to use Softlayer to bolster its cloud services in a growing market. Salesforce announced it intends to buy …
Why China’s Shuanghui Is Buying Smithfield
Chinese firm Shuanghui International Holdings announced its intention to buy Smithfield Foods Inc for $4.7 billion. The total of the transaction, including debt, would be $7.1 billion. That’s big news for M&A watchers in the food industry, an arena that has captured my attention since my firm managed the acquisition of shrimp specialist Empress International …
