M&A Advisor in Seattle: 2026 Sell-Side Guide for LMM Owners

Updated Q3 2026

If you are a founder or owner exploring a sale in the Puget Sound region, choosing the right M&A advisor in Seattle is the single decision that will most shape your exit outcome. Seattle sits at the intersection of enterprise software money, aerospace supply chain scale, and a maturing home and commercial services roll up wave. The advisor bench here is deep, the buyer pool is unusually national for a market this size, and the fee structures reflect both. This guide walks through who serves Seattle sellers, what fees look like against national lower middle market benchmarks, which private equity firms sit inside the metro, and how the Seattle sale process differs from the rest of the state. For context on the broader statewide bench and how metros compare, see our Washington M&A advisor overview.

What does an M&A advisor in Seattle actually do?

An M&A advisor in Seattle is a sell-side investment banker or intermediary who prepares your Puget Sound company for market, quietly runs a competitive process against strategic acquirers and private equity, negotiates the letter of intent and definitive terms, and shepherds the deal through diligence and close. In Seattle the role often includes navigating Washington State excise tax structuring, aerospace supplier certifications, and cross border interest from Vancouver BC and Asia Pacific buyers.

The advisor’s job is not to answer a single inbound call from a stranger who found you on LinkedIn. It is to build a target list of 50 to 200 qualified buyers, tell your story consistently across a confidential information memorandum, generate multiple competitive letters of intent, and negotiate use into the definitive agreement so that the after tax check that lands in your account reflects the real value of the business you built.

In the Seattle metro this work carries a few local wrinkles. First, the tech overhang from Microsoft, Amazon, and the Vulcan universe means that even a $15M EBITDA industrial services business often sees interest from strategic acquirers who are not obvious. Second, the aerospace supply chain around Boeing brings AS9100 certification, Nadcap approvals, and specific insurance requirements into diligence conversations early. Third, cross border capital from Vancouver, Tokyo, Seoul, and Singapore is a real factor at the top end of the LMM, which changes how a Seattle advisor structures the process compared to a Kansas City or Charlotte peer.

Which M&A advisors serve Seattle LMM sellers?

The core Seattle bench for lower middle market sell-side engagements is Cascadia Capital, Zachary Scott, Alexander Hutton, and Chinook Capital Advisors. Cascadia covers the upper LMM into the true middle market at $50M to $1B enterprise value. Zachary Scott and Alexander Hutton anchor the traditional Pacific Northwest privately held sell-side. Chinook focuses on $10M to $100M revenue owners in the lower middle market.

Seattle LMM M&A advisory shortlist (verified)

Firm	Seattle location	Typical deal size	Sector focus	Website
Cascadia Capital	Downtown Seattle HQ	$50M to $1B EV	Tech, healthcare, business services, consumer, industrials, food and beverage	cascadiacapital.com
Zachary Scott	1200 Fifth Avenue, downtown Seattle	Middle market sell-side	Privately held Pacific Northwest companies, over $7B closed since 1991	zacharyscott.com
Alexander Hutton	Seattle HQ (Oaklins member)	Middle market sell-side and buy-side	Home services, manufacturing, healthcare, distribution; 232 closed transactions totaling $4.5B	alexanderhutton.com
Chinook Capital Advisors	Kirkland	$10M to $100M revenue owners	Lower middle market sell-side across diversified LMM	chinookadvisors.com

Cascadia Capital is the most visible tech and diversified banking brand out of Seattle. The firm advised on the sale of Cargas Systems in mid 2025 and has been consistently active across software, healthcare, and food and beverage. If your business is $8M EBITDA plus with a scalable growth story, Cascadia sits on almost every serious shortlist.

Zachary Scott is the quiet workhorse of Pacific Northwest sell-side, with a 34 year track record and more than $7B in closed transactions. The firm is deliberately small, deliberately Seattle, and deliberately focused on privately held owners who want a partner rather than a factory. Zachary Scott closed multiple 2024 to 2025 industrial and services transitions in the $20M to $150M enterprise value range.

Alexander Hutton is the local Oaklins member firm and brings a cross border reach into Europe and Asia that most other Seattle boutiques lack. With 232 closed transactions totaling $4.5B, the firm is the go to for owners who want a real international auction across home services, manufacturing, healthcare, and distribution.

Chinook Capital Advisors in Kirkland fills the true lower middle market gap. If you are a $2M to $8M EBITDA owner who feels priced out of the downtown bulge bracket experience, Chinook is where the process is scaled to your reality.

For context on how these Seattle firms slot into the broader statewide bench, including Spokane and Tacoma coverage, see the Washington state M&A advisor guide.

How do Seattle fees compare to national LMM benchmarks?

