May 12, 2023

By Generational Equity May 11, 2023, 15:00 et Generational Equity , a leading mergers and acquisitions advisor for privately held businesses, is pleased to announce the sale of its client, Carter Associates, Inc., to LJA Engineering, Inc. The acquisition closed April 27, 2023. Carter Associates, Inc. (CAI), located in Vero Beach, Florida, is a diversified, full-service civil engineering and land surveying firm. CAI is an icon in the Indian River County and Treasure Coast areas, with its rich history of regional development dating back to 1911 when founder Robert D. Carter designed a canal drainage program near what is now Vero Beach, which changed 55,000 acres of marsh into useful salable land. This still-functioning canal system, now managed by Indian River Farms Water Control District, continues to drain much of Indian River County and the City of Vero Beach. To this day, CAI continues to provide District Engineering services for Indian River Farms Water Control District as well as all the other six (6) Water Control Districts in the County. CAI works closely with County and many other agencies, districts, and surrounding counties on water and utility systems, agricultural systems, and land development. Located in Houston, Texas, LJA Engineering, Inc. (LJA) is an employee-owned, full-service, comprehensive multi-disciplinary consulting firm. With offices across the nation, they offer one-source, one-stop reliability for all of their clients, when and where they are needed. LJA is organized around eight comprehensive sectors and can seamlessly build successful project teams with civil, structural, and electrical engineers, plus hydrologists, planners, landscape architects, construction managers, GIS designers, and surveyors. Its resources are leveraged across the firm to deliver expertise-driven teams, increase responsiveness to client-specific needs, and individualized project solutions. Generational Equity Executive Managing Director, M&A-Technology Practice Leader, David Fergusson , and his team, led by Alan Steinberg, a Generational Group Authorized Affiliate, with the support of Vice President, M&A, Emil Nirkis, successfully closed the transaction. Senior Managing Director Doug Morrow established the initial relationship with CAI. “Carter Associates were intent on finding a buyer that would continue the legacy established for over one hundred years. They found the perfect partner in LJA Engineering,” said Steinberg. About Generational Equity Share this press release I need to say an immense thank you to Don Ho for his stellar work ethic, attention to detail, and tireless effort. Also thank you to the whole crew at GE! Without you, Don could not do such a phenomenal job. We were shooting for closing and funding before the end of 2020, due to the uncertainty of the political landscape and taxes. I am happy to report we closed last week and will be funding tomorrow. Dr. Caty J. Catron PhD, RN, VA-BC – Owner, Vic The Picc, LLC We thank you Eric and Generational Equity making our dream come true. Larry Moore, Owner, A Company Portable Restrooms T.D., thank you so much! You are a great leader! I love how you are using your gifts and talents to better others. You are clearly a GREAT COACH! This 3 day session undoubtedly changed the future of our business, and very well may have been the sole catalyst to save my company, my health and my marriage! A genuine “thank you” from the bottom of my heart. Bryan D. Horn, Owner, Over Under Clothing I quickly recognized that Don was working for Sharpe Mixers above all else, and held our interests above others. Jay Dinnison, Owner of Sharpe Mixers I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for all that you have done for us. Not only did you take care of all the aspects of the sale but took extra care to make sure we knew what it looked like every step of the way. I will definitely recommend your company to anyone that is in a position to or looking to exit their business. Shane and Johanna Kline, Owners of Vision Upfitters Generational Equity educated and informed us – so that we could be on the upside of a good decision (to sell). Bil MacLeslie, CEO, ipHouse I must say that I have never worked with a more driven, competent and focused individual as Don Ho. Jay Dinnison, Owner of Sharpe Mixers Michael worked tirelessly, He followed every lead meticulously and urgently to make sure nothing was missed. Robert Evans, President and CEO of Mealtracker Dietary Software I wanted to write you a quick letter to express our appreciation and our delight on the outcome of helping us through the process of our recent sale. We are very happy with the end result, and are very happy to be able to move forward with all of our future growth plans. Terry D. Wickman, President, Keytroller The professionals at Generational Equity then helped develop a roadmap for enhancing the value of the firm and an evaluation report. This was completed by June 14, 2021. We then developed the Confidential Information Memorandum and put Taylor Studios, Inc. on the market by July. Generational Equity’s professional staff helped me every step of the way. Their network and professionals are the only reason I sold