At Benchmark International, we work exclusively on the sell-side, so we would love to say, “The way to do a re-trade is to never do a re-trade.” However, when you have completed countless deals, there are times when we are tied so closely into those deals that we know the terms of the original offer do not stand up to the target company’s actual position following due diligence. In other words, we will admit when there is a legitimate reason to re-trade a deal term, including the price.

Our experience also tells us that these instances are rare when sellers have been through our process, and there is a right way and wrong way to do it if you want the deal to close. We encourage you to avoid blown deal costs by following these simple steps:

Step 1: Discuss it with us first. Yes, we are going to push back. Yes, we are going to support our client. But we will also be able to keep the deal on track by doing the following:

• In a best-case scenario, clarifying a misconception on your part that moots your need to re-trade
• Giving you a read on how our client will react
• Suggesting the best means of communicating the issue so that the reaction you receive best matches the severity of the actual change
• Providing our client our open and honest view of the change and the reasons for it before he or she has had a day or two to lock themselves into a position that may be based on less than the clearest picture possible
• Delving into our resources to convert what starts as a win-lose scenario to something closer to a win-not-lose-too-much scenario

Step 2: Have your data lined up. Very often we see re-trades supported by vague concepts and no numbers. These cause extra problems. If the amount of the re-trade can come over on the left side of the page with a numerical breakdown of the reasons for the re-trade on the right side of the page, and the seller can see that the two balance one another out—even if just figuratively—we are all in a much better position to get to the closing.

Step 3: Don’t wait. When you find something in diligence that looks like it is building to be the source of a re-trade, don’t save it all up and then dump it on the sell-side at the last minute. Conditioning the recipient of bad news is always the best way to get the most appropriate response to that news.

Step 4: Don’t overreach. Even in our smallest deals, we are not operating in a Turkish bazaar. There is no need to ask for $500,000 when you need $250,000. That type of negotiation works well in one-off trades but not when you are trying to build a relationship that is expected to hit additional bumps before the deal closes and likely needs some level of ongoing trust after closing.

Step 5: Be open to creative solutions. Regardless of how meaningful the problem is and how large a fix you need, your solution may not be the only acceptable one. It may not even be the best one for you.  There are many ways to change a deal to address an unforeseen risk and provide the protection you need to offset that risk. The key to getting the transaction closed is often finding the amount of offset you need using the method of offset the seller can accept.

Benchmark International works hard with its client to avoid the need for re-trades. We collect extensive data on our clients prior to going to market. We run a very process-driven data room and often pre-populate it. We encourage our clients to get in front of disclosing detracting factors to avoid any surprises. We comb through every financial statement and tax return our clients can produce. In some countries, we are able to verify returns against official tax transcripts. Unlike many other brokers, we will even put known issues into our Confidential Information Memorandums. We attempt to place our clients with experienced M&A legal advisors. We understand—and make every effort to ensure our clients understand— that hiding an issue is not going to get them a better deal, may cost them a very good deal, and will never make it through due diligence.