The Opportunity
A national labor and employee relations consulting firm that employers call when a union organizing campaign begins. When a representation petition is filed, the firm places experienced consultants on site within days to work with supervisors and employees through the NLRB election window. It also delivers preventive audits, leadership and HR consulting, and campaign media produced in house.
The asset is the bench of consultants. Approximately 20 senior consultants, including former union officials, corporate HR leaders, nurses, healthcare executives and attorneys, are matched to each client’s industry, language and workforce.
The founder delivered the work himself until about three years ago. He then stepped back, rebranded the firm away from his own name and brought in senior consultants to deliver engagements. Revenue grew from $1.5M in 2023 to $4.2M in 2024 because growth no longer depended on his time. Today, his role is limited to consultant relations, industry networking and fielding inbound calls.
Costs are almost entirely variable. Consultants are paid only when deployed, so there is no idle payroll, and adjusted EBITDA margins have exceeded 30% in every period presented. Demand is rising: NLRB union election petitions reached 3,286 in fiscal 2024, double the fiscal 2021 level, and employers spend an estimated $442M a year on union avoidance consultants (EPI and LaborLab, 2026).
Financial Summary
| $ in thousands | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | TTM Sept 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 1,561 | 1,504 | 4,235 | 4,802 | 6,016 |
| Gross Profit | 503 | 747 | 1,304 | 1,666 | 3,118 |
| Seller’s Discretionary Earnings | 276 | 582 | 1,143 | 1,519 | 3,020 |
| Adjusted EBITDA | 101 | 407 | 969 | 1,344 | 2,850 |
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | 6.5% | 27% | 22.9% | 28% | 47.3% |
Accrual basis. Adjusted EBITDA is net of a market rate replacement salary for the owner.
Growth Levers
- HR training. Most competitors earn the majority of their revenue training HR departments on union avoidance. This firm does none today.
- Annual retainers. Preventive audits and supervisor training are naturally recurring and can be packaged into contracted programs for the existing client base.
- Marketing. Advertising spend in the trailing twelve months was zero. All growth has come from referrals by employer legal counsel, prior clients and the consultants themselves.
- Sales. There is no CRM and no outbound seller. A first commercial hire would be selling a brand that already wins national enterprise work.
Ideal Buyer
HR consulting and workforce advisory platforms, private equity groups building in HR and compliance services, direct competitors seeking the bench and the healthcare client base, or an operator with labor relations or HR leadership experience.