Nashville Business Brokers

Business Brokers Serving Nashville & All of Middle Tennessee

Nashville business brokers and M&A advisors for Middle Tennessee owners. We sell businesses with $1.5M or more in revenue, confidentially, with a 90%+ close rate.

nashville
nashville_m

Sell a Business in Nashville, TN

Selling a Nashville business is one of the largest financial events of an owner's life. We handle the process end to end: preparing and normalizing financials, building a Confidential Information Memorandum (CIM), quietly marketing to pre-qualified buyers under NDA, running negotiations, and coordinating with attorneys, accountants, and lenders through closing.

Our typical Nashville seller has $1.5M–$100M in revenue and $300K–$10M in Seller's Discretionary Earnings. Around 20% of businesses listed by the average broker actually sell. CGK's close rate is over 90%, driven by accurate valuations and selective engagements — we only take clients we believe we can close for.

  • Accurate, defensible valuation from a CFA-credentialed appraiser
  • Full confidentiality — every buyer signs an NDA before seeing financials
  • Vetted buyer network: strategic acquirers, search funds, family offices, private equity
  • Multi-buyer process to create competition and maximize price and terms
  • Deal structuring for best after-tax return (earn-outs, seller notes, rollover equity)
  • Hands-on guidance from LOI through closing

As Seen on Inside the Blueprint

Watch the nationally broadcast television show Inside the Blueprint cover CGK Business Sales and our approach to helping Nashville business owners sell a business for maximum value — through accurate valuation, full confidentiality, and a 90%+ close rate.

CGK Business Sales Logo

What Nashville Business Owners Say

"Wes was outstanding, guiding us through each step, offering perspective and solutions. His dedication, perseverance, and ingenuity made our business sale happen. I strongly recommend Wes and CGK Business Sales."

— Suzanne Piispanen, Nashville seller

"Making the decision to sell was tough, but Wes McDonough at CGK was tremendous from start to finish. We confidently entered an agreement thanks to the groundwork by Wes and his team."

— Christy Guthrie, Middle Tennessee seller

"Our deal would not have gone through without Wes' hard work and dedication. The CGK team brings a wealth of experience to the table, but more than that, Wes has a talent for closing deals. I highly recommend Wes and CGK."

— Eric Olson, Nashville buyer

"This group is thorough and really humanizes the process for both the seller and the buyer. Had an amazing experience with Wes in Nashville."

— Vishal Patel, Nashville

"Derik located multiple interested strategic buyers that produced more than one serious offer. The negotiations were tough but Greg and Derik's experience helped us overcome. We got a great result for our employees and for the owners. We would recommend them without reservation."

— Bob Taylor

"It was my first time ever selling my company and Wes was amazing! He was able to explain anything I didn't understand and made it a very smooth and easy process. I would definitely recommend him to get the job done."

— Nuveldy Andino, Nashville seller

Get a Free, Confidential Business Valuation

If you're ready to sell your Nashville business, or just want to know what it's worth in today's market, use the confidential form below or call our Nashville office at (615) 800-7118.

Every inquiry is read personally by our Nashville team. No shared inbox, no sales queue, no upfront fees, no obligation.

Our selling process is tailored for businesses with $1.5 million or more in annual revenue (up to $100 million) and $300,000 to $10 million in Seller's Discretionary Earnings.

Business Valuation in Nashville

A credible business valuation is the foundation of every successful sale. Most Nashville business brokers rely on rules of thumb. CGK's valuations are overseen by Greg Knox, CFA, CAIA, FDP, a CFA Charterholder with 25+ years across middle-market investment banking, private equity, and institutional trading at Deutsche Bank, T. Rowe Price, and Wachovia Securities. That analytical rigor is rare among Nashville business brokers and is what lets us defend a valuation under buyer scrutiny.

We combine quantitative analysis (revenue multiples, SDE and EBITDA multiples, discounted cash flow, comparable transactions from our own deal flow) with qualitative factors like customer concentration, management depth, recurring revenue, and industry tailwinds.

Business owners in Nashville use our valuations to price a sale, plan for retirement, settle partnership disputes, support estate planning, or benchmark where the business stands today. Valuations are always confidential.