Seattle sell-side fees for lower middle market engagements track the national Lehman formula ladder with a modest premium in tech and healthcare specialty coverage. Expect a retainer of $25,000 to $100,000, monthly work fees ranging from $10,000 to $25,000, and success fees between 1.5% and 5% of enterprise value on a double or triple Lehman schedule.

The fee conversation in Seattle is shaped by two forces. On one side, the density of specialist bankers means that a strong owner can genuinely negotiate a competitive engagement letter, especially in software and healthcare where three or four firms will chase the same mandate. On the other side, the local buyer pool is deep enough that a Seattle advisor delivers real value for the retainer, so aggressive fee compression tends to hurt the seller more than it helps.

Typical Seattle LMM sell-side fee structure (2026)

Fee component	Typical Seattle range	National LMM benchmark
Upfront retainer	$25,000 to $100,000	$25,000 to $75,000
Monthly work fee	$10,000 to $25,000	$10,000 to $20,000
Success fee on first $5M EV	5%	5% (Lehman)
Success fee on next $5M EV	4%	4%
Success fee on next $10M EV	3%	3%
Success fee above $20M EV	2% to 1.5%	2% to 1%
Minimum success fee	$200,000 to $500,000	$150,000 to $400,000

Two Seattle specific notes on fees. First, tech focused engagements at the upper LMM often include a tiered kicker above a target valuation, which rewards the advisor for pushing past the mid case. Second, aerospace and industrial sellers should push for a defined scope on international outreach because incremental cross border work materially changes the process timeline and the underlying cost.

What EBITDA multiples are Seattle businesses selling for in 2026?

Seattle LMM businesses in 2026 are transacting broadly in line with national medians, roughly 5.0x to 7.5x EBITDA in traditional services and industrials, with tech enabled and healthcare services stretching to 8.0x to 12.0x for scaled platforms. Aerospace supply chain sits in the 5.5x to 8.0x range depending on certifications and customer concentration.

These are directional bands, not offers. What actually determines a Seattle multiple in the current environment is the combination of recurring revenue mix, customer concentration, EBITDA quality, and the depth of the buyer universe your advisor can actually reach. A $6M EBITDA software business with 90% net revenue retention will trade meaningfully above a $12M EBITDA industrial services shop with three customers accounting for 60% of revenue.

Illustrative Seattle LMM EBITDA multiple bands (2026)

Vertical	Typical EBITDA multiple range	Notes
Enterprise software and cloud services	8.0x to 14.0x	Multiples driven by ARR, NRR, and gross margin profile
Healthcare services	7.0x to 11.0x	MSO and platform premium; single site closer to 5.0x
Aerospace supply chain	5.5x to 8.0x	AS9100, Nadcap, and Boeing tier position matter
Home and commercial services	5.0x to 7.5x	Route density and technician retention drive premium
Food and beverage	6.0x to 9.0x	Premium for branded consumer with distribution
Industrials and distribution	5.0x to 7.0x	Discount for cyclicality; premium for niche IP

Which PE firms have offices in Seattle?

Sixty plus private equity firms hold Seattle area offices actively deploying capital in the lower middle market. Notable local names include Frazier Healthcare Partners, Rainier Partners, Westward Partners, WestRiver Group, Endeavour Capital, Evergreen Pacific Partners, Trilogy Equity Partners, and Kirtland Capital Partners.

Seattle is a top tier West Coast private equity hub outside California, driven by the Microsoft and Amazon talent flywheel that has spun out both operators and capital into the region over the last two decades. For a sell-side process this matters because the local PE presence delivers two things: a faster first meeting cycle and a more informed diligence process, both of which shorten timelines and reduce process risk.

Frazier Healthcare Partners anchors the healthcare specialist ecosystem. Endeavour Capital and Evergreen Pacific Partners are the traditional generalist Pacific Northwest workhorses. Rainier Partners and Westward Partners are newer growth focused names with meaningful capital deployed into lower middle market platforms. WestRiver Group and Trilogy Equity Partners bring a technology and growth equity lens. Kirtland Capital Partners covers the industrial and consumer LMM.

Beyond the local shops, virtually every national LMM sponsor has at least one Seattle originator, whether formally in an office or covering the metro from San Francisco or Chicago. A capable Seattle M&A advisor should be able to name 40 to 60 sponsors as active for your specific vertical without hesitating.

What are the dominant Seattle M&A verticals in 2026?

The dominant Seattle M&A verticals in 2026 are enterprise software and cloud services, healthcare services, aerospace supply chain, food and beverage, and home and commercial services. Software drives the headline dollar volume; healthcare services and home services drive the majority of the LMM deal count.

Enterprise software and cloud services benefit from the density of engineering talent flowing out of Amazon and Microsoft, plus a mature venture capital ecosystem that generates a steady pipeline of $2M to $50M ARR businesses ready for sponsor recapitalization. Healthcare services runs through Seattle’s major health systems and a growing MSO wave in dermatology, orthopedics, and behavioral health.