my company this quickly. For me this is a once in a lifetime sale and I was unfamiliar with the process. I was able to lean on them with questions and concerns. Betty L. Brennan, President, Taylor Studios I couldn’t have asked for a better team than Michael and Deborah. We couldn’t have done it without them. Robert Evans, President and CEO of Mealtracker Dietary Software We are very happy with the end result, and are very happy to be able to move forward with all of our future growth plans. Rick Nowak, President/CEO, Kurz Electric Solutions, Inc. We were represented by Michael Goss with Generational. The due diligence was grueling and exhausting, but Michael propped us up and kept us motivated throughout the process. Debi and I continued to ask each other how we could possibly make it through this process without the assistance of Michael. Michael's professionalism and knowledge is absolutely amazing, and we are so blessed to have had him by our side as we made our future dreams come true. Bob and Debi Lee, Owners of BL Technology, Inc and BL Tl Services, LLC We were happy to see the interest in our company and what we cherished has not just a valuable company but an important company to the communities we served in. Larry Moore, Owner, A Company Portable Restrooms Generational Equity’s assistance was invaluable in compiling and marketing our business. Bil MacLeslie, CEO, ipHouse Through the sale process, Generational brought in several interested buyers and we closed in about 6 months. I am so glad I accepted that invitation to the conference and could not be happier with the whole process. The team at Generational coupled with their knowledge and guidance was so valuable that in the end, I know I could never have done this on my own! JoAnn Ellis, Owner of Fondren 5 Star Kennels Greetings Mike. Thank you for the captivating and compelling presentation you made at the Phoenix presentation last week. Over many years in business yours was the most informative and well-presented presentation, on any subject, that I have ever attended! Your energy and enthusiasm combined with your concise and captivating support of your positions with easily understood examples and data was compelling. Pete L. Thanks to you, the entire GE team and especially Michael Goss for driving a great valuation, coaching me and driving the process across the finish line. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to support GE going forward. P.S. Given my experience with GE I felt comfortable enough to sign up with Generation Wealth Advisors! Tom Currier, Former President & CEO, Rackmount Solutions The help you provided us during each step of this process made us feel very comfortable and confident we were selecting the right approach to transition our Company. Andy Graham, Vice President, Modern Heating & Plumbing We had the pleasure of working with Mr. Ahmad Behjati Managing Director, M&A, for Generational Equity during our acquisition of Papa's Dodge in late 2021. Generational Equity and Mr. Behjati represented and marketed Papa’s Dodge. As our primary contact, Mr. Behjati was professional in every facet of this acquisition process, conveying valuable advice most times and assisting us in every step of the process. Rick Greene of Dobbs Equity Partners LLC We knew it would be a difficult task to have someone really understand our business and our market, prior to researching a possible buyer, so it was imperative that we found someone of your caliber, with definite proven experience in this area. Rick Nowak, President/CEO, Kurz Electric Solutions, Inc. The most important contribution I think Ahmad made was with his personality and work ethic. He is sincere, efficient, and very hard working. He was available to me at all times, whether it was for specific detail of the negotiation or just to talk through the bigger picture. He listened, advised, and recommended, but never forced his idea or opinions. In the time we worked together, he became a valued colleague and also a friend. Salvo Stoch, Founder and CEO of Sleeping Partners I decided to attend the conference and hopefully receive some guidance on how to structure an exit plan of my business. Upon arriving at the conference, I was so impressed with the presentation given by Generational Equity that I set a future appointment that week to discuss the possibility of selling my business with their Senior Managing Director David Robinson. JoAnn Ellis, Owner of Fondren 5 Star Kennels Thank you again for all your guidance and support. Any company will achieve what they intend, if they have you on their team! Rick Nowak, President/CEO, Kurz Electric Solutions, Inc. After attending a conference with GE, I decided that the value they bring would be worth the expense and as soon as I started working with them, I realized that was the right decision. When we started to get LOIs, Fred Zweifel took the lead on the communication and supported negotiations throughout the process, which got tricky as we moved forward. I learned that it can be common for companies to make a great offer then work to erode that price with their discoveries, but Fred and the GE team kept that from happening. Caroline Connelly, CEO, OptoTest