Why Nashville Business Owners Choose CGK

90%+ close rate. The industry average is around 20%. We only accept engagements we believe we can close, and our process is built to finish what we start.

Nashville-based leadership. Wes McDonough has lived and worked in Nashville for 20 years. He understands Middle Tennessee buyers and sellers, the local banking and legal community, and the dynamics of Nashville's growth economy.

CFA-credentialed valuation. Greg Knox, CFA anchors every Nashville valuation, a level of analytical rigor rare among Nashville business brokers.

Multiple qualified buyers. We don't list and wait. We run a structured outreach process to generate multiple competing offers, so you choose the buyer, not the other way around.

Confidentiality from day one. Employees, customers, competitors, and landlords learn nothing until you decide they should. Every buyer signs an NDA before seeing financials.

Full-service deal coordination. Legal, accounting, banking, tax, and transition planning: your Nashville business brokers quarterback the full deal so you keep running the business until closing.

Nashville-suspension-bridge

Mergers & Acquisitions Advisory in Middle Tennessee ($5M to $100M)

For larger Nashville and Middle Tennessee transactions, CGK operates as an M&A advisor rather than a traditional business broker. Most Nashville business brokers top out at Main Street deals under $2M. Our senior team includes former investment bankers, institutional traders, and Fortune 500 corporate finance executives who bring Wall Street process to lower-middle-market deals.

We structure roll-ups, carve-outs, management buyouts, and strategic acquisitions for Nashville business owners. Typical M&A engagements involve $5M to $100M enterprise value, national and cross-border buyer pools, and sophisticated deal structures including earn-outs, seller notes, and rollover equity. Greg Knox has been named a top-ten M&A advisor worldwide for three consecutive years.

Buy a Business in Nashville

Nashville's diversified economy, anchored by healthcare, music and entertainment, logistics, auto manufacturing, and a rapidly growing tech scene, makes Middle Tennessee one of the strongest acquisition markets in the Southeast. Whether you're an individual buyer looking for a turnkey business, an existing Nashville owner expanding through acquisition, or a private equity group seeking a platform, our Nashville business brokers help you find, evaluate, and close on the right business.

We start with your goals (industry preferences, level of involvement, experience, capital available, financing strategy) and then source opportunities that fit. Our process includes business search, due diligence support, SBA and conventional loan introductions, and deal structuring.

sell-my-business-process-1

The Nashville Business Environment

Middle Tennessee's economy is one of the fastest-growing in the United States, and CGK's Nashville business brokers work with owners across every major Nashville sector:

Healthcare. Nashville is the headquarters of HCA Healthcare, Community Health Systems, LifePoint Health, and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and it hosts hundreds of the country's largest healthcare services companies. That concentration creates steady acquisition demand for medical services, home health, behavioral health, specialty practices, medical device distribution, and healthcare IT businesses. Our team has advised on transactions across the Nashville healthcare ecosystem.

Music, entertainment, and creative industries. Music City supports a deep services economy around songwriting, publishing, touring, recording, production, and entertainment technology. Wes McDonough brings firsthand perspective here as a working Nashville songwriter with a 10-year touring and recording background, which matters when selling businesses tied to the creative economy.

Logistics, distribution, and transportation. Nashville sits within a day's drive of roughly 75% of the U.S. population and is a top national freight hub for FedEx, Amazon, and hundreds of regional carriers. Trucking, 3PL, warehousing, freight brokerage, and logistics-adjacent service businesses find active buyer pools.

Auto manufacturing and suppliers. Nissan's North American headquarters in Franklin, Nissan's Smyrna assembly plant, GM's Spring Hill plant, and a deep tier-one and tier-two supplier base drive M&A activity across precision machining, metal fabrication, industrial services, and specialty manufacturing.

Technology and SaaS. Nashville's tech sector has grown into a national top-15 market, concentrated in healthcare IT, fintech, and B2B SaaS. Oracle's expansion on the East Bank anchors a growing enterprise software ecosystem. We see steady acquisition demand for profitable bootstrapped SaaS, MSPs, and vertical software businesses.

Construction, trades, and real estate services. Nashville's sustained population and commercial growth keeps construction, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, roofing, and specialty trade businesses in high buyer demand. Property management, title, and real-estate-adjacent service businesses are also active.

