Jim Whitaker

Associate Director

Ask a founder what they want from a sale and the answer is rarely just a number - it's someone who will pick up the phone, explain what happens next, and stay beside them from the first conversation to completion. That's the part of the job Jim does best.

Since 2016 he has advised shareholders on the sale of their businesses across software, fintech, consultancy, wholesale, medical communications, facilities management and property, guiding founders to trade acquirers at home and overseas. As the first point of contact on a deal, he keeps the process moving from kick-off to completion, and keeps the founder informed at every turn.

Before moving into M&A (mergers and acquisitions), Jim built his grounding in the numbers that decide a deal. At Barclays Corporate he advised business owners on finance raises, cashflow finance and foreign-exchange risk; before that, at Lloyds Banking Group, he led and managed a sales team.

He puts the same energy into local life: Jim sits on the committee of the Minchinhampton Cotswold Club, a traditional working men's-style club serving the local community, where he runs the odd quiz night and race night through the year - the kind of community-minded work that sits naturally alongside life at a B Corp, where looking after people is treated as part of the job, not an afterthought.

Selected transactions Jim has advised on:

• Medical communications — Makara Health Communications sold to Precision Value and Health
• Audiology — Audiologic sold to EAV Group
• Environmental and testing services — MSS Group sold to RSK Group
• Consulting — Osprey Consulting sold to TP Group
• Software — Catalyst Computer Systems sold to Constellation Software Inc.
• Events — Concise sold to PSAV Inc.
• Software — Quicksilva sold to Harris Computer Corporation
• Property — London Stone Properties sold to Foxtons plc

Away from deals, Jim is a lifelong devotee of House music, having mixed every form of it for more than 30 years - with a particular soft spot for the US sound. Colleagues have learned that the surest way to lose him for an afternoon is to mention a rare US House record. He is a keen sportsman too - football, golf and pool - and captains the club's pool team in the Stroud Pool League.