Alex Hart
You built something real. I’ll tell you what it’s worth — and everything we discuss stays between us.
Free, confidential, and no obligation. Or call or text me at (208) 516-1641.
Alex Hart is a business broker with The Bristol Group.
Alex Hart with his wife Elise and their three sons.
About Alex
I’m Alex Hart, a business broker with The Bristol Group, based in Idaho Falls, Idaho, working with owners nationwide. I’ve been in this work more than ten years, and I came to it the owner’s way: I continued the family business and sold it. My accounting degree is from BYU-Idaho — it helps me read the financial statements and make sense of how a business really runs, the way a buyer’s accountant will.
Most owners I talk to built their business over years — sometimes decades. They aren’t looking for a sales pitch. They want to know two things: What is my business actually worth? And if I decided to sell, what would that look like?
It’s the part of the work I love most. Getting to know the business an owner has poured years into, then being a small part of helping them exit well and find its next owner — that’s the best seat in the deal.
Every conversation is confidential. I don’t contact your employees, your customers, or your competitors. Nothing is shared and nothing is listed until you say so. My own buyer list starts the search — real people who have told me what they’re looking for — and behind me sits The Bristol Group, a national firm with a buyer database of more than 20,000 buyers.
Some owners I talk to sell within the year. Some just want to know where they stand, and that’s fine too. Either way, you’ll know where you stand — including if I think the timing isn’t right.
What I never do
- I never contact your employees, your customers, or your competitors.
- Your business is never advertised under its real name.
- Buyers sign a confidentiality agreement before they see anything that identifies your business.
- Nothing is shared, and nothing is listed, until you say so.
Why owners call me
You’ll find out what your business is actually worth
Not a guess, and not a number designed to win your listing. A valuation grounded in your financials and in what buyers are paying for businesses like yours right now.
It stays confidential
Your employees, customers, and competitors don’t hear about it from me. Buyers sign confidentiality agreements before they see anything that identifies your business.
Buyers are already asking
I keep an active buyer list, and I’m constantly in touch with buyers about what they want to acquire. We know where the active buyers are — and that’s where your business gets put in front of them. If your business fits what they’re asking for, you’re not waiting around hoping someone shows up.
If the timing isn’t right, I’ll say so
If your business would sell better after a year of cleanup, I’ll tell you that — and tell you exactly what to clean up. I’d rather earn your trust now than your listing at the wrong time.
When the deal hits a snag, working the problem is my job
Things come up in almost every sale — the buyer’s financing stalls, an environmental report raises a question, the negotiation gets tense at the last minute. Solving those problems is one of my strengths. I help the seller and the buyer through them while your business keeps running — because a deal only counts if it closes.
You talk to me, start to finish
No handoffs, no call center. The person on the first call is the person who walks you through the closing.
How it works
A confidential conversation
We talk about your business, your goals, and your timeline. Nothing is recorded anywhere public, and there’s no obligation attached to the call. Book yours here.
A real valuation
I review your financials and prepare a confidential valuation of what your business would likely bring in today’s market. You see the number and the reasoning behind it.
Quiet marketing to vetted buyers
If you decide to move forward, your business is presented to qualified buyers from my buyer list and beyond — without your business name attached until a buyer has signed a confidentiality agreement and been screened.
Offers, negotiation, and closing
I bring you real offers, explain what each one actually means — price is only part of a deal — and stay on the process through due diligence to closing. Your business keeps running, and keeps its value, while it’s on the market because the process stayed quiet.
A decade of sales, across a lot of industries
For more than ten years I’ve helped owners sell — childcare, cleaning and janitorial companies, dry cleaners, flooring and interiors, an accounting practice, insulation and trades contracting, retail, pet care, healthcare, steel. Some here in Idaho, others across the country — including three sales already this year.
I don’t publish my sellers’ names — that confidentiality is the product. On a call, I’ll walk you through the sales closest to your business.
The firm’s own record is published here: The Bristol Group’s completed transactions.
Thinking about your number? Every one of these started as a confidential conversation. Book yours.
Businesses I work with
Established, profitable businesses with real staff and a track record — in any field. I can sell a business in any industry; a lot of my work happens to be in:
- Cleaning — commercial and janitorial companies, carpet cleaning, residential cleaning services
- Trades — HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and roofing companies
- Retail — established retail businesses with a location, staff, and history
That list isn’t a boundary — I’ve also sold childcare, an accounting practice, healthcare, and more. Whatever the field: if you’ve owned it for years, it makes money, and it can run without you doing every job in it, it’s worth a conversation.
For buyers
Looking to buy a business instead of starting one? I keep an active list of buyers and match them with businesses as they come available — including businesses that never reach the public listings. Join the list and I’ll contact you when a real match shows up.
Rather talk it through first? Book a call and tell me what you’re looking for.
Buyers sign a confidentiality agreement before receiving identifying details on any business. That’s how owners trust this process, and it protects the businesses you’re evaluating too.
Questions owners ask
Is it really confidential?
Yes. Our conversations stay between us. Your business is never advertised under its real name, buyers sign a confidentiality agreement before they learn which business they’re looking at, and your employees and customers don’t find out from me. Most owners’ biggest fear is word getting out and hurting the business — the whole process is built to prevent that.
What does it cost? Who pays the broker?
The valuation conversation is free. In most cases the seller pays the broker a success fee at closing, calculated as a percentage of the sale price — meaning if your business doesn’t sell, there’s no commission to pay. I’ll lay out the exact terms in writing before you sign anything, so there are no surprises.
How long does a sale take?
It varies, but most established businesses that are priced right sell in the range of 6 to 12 months from listing to closing. The valuation conversation itself takes one call — you’ll know where you stand long before you have to decide anything.
Am I big enough to sell?
Probably, if three things are true: you’ve been in business for years, you have employees (it isn’t just you), and the business makes a profit. Plenty of owners who assume they’re “too small” are sitting on the most sellable kind of business there is — one a buyer can actually run. The valuation call answers this question for your specific business.
What do I need for a valuation?
Typically your last three years of business tax returns or profit-and-loss statements, a current year-to-date financial snapshot, and a basic list of equipment and vehicles the business owns. Don’t worry about making it perfect — send what you have and I’ll tell you what’s missing.
I’m not sure I’m ready to sell. Should I still call?
Yes. Most of my first conversations are with owners who are a year or more away from selling. Knowing your number early lets you make decisions — about cleanup, timing, and structure — that put real money in your pocket later. The call costs you 30 minutes and commits you to nothing.
Alex lives in Idaho Falls with his wife Elise and their three sons — and works with business owners across the country.
Every inquiry is held in confidence, and an initial consultation carries no cost or obligation.