Professional services, restaurants, and consumer businesses. Accounting firms, law firms, marketing agencies, insurance brokers, restaurants, fitness concepts, and service businesses round out a deep and active deal pipeline.

How Selling Your Nashville Business Works

1. Free, Confidential Valuation

We start with a no-cost, no-obligation valuation. You share three years of financials (P&L, balance sheet, tax returns). We normalize for owner compensation, one-time expenses, and non-operating items to calculate true Seller's Discretionary Earnings and EBITDA. You receive a defensible value range based on Nashville-area comparables and our own deal flow.

2. Engagement and Deal Prep

If the numbers work for both of us, we sign a formal engagement. From there, your Nashville business brokers build your Confidential Information Memorandum (CIM), the document qualified buyers review once under NDA, clean up supporting financials, and prepare the data room.

3. Quiet, Targeted Marketing

Your business is listed anonymously. We run a blind teaser to our vetted buyer network and targeted industry lists. Every buyer who asks for more information signs an NDA first. Your employees, customers, competitors, landlord, and lenders learn nothing.

4. Buyer Qualification and Offers

We pre-screen every buyer for financial capacity, industry fit, and seriousness before sharing the CIM. We generate multiple offers to create competition, then walk you through the Letters of Intent together.

5. Negotiation, Due Diligence, and Closing

We negotiate price, structure, and terms alongside you and coordinate attorneys, accountants, lenders, and tax advisors through due diligence. We quarterback the entire closing so you stay focused on running your business until the day you sell.

sell-my-business-process-2

Areas We Cover in Middle Tennessee

Our Nashville business brokers serve the full Middle Tennessee metro:

Nashville, Franklin, Brentwood, Cool Springs, Hendersonville, Murfreesboro, Mt. Juliet, Spring Hill, Nolensville, Gallatin, Smyrna, La Vergne, Goodlettsville, Green Hills, Germantown, East Nashville, The Gulch, 12 South, Music Row, Antioch, Bellevue, Donelson, and throughout Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford, Sumner, Wilson, and Maury counties.

We also serve Memphis, Knoxville, and Chattanooga on a project basis for larger M&A engagements.

Meet Your Nashville Team

Wes McDonough, Managing Director, Nashville

Wes leads CGK's Nashville business brokers and has over 25 years in M&A, corporate finance, and entrepreneurship. During his business brokerage career he has sold dozens of Middle Tennessee businesses representing tens of millions of dollars in total transaction value. Before CGK, Wes held a range of operating roles (accounting, payroll, billing, project management, and IT/application support) at a privately held global talent solutions firm based in Tennessee, giving him a uniquely practical view of what actually drives business value.

A 20-year Nashville resident, Wes is also a working songwriter and performer. He self-released an album that sold 5,000+ copies, toured the East Coast, and drew major-label interest during and after college. He continues to build his catalog around Music City's writers' nights. That entrepreneurial track record of running and monetizing his own creative business for more than a decade gives him a direct understanding of what it takes to build something and then sell it well.

Wes holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Towson University, where he attended on the Maryland Presidential Scholarship as valedictorian of his high school class.

Greg Knox, MBA, CFA, CAIA, Managing Principal

 

Greg is CGK's founder and backs the Nashville practice on valuation and larger M&A engagements. He has spent his 25+ year career across middle-market investment banking, private equity, a multi-billion-dollar hedge fund, and institutional trading at Deutsche Bank, T. Rowe Price, and Wachovia Securities. A multi-time business owner, Greg has been recognized as a top-ten M&A advisor worldwide for three consecutive years.

Greg holds a BA from Franklin & Marshall College, an MBA from Cornell University, and a Master of Data Science from the University of Michigan. He holds FINRA Series 79, 65, 63, and 55 licenses and is a CFA Charterholder, CAIA Charterholder, and FDP Charterholder.

buy-a-business-2
blog-business-decision

Frequently Asked Questions About Selling a Business in Nashville

How much do Nashville business brokers cost?

CGK works on a success-fee basis. We only get paid when your business sells. Fees are tiered based on transaction size and are disclosed in writing before we accept an engagement. There is no upfront retainer for qualifying businesses, and unlike many Nashville business brokers, we never charge monthly marketing fees.