Aerospace supply chain remains structurally important given Boeing’s regional footprint, though buyers now diligence customer concentration more aggressively than they did five years ago. Food and beverage in the Pacific Northwest has produced a durable line of branded consumer platforms, with Seattle firms consistently active on both the sell-side and the strategic acquirer side. Home and commercial services, driven by the same roll up thesis reshaping HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and landscaping nationally, is now a consistent 25% plus of announced regional LMM deal count.

For metro to metro context on how these verticals compare across the state, revisit the Washington state M&A advisor page.

Which local law firms and accounting practices handle Seattle sell-side deals?

The Seattle sell-side legal bench is anchored by Perkins Coie, K&L Gates, and Davis Wright Tremaine. The accounting and quality of earnings bench is anchored by Baker Tilly (formerly Moss Adams) and CliftonLarsonAllen. These five firms cover the overwhelming majority of privately held sell-side transactions running through the metro.

Seattle sell-side legal and accounting bench (verified)

Firm	Discipline	Seattle role	Website
Perkins Coie	Corporate law and M&A	Seattle HQ; broad corporate and M&A group covering PE backed exits, founder and family transitions, and roll ups; currently pursuing a global tie up with Ashurst	perkinscoie.com
K&L Gates	Corporate law and M&A	Seattle HQ; Tier 1 ranked for Seattle M&A by Best Law Firms in 2024 and 2025; covers mid to cross border billion dollar deals	klgates.com
Davis Wright Tremaine	Corporate law and M&A	Seattle HQ; active middle market M&A across tech, media, and healthcare	dwt.com
Baker Tilly (formerly Moss Adams)	Accounting, QoE, tax	Seattle HQ; sell-side and buy-side quality of earnings, tax structuring, and diligence for LMM sellers	bakertilly.com
CliftonLarsonAllen	Accounting, QoE	Seattle office; LMM transaction advisory including QoE, working capital, and post close support	claconnect.com

Perkins Coie is the largest homegrown Seattle firm and one of the deepest M&A benches in the Pacific Northwest. The firm has recently been active on the Seneca Group merger with Cumming Group and is currently in a widely reported global tie up conversation with Ashurst. If you are running a founder led exit and want a partner track lawyer with deep Puget Sound relationships, Perkins is a default first call.

K&L Gates in Seattle carries a Tier 1 ranking for M&A from Best Law Firms in both 2024 and 2025. The firm has an international footprint that is genuinely useful when your process is likely to attract cross border interest from Canada, Japan, or Europe.

Davis Wright Tremaine is the reliable middle market operator, particularly strong in technology, media, and healthcare where Seattle boutiques often lead the banking mandate.

Baker Tilly (formerly Moss Adams) is the accounting bench that Seattle sellers reach for by default. Sell-side quality of earnings, tax structuring, and diligence support are all in scope. The Moss Adams rebrand to Baker Tilly closed in 2025 and the Seattle team is largely intact.

CliftonLarsonAllen rounds out the accounting bench with a Seattle office focused on LMM transaction advisory, including QoE, working capital, and post close support. For owners running a competitive engagement letter process, having Baker Tilly and CLA both quoting is a useful pricing check.

How does selling in Seattle differ from selling elsewhere in Washington?

Selling a business in Seattle differs from selling in the rest of Washington in three main ways: the buyer pool is meaningfully deeper and more national, the local advisory and legal bench is deeper, and the process timeline is often tighter because of that competitive intensity. Sellers in Spokane, Tacoma, or the Tri-Cities frequently retain a Seattle advisor to reach the same buyer universe.

In practice a $5M EBITDA services business in Seattle will typically see 20 to 40 qualified indications of interest, of which 8 to 15 convert to letters of intent. A comparable business in Spokane or Yakima might see 10 to 20 IOIs and 4 to 8 LOIs, largely because the local advisor bench is thinner and because national sponsors index their sourcing effort toward the metro.

The state excise tax and Washington’s lack of a personal income tax also change the after tax math. Seattle sellers typically clear more on the after tax check than a comparable seller in Oregon or California, which is a real factor for owners weighing whether to move the business before selling.

The counterpoint is that Seattle deals move faster and diligence is more aggressive. Sponsors expect a full quality of earnings, clean cap table, and a data room built to institutional standards before signing the LOI. A rural Washington seller may get one more round of forgiveness on documentation gaps; a Seattle seller typically does not.

What questions should you ask a Seattle M&A advisor?

Before signing an engagement letter with a Seattle M&A advisor, ask about their last five closed transactions in your vertical, how many sponsors they can name for your specific business, what their process timeline looks like, how they handle strategic outreach into Vancouver BC and Asia Pacific, and how the engagement letter treats a broken deal.

