Case Study · Buy-Side M&A
Buy-Side M&A: A Pacific Northwest Food Cart Manufacturer Acquisition for an Ex-Military Operator
LCG sourced, structured, and closed the acquisition of a Pacific Northwest food cart manufacturer — $2.35M total transaction, $465K in SDE — for an ex-military buyer coming out of the manufacturing industry who wanted to come off the road and back home to his family. Signed LOI March 2, 2026; closed July 1, 2026. Four months, LOI to close, with a niche-category business, a hands-on operator taking the seat, and a capital raise placed on the deal's timeline.
The Mandate
An Operator Who Wanted to Be Home, Running Something He Could Build with His Hands
An ex-military buyer working in the manufacturing industry engaged LCG with a personal thesis, not just a financial one. He'd spent years on the road for work and wanted to be back home in the Pacific Northwest — near his family, in seat as an operator, running a business he could shape with the operational discipline he'd built over a decade in manufacturing. He wasn't looking for absentee ownership. He was looking for the right business to bring him home. The brief was specific: a manufacturer in the Pacific Northwest, small enough to run hands-on, big enough to support the transition off the road.
The Target
A PNW Food Cart Manufacturer with $465K in SDE and a Niche Product
A food cart manufacturer in the Pacific Northwest, producing $465K in SDE on a $2.35M total transaction value ($2.2M offer price plus working capital and adjustments at close). The business had exactly what the buyer's manufacturing background could translate to: shop-floor workflow, supplier management, custom-build fulfillment for commercial customers. It was also, importantly, a business that could be run absentee if priorities shifted down the road — the systems supported it, even if the buyer had no intention of stepping back day one.
The Challenge
A Niche Category, a Personal Timeline, and a Capital Raise on the Deal's Clock
Two things had to move together. First, financing: the buyer wanted to be home quickly, but a niche category — food cart manufacturing — meant SBA underwriting required lender education. Comparable comps aren't obvious in this segment, and supplier concentration and custom-order backlog had to be framed cleanly for credit committee. Second, the capital stack: the buyer's equity plus SBA senior debt didn't fully clear the down payment, so an investor capital raise had to be sourced and placed on the deal's timeline — not after. Neither could slip. If financing dragged, the close date pushed. If the close date pushed, the buyer stayed on the road.
The Execution
Sourcing, Diligence, Capital Raise, Lender Education, and a Clean Transition
LCG ran the engagement end to end. We sourced the opportunity against the buyer's home-state and manufacturing criteria, ran financial and operational diligence, and structured the capital raise through our investor network to clear the down payment on the SBA underwriting timeline. We worked with the lender on category education — comparable comps, supplier and customer concentration analysis, custom-order pipeline — so credit committee had the narrative it needed to move. On the operating side, we structured the seller transition and training to give the buyer real hands-on ramp: process handoff, supplier relationships, existing customer accounts. Because the buyer's manufacturing background mapped directly to the target, no CEO or GM search was needed — keeping the deal structure clean and the timeline tight.
The Outcome
Four Months from LOI to Close. Buyer Home, in Seat, and Building.
The deal closed on July 1, 2026 — four months from signed LOI. The buyer is home in the Pacific Northwest, in seat as the operator, running a $2.35M manufacturing business with his family close by for the first time in years. His manufacturing background is being put to work on the shop floor. The business retains the flexibility to be run absentee if life priorities shift down the road — the systems support it — but for now, the buyer is exactly where he wanted to be. The broader point: when the buyer is the operator, the playbook simplifies. LCG structures the capital and runs the process so the buyer can focus on where he's actually going to add value — on the floor, with the crew, building the company.
By the Numbers
Deal outcomes that speak for themselves.
From a stalled search to a closed deal and a growing business — in less time than most searchers spend reviewing CIMs.
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