How long does it take to sell a business in Nashville?

Most engagements close within 6 to 12 months from signed engagement to closing, depending on business size, industry, financial cleanliness, and seller flexibility on terms. Healthcare, logistics, and tech deals in Nashville often move faster because buyer demand is strong.

What is my Nashville business worth?

Valuation depends on revenue, earnings (SDE or EBITDA), growth rate, customer concentration, recurring revenue, management depth, and industry multiples. Our free confidential valuation, overseen by a CFA Charterholder, gives you a defensible range based on Middle Tennessee market comparables.

Will my employees or competitors find out my business is for sale?

No. We sell businesses confidentially. Buyers sign NDAs before seeing any identifying information. We never advertise your business by name.

Do I need my financials cleaned up before calling you?

No. Most owners don't. We help normalize financials as part of the engagement (adding back owner perks, one-time expenses, and non-operating items) so buyers see the real earning power of the business.

What size businesses does CGK sell in Nashville?

We focus on businesses with $1.5M+ in revenue and $300K+ in SDE. Most engagements fall in the $2M to $50M enterprise value range, with M&A engagements reaching $100M.

Do you only sell businesses in Nashville proper?

No. Our Nashville business brokers serve the full Middle Tennessee metro (Franklin, Brentwood, Hendersonville, Murfreesboro, Mt. Juliet, Spring Hill, Nolensville, and surrounding counties) and take on Memphis, Knoxville, and Chattanooga engagements on a project basis.

Can you help if I already have a buyer?

Yes. We often help sellers with their own buyer by running the valuation, deal structuring, due diligence coordination, and closing process, typically at a reduced fee.

When to Sell Your Nashville Business

Most Nashville business owners wait too long to start the valuation conversation. The best time to begin exit planning is 12 to 24 months before you want to close, but the right time to get a valuation is today. A few signals that suggest you should at least be having the conversation:

Your business runs without you, or could with one more hire. A company that doesn't depend on the owner is worth materially more to a buyer. If you've built that, you've crossed into premium valuation territory.

Revenue has been flat or mildly declining for two or more years. Buyers pay for growth. Selling while the trajectory is still defensible is worth far more than selling after a prolonged decline.

You're approaching retirement or a major life change. Rushed sales leave money on the table. Starting 12 to 24 months out lets us price correctly, clean up financials, and run a competitive process instead of a fire sale.

A strategic or private equity buyer has approached you directly. Unsolicited offers almost always undervalue the business. Before you engage, have a CFA-credentialed valuation in hand and a broker running a competitive process around you.

You're losing energy for the business. Burnout quietly erodes revenue, margins, and team retention. Selling when you still have fight left means selling from strength.

If any of these sound familiar, our Nashville business brokers can run a free, confidential valuation so you know where you stand before you make a decision.

location-nashville
blog-header

What a Business Sale Actually Looks Like

The headline price gets all the attention, but experienced Nashville business brokers know the actual seller outcome is shaped by four things: structure, taxes, terms, and buyer quality. A few realities worth understanding before you go to market:

Asset sale vs stock sale matters a lot. Most small-business sales in Tennessee are structured as asset sales, which shifts the tax treatment. The right structure can swing your after-tax proceeds by 10% or more.

Earn-outs and seller notes are tools, not traps. Used well, they bridge a valuation gap and get you a higher total price. Used carelessly, they leave you holding risk you shouldn't be holding. We help you evaluate what to agree to and what to push back on.

Rollover equity can beat all-cash. For strategic and private equity buyers in larger Nashville deals, taking 10% to 30% equity in the acquiring entity often delivers a second, larger payday when the buyer exits. It isn't right for every owner, but it's worth evaluating.

Who the buyer is affects every number. A strategic acquirer pays differently than a search fund, which pays differently than a family office or private equity platform. Getting multiple buyer types in the room is how you find out what your business is really worth.

Our job as your Nashville business brokers is to make sure the structure, tax treatment, and terms all work together so the headline price actually shows up in your bank account.

What a Business Sale Actually Looks Like

Nashville sits in the middle of a competitive buyer pool. When our Nashville business brokers take a business to market, we run a structured process against four buyer categories at once:

Strategic acquirers. Established companies (regional, national, and international) looking to bolt on revenue, customers, geographic reach, or capability. Strategics often pay the highest multiples because they can realize synergies you can't capture alone.