1. What are your last five closed transactions in my sector, by size and buyer type? Named references beat generic firm marketing every time.
2. How many sponsors and strategics will you approach, and can you name the top 20 today? If the advisor cannot rattle off 20 credible buyers from memory, the target list is either shallow or generic.
3. What is your process timeline from launch to close, and what does the CIM look like? A typical Seattle process runs 4 to 7 months. Ask to see a redacted CIM.
4. How do you handle Canadian and Asia Pacific outreach? Cross border interest is real at the upper LMM and needs explicit process attention.
5. How does the engagement letter treat a broken deal, and what is the tail on the success fee? Tails typically run 12 to 24 months post termination; anything longer is aggressive.
6. Who on the team will actually run my deal, and how many active mandates do they have right now? Bandwidth matters as much as brand.
7. How do you coordinate with my QoE provider and M&A counsel? A good advisor works with Baker Tilly, CLA, Perkins Coie, K&L Gates, and Davis Wright Tremaine on a rotating basis and knows how to sequence workstreams.
8. What is your view of my realistic valuation range today, and what would move it up 15%? A candid answer here separates real advisors from pitch machines.

CT Acquisitions perspective. Seattle is one of the few US metros where a founder can realistically run a competitive engagement letter process, because the local bench is that deep. Owners we work with typically interview three advisors before signing, and the winning firm is rarely the one with the flashiest deck. It is almost always the team that can name 30 buyers from memory, walk through two comparable transactions in the last 18 months, and articulate a genuine point of view on where your valuation lands and why. The Seattle market rewards preparation and punishes shortcuts. Owners who invest three to six months in QoE, contract cleanup, and management team narrative before launch consistently clear 10% to 20% more at close than owners who go to market cold.

Related CT Acquisitions guides

These companion guides cover the sell-side process end to end. Read alongside this page for the full picture on fees, timelines, and buyer archetypes.

• M&A Advisory Pillar Guide (2026)
• Buy-Side M&A Advisory
• Lower Middle Market M&A Advisor
• Business Appraisal Cost 2026
• Investment Bank Fees LMM 2026
• Quality of Earnings (QoE) Guide
• M&A Advisor for HVAC Business
• M&A Advisor for Plumbing Business
• M&A Advisor for Orthopedic Practice

Frequently asked questions

How long does a typical Seattle sell-side process take?

A well run Seattle LMM sell-side process typically takes 4 to 7 months from formal launch to closing, with an additional 2 to 3 months of pre launch preparation. Software and healthcare deals sometimes compress to 3 to 5 months when the buyer universe is unusually engaged.

Do I need a Seattle based advisor if my business is in Tacoma or Bellevue?

For most Puget Sound businesses the answer is yes. Bellevue and Tacoma sellers routinely retain Seattle downtown advisors because the buyer relationships and the process infrastructure sit in Seattle. If you are in Spokane or the Tri-Cities the calculus is closer, and a Seattle advisor plus a strong local accountant is often the right combination.

What EBITDA size is too small for a Seattle investment bank?

Most Seattle boutiques focus above $2M EBITDA. Chinook Capital Advisors will engage from roughly $10M in revenue upward. Below $2M EBITDA, a Pacific Northwest business broker or a nationally focused LMM intermediary is usually a better fit than a downtown Seattle boutique.

How much of the sale process is confidential?

A properly run Seattle process is confidential from launch through LOI. Buyers sign nondisclosure agreements before receiving the CIM, and the seller is typically referred to as Project (codename) through the initial rounds. Full disclosure to employees and customers happens after the LOI is signed and diligence is well underway.

Should I run a broad auction or a targeted process?

For most Seattle LMM sellers a targeted process of 40 to 80 buyers outperforms a broad auction. Broad auctions leak, exhaust management bandwidth, and often produce weaker terms because the winning buyer knows the process is stale. A targeted process led by a bench like Cascadia Capital, Zachary Scott, Alexander Hutton, or Chinook Capital Advisors is the Seattle default.

How do Seattle strategics compare to private equity as buyers?

Seattle strategics, particularly in enterprise software and healthcare, often pay premium multiples for genuine platform fit but move more slowly and demand a higher bar on cultural alignment. Private equity typically closes faster, offers rollover equity, and can be more flexible on deal structure. A good advisor will run both tracks in parallel and let the market decide.

What is the role of the ACG Seattle Northwest Middle Market Growth Conference?

The ACG Seattle Northwest Middle Market Growth Conference is the single most important annual gathering for Pacific Northwest middle market M&A. Advisors, sponsors, and strategics use it to compare notes, source deals, and take pulse readings on the local market. If you are a serious LMM seller, having your advisor attend and quietly plant a flag is a real signal.

Where can I read more about the broader Washington M&A market?

Start with the Washington state M&A advisor overview for a statewide bench comparison, then return here for Seattle metro depth.