Close · Specialty Distribution

Representations & Warranties Drafting for Specialty Distribution Independent Sponsors

Securities and M&A counsel for independent sponsors drafting specialty distribution transactions, from LOI to close to the capital markets that open up afterward.

EV range $10M to $100M EV EBITDA $2.5M to $18M Audience Buy-side / Sponsor
The deal context

Representations & Warranties Drafting on specialty distribution deals is one of those workstreams that looks routine on a checklist and decides outcomes in practice.

The typical specialty distribution platform sits at $10M to $100M EV with EBITDA in the $2.5M to $18M range. The thesis runs on vertical buy-up of niche product distributors. Most distribution multiples are wrong by half a turn until the rebate accounting gets normalized.

The moves

How Representations & Warranties Drafting actually gets structured.

  1. Anchor on a modern PE-style rep package, not an asset-purchase boilerplate.

  2. Distinguish fundamental reps from general reps in survival and cap structures.

  3. Negotiate knowledge qualifiers to defined-person knowledge, not constructive knowledge.

  4. Coordinate the rep package with the R&W insurance carrier's underwriting.

  5. In specialty distribution, layer in supplier reaffirmation letters before LOI signs as part of the Representations & Warranties Drafting workstream.

The common mistake

Drafting reps without reading the disclosure schedules. The schedules are where the risk actually lives.

Jason's take
"Reps and warranties are a risk allocation. Draft them like risk allocation."
Jason Powell · Representations & Warranties Drafting
Capital after close

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

Refinancing, recaps, growth rounds, and the right strategic conversation eighteen months early are all downstream of relationships that take years to build and minutes to use.

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

Bring the specialty distribution deal. Get Representations & Warranties Drafting 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.