Buying a business is a high-stakes decision with limited information and significant downside. WETYR does marketing for first-time acquirers, search funders, holdco builders, family offices, and operators making strategic tuck-in acquisitions: we find owners open to selling whose businesses fit your buy box. We do not represent you or any seller, and we do not negotiate. Once introduced, you deal directly with the owner, using your own attorney, CPA and, if you want one, your own licensed advisor.
Sourcing Targets
Most acquirable businesses never list publicly. WETYR offers two options. Passive connections are free: join the Buyer Registry, and when an owner who fits your buy box comes to us, we connect you. Active off-market sourcing is a monthly marketing engagement of research and owner outreach built around your buy box. Its fee does not depend on any deal closing, and pricing is on the Buyer Registry page. We screen for fit before any introduction so you are not wasting time on businesses that do not match your thesis.
Quality of Earnings and Diligence Are Yours To Run
Plan for an independent QoE review and work with your own accounting and legal counsel. Operational diligence, which buyers without operating experience tend to skip, is what catches the deal-killers. WETYR does not manage diligence on any transaction; our free guides and the Buyer DD Checklist cover what to look for.
Deal Structure
Cash at close, seller notes, rollover equity, earnouts, working capital adjustments, escrow holdbacks, R&W insurance. The structure determines whether the deal works for you economically even if the headline price looks right. Model every dimension with your own CPA and attorney before you sign an LOI. Price and terms are agreed directly between you and the seller; WETYR does not negotiate them.
Post-Close 100-Day Plan
Most acquisitions destroy value in the first 100 days because the new owner does not have an operating playbook. WETYR offers operating consulting that can help you build a 100-day plan so you start day one with the priorities, the team conversations, and the customer outreach already mapped.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to buy a business?
From first conversation to close is typically 4 to 9 months. Sourcing 1-3 months, due diligence and LOI 1-2 months, definitive agreement and financing 1-2 months, close 1 month. Search funders and PE platforms often run faster because they have repeatable processes.
What size businesses can WETYR source for?
Our off-market sourcing works for buy boxes from $500K to $25M in EBITDA. Below $500K, look at our 25 acquisition niches, where WETYR may be the buyer directly. Above $25M, buyers usually work with an investment bank they hire.
Does WETYR provide acquisition financing?
No. WETYR is not a lender and does not act for buyers or sellers in a transaction. Common sources include SBA lenders, mezzanine debt providers, growth equity firms, and seller financing. We are independent of any lender. Lender terms are agreed directly between the buyer and the lender.
Start a Confidential Conversation
Mutual NDA before any financials. WETYR responds within one business day.
Last updated: 2026-04-28
Buying A Business: Why Planning Matters For Owners and Operators
Acquisition planning sits at the intersection of strategy and execution for most growth-stage and lower-middle-market businesses. WETYR treats this work as one of seven integrated practice areas because the decisions made here interact with marketing, financial planning, M&A, recruiting, and exit timing. Owners who silo this work from the rest of the operating model end up paying for the same insight twice - once with the specialist they hired, and again when downstream decisions get re-litigated because no one held the integrated view.
The framework WETYR uses is identical across all 50 states and across the 25 niches in our acquisition universe: diagnose the constraint, model the alternatives, choose based on stated owner goals, execute with weekly accountability. That sounds simple. The reason most engagements fail is that step two (modeling alternatives) gets shortcut, and step four (weekly accountability) gets dropped after the first month. Our engagement model is designed to keep both steps honest.
How WETYR Engagements Work
Every engagement starts with a complimentary 30-minute diagnostic call. We use the call to understand the actual problem - not the symptom you came in with. From there, we propose a scoped engagement with clear deliverables, weekly accountability, and a 90-day measurable outcome. Engagements are retained, not project-based, because the work compounds. Owners who retain WETYR receive supporting services across the seven practice areas at no incremental cost when those services are aligned to the agreed business goals.
If you want to see whether off-market sourcing or consulting is a fit for your situation, the next step is to book a complimentary call. We will not pitch. We will tell you honestly whether the gaps warrant a paid engagement or whether the better move is internal. That honesty is the engagement model.
Where Acquisition Planning Fits In The Lifecycle
WETYR's positioning is "Zero to Exit" - the operating partner across the entire business lifecycle. Acquisition planning can appear at any phase: launch, scaling, acquisition, integration, or exit preparation. Each phase changes the answer. The framework that fits a $5M revenue scaling business won't fit a $30M business preparing for sale, and the framework that fits an acquirer won't fit a seller. WETYR maintains the lifecycle view so the answer is calibrated to where you actually are, not where the playbook assumes you are.
Authoritative Sources & Further Reading
WETYR works alongside primary sources, regulators, and industry data providers when working with owners and operators. The references below are the same sources our research team uses when benchmarking multiples, modeling valuations, and stress-testing assumptions. We encourage every owner, buyer, and operator to verify any data point that materially affects their decision against the underlying primary source.
Primary Federal Sources
- U.S. SBA - 7(a) Loan Program for acquisition financing eligibility, terms, and lender list.
- SEC EDGAR for public-company comparables, 10-K disclosures, and recent strategic acquirer filings.
- IRS - Sale of a Business on Section 1060 asset-allocation reporting and tax treatment of asset vs stock sales.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Industries at a Glance for wage, employment, and growth data by NAICS code.
- U.S. Census Economic Census for industry size, firm counts, and revenue distributions.
- Federal Reserve Economic Data for prevailing rate environment underwriting.
Standards & Reference Bodies
- AICPA for Quality of Earnings methodology and CPA standards governing transaction-related financial work.
- FINRA Rules and Guidance for understanding when a transaction crosses into broker-dealer territory.
- NACVA business valuation credentialing body and standards (CVA designation).
- USPAP - Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice for valuation engagement standards.
- Investopedia - EBITDA reference page for definitional alignment with our glossary.
- Harvard Business Review - Mergers and Acquisitions archive on integration and post-close value creation.
For deeper transaction-specific data, the GF Data and PitchBook private-company transaction databases publish quarterly multiple ranges by industry size band that we cross-reference against our own pipeline benchmarks. Owners considering a sale should also review the Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Report (free, annual) for current cost-of-capital and lender appetite data across the lower middle market. Buyers underwriting search-fund or holdco theses commonly pair Stanford GSB's Search Fund Study with the IBBA Market Pulse report, which tracks multiples for sub-$50M transactions quarterly. None of these sources replace advice from your own attorney, CPA or licensed advisor on a specific deal, but they give owners and operators the same reference points professional acquirers are using on the other side of the table.
Related WETYR Resources
Every WETYR resource ladders into a structured engagement framework. Whether you are diagnosing readiness, modeling a number, or preparing for a specific transaction phase, the resources below cover the most common owner and operator workflows. All tools are free; all guides are operator-written; all engagements start with a confidential conversation.
Engagement Pillars
Decision Tools
Operator-Written
Glossary & FAQ
Checklists & Templates
Niche Coverage
If you are not sure where to start, the Exit Readiness Score takes about four minutes and produces a one-page diagnostic on the value drivers most likely to compress your multiple. From there the natural next step is either a long-form guide covering your specific situation, a focused glossary term lookup, or a confidential introductory call with our team to discuss whether a buyer introduction, consulting, or a direct purchase by WETYR is a fit. Our team responds to every inbound inquiry within one business day.