Two ways to work with us, depending on where you are.
Some founders know a sale is coming and want the business in the best possible shape first. Others aren't ready to commit and simply want an honest read on what the market would pay. We built an engagement for each.
Exit Readiness
Get your business into shape before you ever talk to a buyer.
For founders with a 1–3 year horizon who want to maximize valuation and avoid diligence surprises.
Read more ↓Buyer Radar
Find out what your business is really worth to buyers — without anyone knowing it's yours.
For founders who are still deciding, and want a real market read before committing to anything.
Read more ↓Exit Readiness
A hands-on engagement where we work alongside you and your leadership team to prepare the business for a sale that hasn't started yet. A pre-market audit and improvement sprint run by people who know exactly what buyers scrutinize — because we know what they'll find, so we fix it before they do.
What we dig into
Financial review & quality of earnings
Clean-up of financials, normalization of add-backs, ARR/NRR clarity, consistent revenue recognition and a working capital analysis that holds up under scrutiny.
Operational efficiency
Process bottlenecks, margin leakage, tech stack and DMS-integration review, plus a full vendor and contract audit.
Team & organizational depth
Key-person risk, org chart gaps, management bench strength, and incentive and retention structures set before a transaction, not during one.
Customer & revenue quality
Customer concentration risk, churn and retention trends, contract terms and how renewals actually behave.
Operational excellence & documentation
SOPs, systems and data room readiness — everything that would otherwise slow a buyer down or spook them mid-diligence.
Valuation gap analysis
Where the business stands today versus where it could stand after 12–24 months of work, with quick wins and longer-term fixes ranked in order.
How it works
- STEP 01
Discovery & assessment
A deep review across financials, operations, team and systems — the same review a buyer will run, done early and on your side of the table.
- STEP 02
Findings & roadmap
A prioritized report: what to fix, in what order, and exactly why each item matters to a buyer.
- STEP 03
Implementation support
Vertex stays engaged as an advisor while your team executes, so the roadmap doesn't stall after the report lands.
- STEP 04
Market-ready handoff
When the business is genuinely ready, we transition into an active sale process — with Vertex, if that's what you want.
Buyer Radar
A discreet, anonymized market sounding. We quietly canvass a curated set of qualified strategic and PE buyers in auto tech to gauge genuine appetite and informal valuation signals for a business like yours — without ever disclosing who you are. No formal process, no announcement, no chance of employees, customers or competitors finding out.
What's included
Blind profile creation
An anonymized teaser covering business model, financial ranges, market position and key metrics — with zero identifying details.
Curated buyer outreach
Informal, confidential conversations with a shortlist of strategic and financial buyers already active in auto tech.
Appetite & valuation signals
Informal indications of interest and rough valuation ranges gathered in real conversations — not comps guesswork.
Founder debrief
A straight-talk report: who's interested, at what range, and what it means for timing — with zero obligation to move forward.
How it works
- STEP 01
Confidential intake
A conversation with Vertex to build the blind profile and agree what can and cannot be said.
- STEP 02
Quiet canvass
We approach a curated buyer list under strict confidentiality, without ever naming the company.
- STEP 03
Signal gathering
A real read on interest level and valuation range, straight from buyers who would actually write the check.
- STEP 04
Debrief
You get a clear picture of market appetite and keep full control over whether there's a next step.
Not sure which is right for you? Let's talk.
One conversation is usually enough to tell whether you should be preparing, testing the market, or simply waiting.