Private equity platforms and add-ons. The lower-middle market is where Nashville sees the most PE interest, especially in healthcare services, professional services, trades, and B2B services. PE brings capital, operating playbooks, and (frequently) the option for rollover equity.

Search funds and independent sponsors. Often MBA-trained operators backed by institutional investors, looking to acquire and run a single business. Good fit for owner-operated Nashville companies in the $1M to $5M SDE range with a clear growth path.

High-net-worth individuals and family offices. Long-hold capital, often local or regional, looking for cash-flowing businesses to run or own quietly for decades. Common buyers for service businesses, trades, and legacy Middle Tennessee operations.

A competitive process run across all four buyer types is how we generate multiple offers and find out what your business is really worth. Single-channel marketing leaves money on the table.

Nashville business brokers
Downtown Nashville skyline and Cumberland River at sunrise, home to a growing Middle Tennessee business market

What's Driving Demand for Nashville Businesses

Middle Tennessee isn't just growing demographically. The factors that pull buyers into the Nashville market are structural, and they're worth understanding before you go to market:

No state income tax. Tennessee is one of a handful of U.S. states with no personal income tax. That's a meaningful draw for out-of-state buyers relocating to run a business they acquire, and it shows up in valuation as a subtle but consistent premium.

Corporate relocations. Oracle's 8,500-person East Bank campus, AllianceBernstein's global HQ move, Amazon's Operations Center of Excellence, and dozens of smaller relocations keep executives, investors, and talent flowing into Nashville year over year. That talent pool becomes the next generation of acquirers and owner-operators.

Consistent inbound buyer interest from outside Tennessee. The combination of no income tax, lower cost of living, and strong population growth drives a steady stream of out-of-state capital looking for Nashville businesses to acquire. For sellers, that means a larger and more competitive buyer pool than most mid-sized U.S. metros.

Lower cost of doing business. Nashville operating costs remain materially below coastal metros like New York, San Francisco, and Boston. That gives buyers room to justify paying up for the right business while still hitting their return targets.

Diversified industry base. Nashville isn't a one-industry town. Healthcare, music and entertainment, logistics, auto, tech, trades, and professional services all have active deal flow. That diversification means buyer demand is insulated from any single sector downturn.

When you combine population growth, corporate relocation inflow, a favorable tax environment, and genuine industry diversification, you get a buyer market that rewards sellers who time the process correctly. Our Nashville business brokers help you read the market and decide whether now is the right moment for your company.

Confidentiality, From the First Call Forward

The biggest worry we hear from Middle Tennessee sellers isn't price. It's what happens if employees, customers, competitors, or vendors find out the business is for sale before it should be. As Nashville business brokers, we build every engagement around protecting that.

Here's how confidentiality works at CGK.

Your first call is private. Nothing about the conversation is shared, stored in a public place, or discussed outside our team. If you decide not to move forward, the conversation ends there.

Any public listing is blind. We do market qualified opportunities publicly to reach the widest pool of serious buyers, but listings are generic by design. No company name, no street address, no identifying customer concentrations, no specifics a competitor or employee could use to guess which business is for sale. The listing describes the opportunity, not your company.

Buyers sign an NDA before they see anything real. Financials, tax returns, customer data, employee rosters, lease terms, none of it leaves our side until the buyer has signed a confidentiality agreement and we've vetted them for financial capacity and fit. Tire-kickers don't get past the front door.

Information is released in stages. Buyers see the blind profile first. Serious, qualified buyers who've signed an NDA see the confidential information memorandum. Only buyers in final due diligence see sensitive operational detail. You control the pace.

Your team doesn't find out until you want them to. In most of our engagements, the only people inside the company who know the business is on the market are the owner and, sometimes, a CFO or right-hand person. We work around your schedule, take calls off-site, and structure diligence so it doesn't tip anyone off.

Buyers are qualified before they reach you. We screen for proof of funds, relevant industry or operational background, and a realistic fit with your business. You shouldn't spend a single hour on a buyer who can't close, and with our Nashville business brokers handling the gatekeeping, you won't.

