We receive hundreds of investment proposals each year. We share what distinguishes those we immediately engage with from those we discard in five minutes.
Each year we receive hundreds of investment proposals. From all these proposals, we analyse fewer than 10% in depth. And we close a fraction of that 10%.
The difference between a proposal that captures our attention and one we discard in five minutes depends not only on the quality of the company. It depends largely on how the opportunity is presented.
The first document should be brief — one or two pages — and answer six questions: What does the company do? How much does it bill and earn? Why is it being sold? What does the seller seek? What price is expected? Why does it fit with us?
“Market-leading company.” Leading by market share? By profitability? By prestige? Every claim in the memorandum must be supported by verifiable data.
No company is perfect. The adviser who presents a company with no weaknesses is lying or withholding information. We far prefer a memorandum that clearly identifies weaknesses and explains how they can be addressed.
“It is a good company at a good price” is not a value thesis. “The company has a 12% EBITDA margin in a sector where the average is 15%, suggesting a potential improvement of 300 basis points through procurement optimisation” — that is.
Mass mailings. Artificial urgency. Opacity about price expectations. Inflated information. And advisers who do not know the company they are representing.
The advisers with whom we have closed the most deals are not necessarily those who present the most opportunities. They are those who present the right ones. If you are an adviser working with Spanish middle-market business owners, we invite you to contact us — with rigorously analysed companies, complete information, and realistic price expectations.
Behind every transaction in the middle-market, there are people making decisions that will affect their lives for years. The business owner contemplating a sale is not just executing a financial transaction — they are letting go of something that has defined their identity, provided their purpose, and shaped their daily existence for decades.
Understanding this human dimension is not optional for the serious investor — it is essential. The deals that close successfully and generate lasting value are overwhelmingly those where both parties feel heard, respected, and fairly treated throughout the process. The deals that fail — or that close but generate conflict afterwards — are those where one or both parties feel that the process was adversarial rather than collaborative.
This does not mean being soft on commercial terms. It means being honest about our position, transparent about our analysis, and respectful of the seller’s legitimate interests and concerns. It means recognising that the best outcome is not one where we extract maximum value from the other side, but one where both sides feel the terms are fair and the relationship has a solid foundation for the years ahead.
After more than fifteen years and hundreds of transactions analysed, certain patterns become clear. The quality of advisers on both sides has a disproportionate impact on outcomes. Well-advised sellers have realistic expectations, organised documentation, and constructive approaches to negotiation. Poorly advised sellers have inflated expectations, chaotic information, and adversarial postures that undermine their own interests.
The timing of transparency matters enormously. Sharing information — about concerns, about reasoning, about limitations — early in the process builds trust and prevents misunderstandings from escalating. Withholding information for tactical advantage almost always backfires, because the middle-market is a small world where reputations are built and destroyed one transaction at a time.
Finally, patience is a genuine competitive advantage. The investor who can wait for the right opportunity, who does not force timelines, and who is willing to walk away from a transaction that does not feel right is the investor who, over a long career, accumulates a portfolio of excellent investments and a reputation that opens doors. In the Spanish middle-market, where relationships matter deeply and word of mouth travels fast, that reputation is perhaps the most valuable asset an investor can possess.
By Blue Mountain Capital
By Blue Mountain Capital
By Blue Mountain Capital
If you wish to explore a potential collaboration or present an investment opportunity, we invite you to contact us. We guarantee absolute confidentiality in all our conversations.