Testimonials

I worked with April purchasing a business from one of her clients. She reached out to me as a potential buyer knowing that I was in a similar industry. I was not looking to purchase a business at the time but after her call, I was interested in the growth potential of adding additional capabilities to my offering. Her understanding of both seller and buyer’s needs were helpful in helping  us narrow down a deal. I appreciated her optimism and willingness in making a deal happen for both clients. The transition was easy and she was a great help!

I would recommend working with April and her team.

Mike Garant
May 2023

I’m thankful for meeting April Harbottle, founder of Transition Architects, to help me with the transition & sale of our family business. 

Shortly after my husband passed, I tried to negotiate a Management Buyout with senior staff and the support of other personal advisors but this approach eventually fell apart due primarily to inadequate oversight. Then we engaged a Business Broker to promote our business but several unexpected circumstances negatively impacted business results, and buyers became nervous. The broker was unsuccessful at selling the company & eventually gave up. 

April stuck with us as a Transition Advisor and searched for alternate options to create a strategy which would attract the right buyer. She created an approach that allowed the buyer to mitigate their risks, by a reduced up-front price and provide for most of the compensation based on future results once confirmed. This strategy & her perseverance to work with a strategic buyer & find ways to overcome their concerns, ultimately allowed us to successfully transition business ownership to them.   

I am so grateful to have found a solution that provides our family legacy to continue, maintain employment for our committed employees, and allow our clients to move to a new and expanded business that we expect to grow and thrive into the future. 

I know most brokers would not have continued to support us, as they are generally looking for a quick fee and our situation required a longer term approach and creativity. Thanks to April and the Transition Architects team for finding a unique solution for a win-win outcome for all!

Satisfied Seller

Sept 2021

I worked with April and Transition Architects for 1.5 years. At the time I was trying to determine my exit strategy and decide on succession or selling my business. April walked me through the pros and cons of each and gave me confidence that I was taking the right approach to look for an outside buyer. She was aware of a potential buyer right away; a group within her network that had approached her earlier looking for a business like ours. April negotiated a favourable sale price and structure on our behalf, and we moved forward with due diligence, but unfortunately the pandemic and lockdowns hit and the deal eventually fell apart. Her continued support was instrumental in staying positive and ultimately moving forward with another opportunity. It was a bumpy ride through 2020 but we stayed focused on the end goal & it feels great to have now successfully firmed up and commenced my company sale and exit strategy. I am pleased to continue supporting the new owners for the next couple of years with the transition & growth planned & really enjoy handing off the other stresses of business ownership to them! 

Satisfied Client 
June 2021

Summit Ridge Capital worked with April Harbottle to facilitate the addition of a new business into our growing portfolio. April was engaged by the Sellers of the business, but worked closely with us as well, to understand and resolve many of the challenges that arose and we eventually achieved a win-win outcome for all.

Given the competitive situation and differing priorities of the three owner-operators, we needed to create an offer and structure that met all needs, and differentiated and exceeded the competing offer. April’s input over several months helped to create an offer that successfully won over the Seller’s interest to engage.

Due diligence commenced in March 2020, right as the Covid pandemic and lockdowns started, which created a higher level of stress and uncertainty. Throughout the process, we encountered issues relating to minority shareholder demands, a lawsuit potentially affecting staffing, and some reluctance from the Sellers. 

April worked closely with Summit Ridge Capital and the Sellers to find solutions to many of these issues. We ultimately closed the transaction, albeit several months later than planned (Fall 2020).

Scott Nishi, Partner
Summit Ridge Capital
January 2021

“Transition Architects facilitated a “Strategic overview” session for us which clarified our current Business Model and our company strengths, weaknesses & opportunities at a deep level. Additionally, they completed a financial analysis on our company’s performance, as well as value. The exercise helped my partner and I clarify our true personal and business goals and how to align them with the future of our company.
I would recommend using Transition Architects to any entrepreneur(s) needing to make strategic changes in their company or planning for a personal transition. The Executive Summary prepared for us at completion has been a roadmap for us to refer to as we start to implement our key changes.

Chris Water
Owner
September 2019

April was instrumental in helping our company get prepared for a successful sale. She advised us on financial issues, provided support to resolve issues of concern for potential buyers, ensured we had the right advisers and helped to negotiate our deal to a successful conclusion.
We’d previously tried to sell the business without success, but April and her brokerage provided the preparation, marketing and advisory support necessary to accomplish our goals and we are very happy with the outcome.

Sam
Controller to Business owner
May 2019

We worked with April and the Transition Architect team to help me understand the strengths and evaluate any weaknesses in my business to determine whether I needed to continue making further improvements on my company to ready it for sale. Thanks to her and her teams’ oversight and guidance, we are now confident that our company is operating well with only minor additional preparation required. I might be able to start my retirement years earlier than I expected!

Thomas
Owner of Contracting Business
September 2018

The Transition Architect team completed a deep and comprehensive review of our company and helped us better understand the true value and strengths of our business. We were feeling stressed because our original transition plans had not worked out, but now we have a logical plan to help us move toward our retirement goals!

Nancy and Bill
July 2018