Stephen Groves

Stephen Groves is a versatile professional with significant experience in brokering the sale of medium-sized private businesses and undertaking highly complex, contentious and unusual valuations of businesses, interests in businesses and intangible assets.

Stephen practises as a business broker for the sale of medium-sized private businesses and as an expert valuer of businesses, interests in businesses and intangible assets.

Prior to founding Groves & Partners, Stephen was a Partner in the transaction and valuation services division of a multi-discipline professional services firm. Stephen’s earlier career spans professional roles in transactions, valuations, and accounting as a practitioner and within a listed steel manufacturer.

Whilst a highly versatile professional, Stephen has built his professional career and reputation without attempting to be everything to everyone. In doing so, Stephen focuses strongly on his primary areas of expertise in brokering the sale of medium-sized private businesses and in undertaking expert valuation engagements, whilst encouraging and supporting his clients to seek out other advice from their established advisors and other professionals where required.

Stephen has an extensive professional network, holding strong relationships with a significant number of accountants, lawyers, insolvency practitioners, private investor groups and industry colleagues across Australia and in select markets overseas. Stephen values his professional network and places a significant focus on supporting other professionals with technical guidance on matters within his primary areas of expertise.

Stephen is known for acting as a complementary professional and instils this approach across all practitioners at Groves & Partners. In doing so, Stephen prioritises comprehensive, clear and timely communication throughout the course of all engagements with his clients and their other advisors such as accountants and lawyers. Stephen believes this is vital in his areas of practice to ensure surprises are avoided and to ensure advice is commercially grounded.

Business Broker for Medium-Sized Private Businesses

Stephen has significant experience in brokering the sale of medium-sized private businesses which he defines as businesses with an enterprise value of between $5 million and $100 million. Stephen is practice group leader of Groves & Partners’ business brokerage practice and the National Chairperson of the Australian Institute of Business Broker’s Merger and Acquisition Chapter.

Stephen’s execution of medium-sized business sale transactions is highly focused on completing strategic business sales that present value uplift for both vendors and purchasers. Stephen commonly completes such strategic business sales through selling his client’s businesses to their competitors, suppliers, customers and to listed companies and private equity backed groups who are likely to gain efficiencies and uplift as a result of acquiring the subject business. 

Stephen believes that a strategic approach to completing business sales is commonly the most effective and commercially successful method with which to transact a medium-sized private business. In undertaking strategic business sales, Stephen has a strong focus on maintaining and managing confidentiality, managing transaction timelines, and achieving a premium transaction price and competitive terms.

Noting Stephen’s specialty in undertaking strategic business sales, Stephen is very selective in accepting instructions to undertake business brokerage engagements, only acting on transactions that he firmly believes are suitable for the conduct of a strategic business sale. Stephen commonly refers clients to other brokers and advisors in circumstances where they are not a suitable match for his expertise.

Stephen’s natural flair for negotiations, coupled with his extensive training and experience in this area mean that his clients benefit from securing strong deal terms that suit their unique commercial and personal circumstances. 

A sample of publicly announced deals recently brokered by Stephen are summarised below:

• Acquisition of Orimatech by Maytronics: Stephen advised the owners of Orimatech on the sale of their business to Maytronics [TLV:MTRN], a listed Israeli manufacturer and wholesaler of pool equipment.
• Merger of Silicon Controls and Anova: Stephen advised the owners of Silicon Controls, an Australian-based provider of telemetry services to the oil and gas industry on their merger with Anova, a US-based, private equity backed industrial services provider.
• Acquisition of BaptistCare’s CareCall by The INS Group: Stephen advised BaptistCare NSW on the sale of their electronic monitoring business CareCall to medical services business The INS Group.
• Merger of Hunt & Hunt with Cappello Rowe: Stephen advised the Partners of Cappello Rowe, a law firm with multiple locations within New South Wales, on their merger with national law firm Hunt & Hunt.

Valuer of Businesses, Business Interests and Intangible Assets

Stephen has significant experience in preparing independent expert valuations of businesses, business interests and intangible assets. Stephen specialises in preparing valuations for business sale, acquisition and succession matters and in preparing valuations for taxation requirements and restructuring matters. In addition, Stephen often accepts instructions to prepare valuations as an expert witness for litigation.

Stephen is a member of the Registered Business Valuer’s Education and Standards Committee and lectures on Advanced Financial Analysis and Bases of Value at Registered Business Valuer courses. Stephen has appeared multiple times as an expert witness in Courts within Australia regarding valuation matters and regarding the interaction of valuations, due diligence and business transactions. 

Stephen’s approach to undertaking valuations is highly commercial. Whilst acting in the capacity of an independent expert, Stephen is highly experienced at quickly understanding the underlying commercial drivers of businesses and communicating the valuation impacts of such commercial matters in his valuation advice.

Most of Stephen’s valuation clients are referred to him from accountants, lawyers and insolvency practitioners from various firms located across Australia, including mid-tier accounting firms and large law firms. Stephen’s valuation clients span a range of industries and sizes and have included large private companies and the Australian subsidiaries of significant international groups.

Stephen does not disclose the identity of his valuation clients, however a sample of recent valuation engagements on a de-identified basis are outlined below:

• Supreme Court of New South Wales: Valuation of a company established to develop a rail freight terminal in regional New South Wales.
• Liquidation: Valuation of gold mine located in the Northern Territory.
• Taxation and Transaction: Valuation of large ‘yellow goods’ wet and dry hire group.
• Taxation: Valuation of four companies which together operate a group of approximately 50 building supplies outlets.
• Liquidation and restructuring: Valuation of wagering business with online platform.
• Liquidation and restructuring: Valuation of large refurbishment, redevelopment, fit out and construction services company.
• Transaction: Valuation of large wholesaler of fuel and manufacturer of fuel tanks.

Working With Stephen

Most of Stephen’s clients are referred to him from previous clients, other industry practitioners and professionals such as accountants, lawyers and insolvency practitioners.  Stephen primarily practices from our Sydney and Brisbane offices but commonly engages with clients across Australia and internationally.

Stephen provides complimentary and confidential consultations to prospective clients and their advisors. To schedule a meeting with Stephen, contact him using the below details.