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We help you understand your options so you can make a confident decision. This is where that happens publicly: free to read, no email required.

Most of what we do happens behind NDAs. This section is the opposite: publicly-available educational material on the topics owners need to think through before, during, and after a transaction. Education-driven advisory is one of the three things that sets the firm apart. We would rather you arrive at the first conversation already understanding your options than have us hand you opaque expertise on the other side of a retainer.

The library covers the four questions Louisiana and Gulf South owners ask us most often: What is my business worth? How do I sell it without losing my people? How do I exit on my timeline, not the buyer's? How do I evaluate a business I am thinking of buying? Every article on the site lives in one of six topic clusters below. Read at your own pace. Start a conversation when the framing resonates.

Browse the blog by topic

Every article on this site is organized into one of six clusters. Pick a topic to see every article in that area.

Sell-side Selling a Business How a sell-side engagement actually runs, how to prepare, family-business sales, and the mistakes we keep watching owners make. Valuation Valuing a Business What your business is worth, how that number is established under NACVA standards, and what actually moves the multiple. Exit planning Exit Planning Value Acceleration and the work that gets the business ready to exit on your timeline, not the buyer's. Buy-side Buying a Business How acquisitions actually run, how to evaluate what you are looking at, and what the buyer journey feels like from the inside. Industries Industry Spotlights Industry-specific write-ups and selected listings, so you can see the kinds of businesses we represent in the Gulf South. News Firm News Announcements, industry recognition, and updates from the firm.

Featured resources

If you only read three things in this section, read these.

Selling a Business FAQ

The questions sellers actually ask in the first conversation: confidentiality, timing, what makes a deal go well, and what derails one.

Read the FAQ

Industries We Serve

Four verticals where 15+ years of deal-making have produced real pattern recognition. And the ones where we will send you somewhere else.

See industries

Guides & Learning Center

The full library of educational material on the site, organized by topic: exit planning, valuation, selling, buying, and AI for value growth.

Browse the library

Video Content

Short videos on the topics sellers ask about most — recasting, LOIs, employee timing, negotiation, and the rest of the playbook. New episodes drop as they publish.

Watch the videos

Latest from the blog

The most recent twelve articles, newest first. The complete archive lives inside the topic clusters above.

Sell-sidePreparing Your Facility for a Potential SaleWhen to start, what buyers walk through, and the cleanup that buys you the best price.Read article

Sell-sideWhat is a Letter of Intent (LOI) and Why It MattersWhat an LOI binds, what it does not, and why the document matters more than the price on it.Read article

Sell-sideThe Secret to Negotiating the Best Deal for Your BusinessMore than one qualified buyer at the table. Everything good in the negotiation flows from that.Read article

Exit planningWhat is Value Acceleration?The structured process for growing enterprise value before you exit, on your timeline, not the buyer's.Read article

Sell-sideWhen to Tell Employees Your Business is for SaleThe single most damaging confidentiality leak we see, and the timing rules that keep it from happening.Read article

Sell-sideHow Long Does It Take to Sell a Business?Honest timelines, what moves them up, and what is realistic for a Louisiana lower-middle-market deal.Read article

ValuationBusiness Valuation Approaches: Main Street vs. Lower Middle MarketWhy the methodology changes based on business size, and what that means for your number.Read article

ValuationTop 5 Factors That Influence Business ValuationCustomer concentration, owner dependence, growth, margins, and the cleanup work that moves your multiple.Read article

Sell-sideHow to Ensure Your Business is Ready for SaleThe buyer-readiness checklist that decides whether your business is sellable today or needs a year of work first.Read article

Sell-sideHow to Prepare Your Business for Sale: 5 StepsThe five-step preparation sequence that turns a profitable business into a closeable transaction.Read article

Sell-sideNavigating the Emotions of Selling Your BusinessWhat no one tells founders about the emotional ride of a sale, and how to keep it from costing you money.Read article

Sell-side7 Common Mistakes When Selling a BusinessThe seven recurring missteps that crater otherwise sellable businesses, and how to catch them before a buyer does.Read article

Common questions

The questions owners ask most often when they first reach out to us. Each is also answered in long form somewhere in the library above.

How long does it take to sell a business?

Most Louisiana lower-middle-market sales close in 6 to 12 months from engagement, with about 30 to 60 days of preparation, 60 to 120 days marketing the business confidentially, and the remainder spent on diligence and closing. We give honest, business-specific timelines at engagement rather than the boilerplate ‘average’ number.

Do I have to tell my employees we are selling?

Not before the right time, and almost never before a Letter of Intent is in hand. Premature disclosure is the single most damaging confidentiality leak we see. The Buyer Process is structured so that customers, suppliers, and employees do not learn the business is for sale until you have decided to tell them.

What is the difference between a Calculation of Value and a Conclusion of Value?

Both are performed under NACVA Professional Standards. A Calculation is a limited-scope, faster valuation used for sale preparation, internal planning, or partner buy-outs. A Conclusion is a full, defensible valuation opinion that holds up in litigation, IRS gift or estate filings, and ESOP review. The right one depends on what the number will be used for.

How are buyers screened?

We review every buyer profile against the listing’s capital, industry, and operator-fit criteria before any deal-specific information is released. Verification of funds happens at LOI on a specific deal, not at registration. Sellers see qualified interest, not a tour bus.

What does Duran Advisors actually do that other brokers do not?

Three things, in plain terms: a valuation under NACVA Professional Standards before the listing (not after the offer), a confidential marketing process that we run rather than syndicate, and education-driven advisory that means you arrive at the first conversation already understanding your options.

Where does Duran Advisors work?

We are based in Metairie and represent owners across Louisiana, the Gulf South, and the wider region for the right engagements. New Orleans, Baton Rouge, the North Shore, and the surrounding parishes are home.

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