Sell your business to people who will keep it whole.
We buy 40% to 100% of owner-managed UK businesses in HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewable Energy and Construction, £1m to £80m revenue. You choose how much to sell and how involved to stay. The name stays over the door and the team stays in post.
No NDA at this stage. No accounts required. No obligation.
Who buys businesses like yours?
Who buys HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewable Energy and Construction businesses in the UK?
Verdani Capital buys owner-managed UK businesses in HVAC, mechanical and electrical, renewable energy, solar and battery storage, and Construction, with revenue between £1m to £80m. It is an operator-led group, not a private equity fund, and it buys 40% to 100% of a business through an ethical partnership model that keeps the brand and the team in place.
Selling your business? You deserve a buyer who gets it. If you run a business with revenue between £1m to £80m in HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewable Energy or Construction and you are thinking about your exit, you have probably already discovered that most buyers see your company as a transaction. Numbers on a spreadsheet. A multiple of EBITDA and a handshake.
We see it differently. After 32 deals over 12 years, we have built a model that proves a different approach works.
The ethical partnership model
Most acquirers want 100%, your team gone within a year, and a clean break. We do not.
We buy anywhere from 40% to 100%. Our preferred structure is a partnership acquisition where you keep meaningful equity and stay involved on your own terms. A full sale with a proper handover works too.
You get cash out now. You keep upside in the business you built, if you want it. Your team, your brand and your culture stay intact. Good deal-making and doing the right thing by people turn out to be the same thing here, because businesses perform better when founders stay connected and teams feel secure.
- Retain meaningful equity, or sell outright
- Stay involved on your terms, or step back on a timetable you set
- Your team and culture stay intact
- The brand keeps its name. In 99% of cases, so does everything else
- Written into heads of terms, so the promises on the first call are the terms that complete
Who we buy from
We work with owners who are…
Not ready to walk away entirely, but ready to stop carrying all of it.
To fund the next phase of growth without betting the house on it.
Wanting experienced operational support beside them, not above them.
Wanting an independent view on what the options actually are before signing anything.
In the sectors we already operate in, we buy underperforming businesses too. We have turnaround experience and an operating company to put behind the fix.
Looking for operational resources to grow, streamline operations and improve systems and processes.
We focus exclusively on HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewable Energy and Construction businesses in the UK. We know these sectors deeply because we operate in them ourselves through our own portfolio companies.
Selling in a specific sector?
We buy across the trades we operate in ourselves. Start with the guide for your sector:
More than capital
The operational resources behind every business we buy.
Verdani is an operating group, so a business that joins us gets people, systems and finance behind it from day one: operators who have scaled businesses in these trades, a group services company that provides management support and resource, in-house IT and cyber security, and finance leadership that builds the reporting a growing business needs.
Sales leadership, cross-selling across the group, framework and tender support, and bolt-on acquisitions funded and run by us.
Scott has led teams of 500+ and scaled a contractor from £20m to £80m. Job costing, scheduling, fleet, procurement and margin discipline, improved from experience rather than from a consultant’s deck.
Operational technology, IT and cyber security through Verdani Solutions, and the finance systems and monthly reporting we put in so decisions are made on real numbers.
Verdani Services Limited provides management and resource across the portfolio: HR, compliance, accreditations, insurance and back-office, so your team can concentrate on the work.
None of it is imposed. We agree with you what the business needs, and the team keeps running the business. Meet the people who do this on the team page.
How our process works
Simple. No lengthy tender processes. No committees. No unnecessary delays.
Most of our deals complete in 8 to 14 weeks from the first conversation.
A confidential conversation
No NDA at this stage, no pressure, no financial information needed. We get to understand your business, what you want out of the next few years, and whether there is a natural fit.
Valuation and heads of terms
We ask for three years of accounts and produce an honest valuation. We propose the deal structure, the ownership split and your role after completion, before anything is signed.
Completion
Experienced M&A solicitors and our own in-house deal team move it through. You deal with the same people from the first call to the final signature.Most deals complete in 8 to 14 weeks.
Every step, what you will need and what you will get, is set out on how we buy a business.
Compare your options
Selling to an operator, a trade consolidator, or private equity
Three very different outcomes for the same business. The headline number is only one row in the table.
| What happens to | Verdani (operators) | Trade consolidator | Private equity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your name and brand | Retained in 99% of cases | Usually merged into theirs | Depends on the platform strategy |
| Your team | Stays in post | Cost synergies are in the model | Restructuring is common |
| Your involvement | Your choice, 40% to 100% sold | Typically 12 months then out | Usually tied to an earn-out |
| Who decides | The people you meet | A corporate development team | An investment committee |
| Timeline | 8 to 14 weeks | 3 to 6 months | 4 to 9 months |
| Their exit horizon | Long-term hold | Indefinite, but integrated | Typically 3 to 5 years, then sold again |
Fundable. Backable. Verifiable.
Why owners trust us with what they built.
Everything below can be checked. Companies House filings, a trading group you can visit, and named people you can call.
- Track record
- 32 completed acquisitions over 12 years, across HVAC, M&E, Renewables and Construction.
- Trading group
- £25m group revenue and £3m group EBIT across operating companies, not a shell or a special-purpose vehicle.
- Legal entities
- Verdani Capital Two Limited (13658177) and Verdani Services Limited (11718358), both filed at Companies House.
