Pre-close · Marketing Agencies

Independent Sponsor State Tax Planning in Marketing Agencies

Planning State Tax Planning on marketing agencies deals, with the structure protection and capital connectivity an independent sponsor actually needs.

EV range $5M to $80M EV EBITDA $1.5M to $14M Audience Buy-side / Sponsor
The deal context

State Tax Planning on marketing agencies deals is one of those workstreams that looks routine on a checklist and decides outcomes in practice.

The typical marketing agencies platform sits at $5M to $80M EV with EBITDA in the $1.5M to $14M range. The thesis runs on specialty agency or holdco platform with bolt-ons. If the founder leaves, half the agencies in the market lose 25% of revenue. Structure for that.

The moves

How State Tax Planning actually gets structured.

  1. Map nexus exposure in every state the target operates in, including remote workers.

  2. Plan sales tax succession liability, particularly in California, New York, and Texas.

  3. Address pass-through entity tax (PTET) elections where federal SALT cap matters.

  4. Document state-by-state qualification for the new entity post-close.

  5. In marketing agencies, layer in client roster scrubbed for top-five concentration as part of the State Tax Planning workstream.

The common mistake

Assuming state tax is a closing-mechanics issue. It is a valuation issue when the historic liability is large.

Jason's take
"State tax is where the seller's lawyer forgot to look. The buyer always pays for it."
Jason Powell · State Tax Planning
Capital after close

The deal is one thing. The capital that opens up after close is another.

After close, the call list for refinancing, recapitalization, and growth equity gets short and known. Jason carries that list.

MONTH 18
Senior refi
MONTH 24
Dividend recap
MONTH 36
Growth equity
YEAR 4–5
Strategic exit
WORK WITH JASON

Bring the marketing agencies deal. Get State Tax Planning done right.

Direct counsel from a securities and M&A attorney with billions in structured transactions, the independent-sponsor-native playbook, and the capital markets network that opens up post-close.