Road to Exit 2: Traditional Exit Routes and Preparation for Sale

Following our first Road to Exit session focusing on sales to Employee Ownership Trusts, this second Road to Exit session with law firm Harbottle and Lewis covers the process and pros and cons of traditional exit routes including trade sales and management buyouts (MBOs)

This workshop will cover:

• Personal tax planning ahead of exit and what steps sellers can take to structure transactions efficiently
• Maximum valuation: how to achieve the highest sale price through competitive bidding
• Complete exit: full cash payment provisioning a clean break from the business (subject to any earn outs / deferred consideration)
• Strategic synergies: achieving premiums for market consolidation or complementary services
• Liquidity: cash payment provides financial security for owners
• Risk reduction - removes dependency on single business for personal wealth

The key trade-off is typically between maximising immediate financial return (trade sales) versus preserving business culture and relationships (MBOs), while both offer more immediate and certain exit compared to the longer-term EOT approach.

This session will provide practical insights to evaluate whether a trade sale or MBO exit strategy aligns with your business objectives and succession planning goals.

Tom Macleod, Partner,. Harbottle & Lewis

Tom is a corporate partner and co-head of the venture capital and emerging companies practice.

He advises founders, growing businesses, VC funds and angel investors on acquisitions, disposals, exits, and financing rounds (S/EIS, venture capital, venture debt, VCT, growth capital).

Known as a rising star, Tom combines excellent technical skills with a pragmatic, commercial approach. He specialises in high-growth tech and recruitment companies, handling both early-stage investments and later-stage transactions.

Tom trained at CMS, worked at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, and joined Harbottle & Lewis in February 2017.

David Scott, Partner, Harbottle & Lewis

David is a tax specialist with extensive experience advising entrepreneurs and recruitment businesses across their lifecycle.

His core expertise includes corporate and personal tax advice, M&A transaction tax aspects, and share incentive arrangements. He guides companies through tax-efficient fundraising (EIS/SEIS) to exit strategies, specialising in employment tax issues and share-based incentives like EMI, CSOP, and bespoke arrangements. David also advises on employee benefit trusts (EBT) and employee ownership trusts (EOT).

As head of the charities and philanthropy group, David also supports not-for-profit organisations and philanthropists on charity law and tax matters. He's a member of the International Tax Specialist Group.

May Delaney, Managing Associate, Harbottle & Lewis

May is a managing associate who advises on private client work.

May advises UK and international individuals and families on structuring, succession planning and capital taxes. May has particular expertise acting for entrepreneurs, business owners and entertainment clients on their wills, trusts and wider estate plans. An increasing part of May’s practice focuses on working with clients on their philanthropy and charitable giving, as an integral part of their planning, and May is a true expert in this area.