Industries
Business valuations across every major sector
Business owners usually describe their company by its industry, not by valuation method, and rightly so. What drives value in a dental practice is not what drives value in a SaaS business or a construction contractor. We start from the factors specific to each sector, and never apply one formula to all of them.
01
Professional services
Value in professional practices sits largely in people and client relationships, so the line between personal and transferable goodwill is central.
| Sector | What we look at |
|---|---|
| Dental practices | NHS and private income mix, associate arrangements, goodwill and dependence on the principal. |
| Medical practices | Income streams, workforce, regulatory requirements and contracts. |
| Veterinary practices | Recurring clients, clinical teams, pricing and profitability. |
| Accountancy practices | Recurring fees, client retention and dependence on partners. |
| Law firms | Fee income, work in progress, partner structure and client retention. |
| Consultancies | Contract terms, staff utilisation and dependence on founders. |
| Recruitment agencies | Placement income, margins, contractor books and client concentration. |
02
Technology & digital
Technology businesses are often valued on growth and recurring revenue rather than current profit, which makes forecasts and retention data critical.
| Sector | What we look at |
|---|---|
| SaaS businesses | Annual and monthly recurring revenue, churn, growth and net revenue retention. |
| Software companies | Products, intellectual property, revenue model and development spending. |
| E-commerce businesses | Online revenue, marketplace dependence, inventory and traffic concentration. |
| Digital agencies | Retainers, staff costs and the share of recurring revenue. |
| Technology start-ups | Pre-revenue position, funding rounds, milestones and dilution. |
| Fintech businesses | Business model, regulation, technology and commercial risk. |
03
Commercial & industrial
Asset-intensive businesses require care to separate the value of the operating company from the value of physical assets, which are appraised separately where needed.
| Sector | What we look at |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | Plant dependence, capital expenditure, margins and working capital. |
| Construction | Contract book, work in progress, project margins and cash flow. |
| Engineering | Contracts, capabilities and customer concentration. |
| Logistics & transport | Fleet economics, customer contracts and operating margins. |
| Shipping & maritime | Charter income, fleet operating model, shipping cycles and liabilities. |
| Renewable energy | Project cash flows, energy contracts and operational risk. |
| Oil & gas | Commodity exposure, contracts and business cash flows. |
04
Consumer & service sectors
Location, staffing, leases and customer behaviour drive value in consumer-facing businesses, alongside the reliability of recent trading.
| Sector | What we look at |
|---|---|
| Restaurants | Earnings, location economics, staffing and lease terms. |
| Hotels & hospitality | Occupancy, profitability, seasonality and operating structure. |
| Franchises | Franchise agreements, fees, territory and contract rights. |
| Retail | Inventory, location, margins and customer behaviour. |
| Care businesses | Occupancy, regulation, staffing and cash flows. |
| Education & training | Student or client demand, recurring revenue and contracts. |
| Wholesale & distribution | Stock levels, customer concentration and working capital. |
A note on physical assets
In asset-intensive sectors such as shipping, energy and manufacturing, we value the operating business, not the physical assets themselves. Where a business owns vessels, plant, infrastructure or property, specialist valuations of those assets should be obtained separately, and we incorporate them into the business valuation.
Next step
Discuss a valuation in your sector
Tell us what needs valuing and why. We will confirm the scope, the information required, a timetable and a written fee proposal before any work starts.
- 01Instruction
- 02Scope
- 03Date
- 04Fee