This is why a 90 percent-plus close rate matters. Every buyer we put in front of you has already been filtered. Every document we release has already been protected. By the time you sign a letter of intent, you've had a controlled, professional process from the first call to the last.

CGK Business Sales, Nashville Office:
424 Church St
Nashville, TN 37219
(615) 800-7118

Printers Alley in downtown Nashville, a small business district served by CGK Nashville business brokers

OUR TEAM

GregKnox

ManagingPrincipal


Greg Knox, CFA has spent his 20+ year career in investment banking, private equity, a hedge fund, and institutional trading, at institutions as Deutsche Bank, T. Rowe Price, and Wachovia. After his MBA at Cornell...(click Greg's picture to read more)

WesMcDonough

ManagingDirector


Wes McDonough has over 20 years of experience in M&A, corporate finance, and entrepreneurship. Previous to CGK, Wes held numerous positions, including accounting, payroll, billing, project management, and IT/Application Support at ... (click Wes' picture to read more)

EricLewis

ManagingDirector


Eric Lewis has over 17 years of experience in the financial industry. He has worked for a breadth of companies ranging from investment banks to proprietary trading firms. Following his MBA at the University of Chicago, Eric... (click Eric's picture to read more)

JasonClendaniel

ManagingDirector


Jason Clendaniel has been in “business” since he was seven years old. Whether mowing lawns, or delivering papers, Jason learned business from the ground up. After graduating from the United States Naval Academy... (click Jason's picture to read more)

MatthewMistica

ManagingDirector


Matthew Mistica has 13+ years of experience in finance and entrepreneurship. Matthew spent 7 years in Corporate Finance working for Chevron and Shell Oil. After his MBA at the University of Houston, Matt became... (click Matthew's picture to read more)






DerikPolay

ManagingDirector


Derik Polay has over twenty years of experience in distressed securities and mergers and acquisitions and seven-plus years of upper-management positions at small and middle-market businesses. Derik’s previous ... (click Derik's picture to read more)

MatthewZienty

ManagingDirector


Matthew Zienty has 20+ years of financial industry experience in areas ranging from institutional equity trading, currency trading, financial sales, RIA valuations, payout/loan negotiations & compliance. He has worked for ... (click Matthew's picture to read more)

MyresTilghman

ManagingDirector


Myres Tilghman has had a 25-year career in finance, investments, and capital markets. He has worked with both niche and regional investment banks up to multinational institutions. Prior to CGK Myres spent 18 years trading international derivatives for hedge funds ... (click Myres's picture to read more)

ThomasLennon

ManagingDirector


Mr. Thomas “Jay” Lennon is an Air Force veteran, combat aviator, and distinguished leader with 26 years’ experience leading multi-million dollar projects, finance, and organizational transitions, inside and outside of the.... (click Jay's picture to read more)

LanceHupfield

Director of Business Development


Lance Hupfeld has over 25 years of experience in sales and business development management. With a broad array of valuable experience, Lance has deep knowledge in healthcare consulting... (click Lance's picture to read more)






Still Reading? Let's Talk.

You've seen how we work, who we are, and what we protect. The next step is a 20-minute confidential call with our Nashville business brokers, no pressure, no obligation. Fill out the form and we'll reach out within one business day or less.

Austin Office:
2720 Bee Caves Road
Austin, TX 78746
(512) 900-5960

San Antonio Office:
700 N Saint Mary's St
San Antonio, TX 78205
(210) 526-0094

Houston Office:
1200 Smith St
Houston, TX 77002
(713) 588-0240

Dallas Office:
325 N Saint Paul St
Dallas, TX 75201
(469) 998-1968

Phoenix Office:
40 N Central Ave
Phoenix, AZ 85004
(602) 714-7470

Colorado Springs Office:
102 S Tejon St
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
(719) 471-0115

Denver Office:
1600 Broadway
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 974-7978

Nashville Office:
424 Church St
Nashville, TN 37219
(615) 800-7118

Louisville Office:
312 S 4th St
Louisville, KY 40202
(502) 287-0332

Baltimore Office:
111 S Calvert St
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 777-5759

Washington DC Office:
1050 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 888-6120

cgk-white-logo

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS | BUSINESS VALUATIONS

 

CONTACT US

Scroll to Top