- Investor partners
- Private investors who want a good return on their money and want to own business assets across our sectors, as equity, secured debt or a blend.
- Funding
- Acquisitions are funded by a network of private investors and lenders alongside group cash flow, structured as equity, debt or a blend to suit each deal.
- Pipeline
- A live pipeline of acquisition opportunities in HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewables and Construction at every stage from first conversation to heads of terms.
- Named people
- Lee Smith and Scott Adams lead every deal personally. The people you meet are the people who decide.
- Professional execution
- Experienced M&A solicitors and an in-house deal team, with the structure and timetable set out in writing at heads of terms.
Acquisitions are made through the Verdani Group
You will always know exactly who is buying, and why.
All acquisitions are structured through Verdani Capital Two Limited or Verdani Services Limited, established trading companies within the Verdani Group. Before you sign anything, you will know which entity is acquiring your business and how the deal is structured.
Rossair Ltd
Platform company for the HVAC group. Building services since 1973.
JMC Drywall Ltd
Platform company for the Construction group.
Armex Energy
EPC delivery across battery storage, solar PV and energy infrastructure.
Verdani Solutions Group Ltd
Cyber security and IT managed services group.
£100m by June 2028
A UK HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewables and Construction group at 10%+ net profit, built by partnering with owners rather than absorbing them.
Who you will deal with
The decision-makers, from the first call to completion.
Lee Smith
25+ years an entrepreneur and 32 completed M&A deals. Puts the seller’s legacy at the centre of every one.
linkedin.com/in/leeantonysmith
Scott Adams
Scaled Southern UK’s largest independent HVAC contractor from £20m to £80m. Leads the HVAC and Renewables portfolios.
linkedin.com/in/scottadams-verdanicapitalStraight answers
Selling your business, answered.
Will my team keep their jobs if I sell to Verdani Capital?
Yes. Verdani holds and runs businesses for the long term rather than reselling them, so there is no redundancy programme on day one. Your team keeps their jobs, your management stays in place and your culture stays intact. This is the core of the model, not a concession made to win a deal.
Will my company keep its name and brand?
In 99% of cases, yes. The name stays over the door and the brand keeps trading. Verdani buys businesses because of what they already are. The reputation, the customer relationships and the name are part of the value, not something to be rationalised away.
How long does it take to sell my business to Verdani Capital?
Most Verdani deals complete in 8 to 14 weeks from first conversation. There is no tender process and no investment committee to win over. The people you meet on the first call are the people who decide.
Do I have to sell 100% of my business and walk away?
No. Verdani buys anywhere from 40% to 100% of a business. The preferred structure is an ethical partnership acquisition where you take cash out now, keep meaningful equity and stay involved on terms you set, including stepping back gradually over an agreed period. A full sale is available if that is what you want.
How does Verdani Capital value my business?
On sustainable earnings, not a headline multiple. After a first conversation Verdani reviews three years of accounts and gives an honest valuation assessment, then proposes a clear structure before anything is signed. Valuation is grounded in sustainable EBITDA, the quality and repeatability of your contracts, and how much of the business depends on you personally.
What size and type of business does Verdani Capital buy?
UK businesses with revenue between £1m and £80m in HVAC, mechanical and electrical, Renewable Energy, solar and battery storage, and Construction. Owner-managed, with a real team and a real order book. Usually profitable, though an underperforming business in a sector where the group already operates is also worth a conversation, because Verdani has turnaround experience and an operating business to put behind it.
Does Verdani Capital buy underperforming businesses?
Yes, in the sectors where the group already operates. Verdani has turnaround experience and an operating business in HVAC, mechanical and electrical, Renewable Energy, solar and battery storage, and Construction to put behind a company that has lost its way, so an underperforming business in those sectors is worth a conversation. Outside those sectors, Verdani only buys profitable businesses.
How is Verdani Capital different from a private equity firm?
Verdani is an operating group, not a fund. There is no external limited-partner money and no five-year exit horizon, so there is no pressure to strip cost out and flip the business. Verdani runs HVAC, M&E engineering, Renewables and Construction companies itself, which means it reads accounts and structures deals from operating experience rather than from a model.
What is an ethical partnership acquisition?
An ethical partnership acquisition is a deal where the buyer takes a majority or full stake, the founder keeps equity or a defined role if they want one, and the brand, team and culture are retained by design. Verdani commits to this in writing at heads of terms, so the promises made on the first call are the terms that complete.
Do I need to sign an NDA to have a first conversation?
No. The first conversation is confidential but informal. No NDA, no financial information required, no obligation. It exists so both sides can work out whether there is a fit before anyone spends money.
Can I sell my business and keep my staff?
Yes. Selling to an operator that intends to keep running the business is the most reliable way to protect staff. Verdani retains the team in every acquisition it makes because the team is what it is buying. A private equity buyer or trade consolidator often has cost synergies in the model from day one; Verdani does not.
Start here
Have one honest conversation. Decide from there.
Tell us about your business. We will give you a straight view on whether there is a fit, and what a partnership with Verdani could look like for you.
- No NDA at this stage and no obligation
- Completely confidential. Nothing goes further
- You will speak to Lee or Scott, not an analyst
- We reply within one working day
Prefer to talk? Call 020 3475 5475
or email info@verdanicapital.co.uk
or message us on WhatsApp