Our Mission
JKC was founded in 2001 with a clear mission: to provide the best available investment banking services to Middle-Market companies, the entrepreneurs who lead them, and the financial entities that transact with them. For additional background and detail about the founding of JKC, please visit our Video Library and view "Why We Founded JKC."
Profile of Experience
On a consolidated basis JKC personnel offer expertise in investment banking services to Middle-Market companies owned by affiliated larger privately held and publicly traded corporations, private equity groups, families, partnerships, and sole proprietors. A summary of our experience includes:
- Over 200 business transactions as investors, owners, operators, investment bankers, buyers of Middle-Market companies or sellers of Middle-Market companies
- Thorough knowledge of transaction structuring and utilization of the various capital components of the Balance Sheet: senior debt, mezzanine debt, preferred equity, and common equity
- Extensive activity with private equity transactions, including more than 12 years of experience as a partner in private equity groups
- More than 25 years of senior executive and management experience in the leadership of Middle-Market companies
- Representation of businesses ranging in size from $10 million to $650 million in revenues
- Our History
- Our Focus
- Our Process
- Your Expectations
Jordan Knauff & Company (JKC) was founded in 2001 by G. Cook Jordan, Jr. and Thomas E. Knauff with a clear purpose: To provide professional and sophisticated investment banking services to the Middle-Market of North American business.
Prior to starting JKC, Mr. Jordan and Mr. Knauff spent their careers as owners of, operators of, and investors in Middle-Market companies. As part of their responsibilities, they hired investment banks to perform various capital markets services. Those investment banking relationships ranged from well-known bulge bracket entities to lower Middle-Market firms.
Mr. Jordan and Mr. Knauff were often disappointed with the quality of the work. From those experiences came the realization that the Middle-Market was in need of competent investment banking services. They believed they could provide effective investment banking services superior to what they received. JKC is a result of those experiences.
Since its formation in March 2001, JKC personnel have delivered successful outcomes to over 100 clients across the full spectrum of our services: sell companies, raise capital, acquisition advisory, and strategic business services.
We focus exclusively on the Middle-Market of North American business. Typically, these companies are entrepreneurially managed and are controlled by a family, a partnership of owners, a sole-proprietor, or an investment entity such as a private equity firm or a family office. We define “Middle-Market” as companies with annual revenues of $10 million to $300 million and/or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of $1 million to $30 million.
The capital event needs of these companies tend to differ from larger corporations. The companies, entrepreneurs, financial institutions, and investors in the Middle-Market require knowledgeable transaction advisors who are experienced in all aspects of this market. Having knowledge of each of these entities, and how they ultimately work together, is critical if a transaction is to result in a successful outcome.
Our professionals leverage their expertise and invest the necessary time to review the options, methodology, and strategies for achieving successful outcomes in capital transactions. As part of our services, we assist clients with the management of important internal constituents (employees, customers, vendors, and lenders) and we collaborate with their other advisors (legal, tax, and accounting) to create a complementary team approach to negotiating with the transaction counterparties.
Whether we are engaged in the sale of a company, a capital raise, or acquisition advisory, our experience as owners of, managers of, and investors in Middle-Market businesses enables us to provide professional services that enhance the probability of delivering successful outcomes for our clients.
Capital transaction work is process driven. The process is critical because value in a transaction is the intersection of competition, the strength of the underlying business, honesty, the needs and wants of the buyer, the motivation of the seller, the tenor of the times, and the investment banker’s ability to manage an orderly process that delivers a successful outcome.
Throughout the process, we believe important roles of the investment banker include:
- To establish and maintain credibility with all transaction counterparties; and
- To establish, maintain, and resuscitate, as required, momentum in the process
Our process starts with detailed preparation. Foresight, gained from years of experience, means our clients are prepared and are not surprised by the various challenges of transactions.
As part of the establishment of credibility, we bolster our preparation with research. A rarity among Middle-Market investment banks, JKC has a full time, dedicated research specialist. Our professionals, our materials, and therefore our clients, are well versed in market trends, industry analyses, and the landscape of strategic and financial targets.
Whether selling a company, raising capital, or advising on an acquisition, our professionals utilize their practical experience and are supported by in-house research to provide proactive leadership, direction, and effective process management. All of which contribute to closings that meet or exceed the expectations of our clients.
Our experience, preparation, research, and leadership allow us to define and enumerate our clients’ attributes. This is important for Middle-Market companies because they often have intangible qualities that create value which goes beyond simple calculations based on traditional financial multiples.
In all of our activities, we desire to be judged by our clients and transaction counterparties by what they should expect from us:
- Integrity
- Professionalism
- Candor
- Accountability
- Results
