How white-label EOT delivery works with your firm
Some firms want to stay closely involved at every stage and use us as a back-office function. Others want to introduce the client, keep the relationship, and let us run the transaction. Both work. The difference is how much of the client contact you keep — and that is entirely your call.
Two ways of working
| Compared on | You stay front-of-house | You hand it over |
|---|---|---|
| Who the client hears from | You. We brief you before every stage and join calls only when you ask us to. | Us, introduced by you. You are copied on everything. |
| Whose name is on the work | Yours. Our reports and models carry your branding. | Ours, with you named as the introducing adviser. |
| What you do | Client meetings, presenting the feasibility outcome, gathering the numbers. | The introduction and the ongoing accounts. |
| What we do | Feasibility, valuation, structure, legal coordination, HMRC, employee comms, aftercare. | The same. |
| Fee split | Higher share to you, reflecting the work you carry. | Introducer share, agreed up front. |
| Best for | Firms building EOTs into their own advisory offer. | Firms that want the client kept and the complexity gone. |
The five stages, and who does what
1. Feasibility
We check trading status, control, team, profitability and valuation expectations. Output: yes/no, ballpark value, fixed-fee quote. Two to four weeks.2. Valuation
EBITDA multiples, discounted cash flow and sector comparisons, then a repayment schedule tested against the forecast. HMRC expects market value; so do the employees.3. Legal setup
Trust deed, SPA, loan notes, trustee appointments. Reserved legal work is done by qualified solicitors we work alongside.4. Telling the team
When, how and what to say. Town halls, written Q&As, one-to-ones. This is where deals are won or lost with the people.5. Aftercare
Trust compliance, the £3,600 bonus scheme, trustee advice and repayment monitoring — through you, for as long as the client wants it.
What we will never do
- Market to your client. They are your client. We do not add them to lists, cross-sell or approach them after the deal.
- Cut you out. Every document, model and email is shared with you. If a client contacts us directly, you hear about it the same day.
- Sign off an optimistic valuation. We stress-test the numbers because a deal the business cannot repay hurts the client, the employees and your relationship with both.
- Pretend an EOT fits when it doesn’t. Feasibility ends in a no when it should. Where a management buyout or share options serve the client better, we say so.
Questions firms ask us
How much of the technical work do we need to understand?
As much as you want. Some partners want to be able to explain the structure themselves; we can brief your team for that. Others want to hand over the moment the client says yes. Either way you are never asked to advise on something you are not comfortable with.
Who handles the legally reserved work?
Qualified solicitors. Drafting the trust deed and the share purchase agreement is reserved legal work; we coordinate it with legal partners who do EOTs regularly, and the cost is inside the fixed fee.
What if the deal falls over at feasibility?
Then it stops. The feasibility fee is the only cost incurred, the client has a clear answer, and you have shown them a route most advisers never mention.
Can we start with one client?
That is how most firms start. There is no volume commitment.
Got a client this could fit?
A 20-minute call about your firm and the client you have in mind. You keep the client whatever happens.
- Fixed fees, agreed split
- Your name on the work
- No marketing to your client
No volume commitment. Most firms start with one client.
Written by Parag Patel | Strategy and Tax Planning Consultant
Parag leads the Exit Better team at JLA Accountants, advising owners on employee ownership, succession and the tax that comes with both.
About the team