ACQUISITION SEARCH – MAKING DEALS HAPPEN

There is a surfeit of willing buyers for companies in Europe, and a scarcity of attractive businesses for sale at realistic prices. Practical advice is provided to carry out a successful cross‐border acquisition search, illustrated with examples from real life. Companies should define their acquisition requirements and carry out a comprehensive search to find suitable companies. Then direct contact should be made with them to explore the possibility of acquisition. An additional avenue is to contact the professional advisers who advise vendors, including merchants banks, specialist advisers and accountancy firms. When searching overseas, there is no effective substitute for someone working in the country concerned and speaking the local language. So it may make some sense to appoint professional advisers to carry out the search, but top management must choose and appoint them with care.