THE UK’S LARGEST BUSINESS ACQUISITION TRAINING EVENT
Three Days of Live Training: How to Find, Fund and Complete a UK Business Acquisition
Over 13,000 people have attended this event since 2020.
Watch this video first
Our 21-Step Acquisition Process, taught alongside the UK's largest business-buying community
“It gave me a process I could actually follow, and I went on to buy my first business.”
"The negotiation sessions changed how I valued a business and how I made an offer. I would have overpaid without them."
"Seeing real deal structures explained line by line was the part that made it feel possible rather than theoretical."
Individual results. Not typical, not guaranteed, and results will vary
"I Wouldn't Know Where the Money for a Deal Comes From."
That’s probably what you’re thinking right now. And I get it.
Most of us were raised to believe there’s only one path to owning a business. Work harder. Save more. Climb the ladder. Wait your turn.
Acquisition funding is the part almost nobody is taught, and it is the part FastTrack spends a full day on.
Cara came from a single salon and now runs a group, and hired her husband to help run it.
Simon has completed seven acquisitions.
David built a group and later sold it.
Jay runs a portfolio of businesses remotely from Spain.
Tim was a primary school teacher and is now a business owner.
And hundreds more.
They followed the 21-step system you will discover at FastTrack.
A structured process for finding, assessing, funding and completing the purchase of an established, profitable business.
This page tells you exactly how it works, and how to get started.
Individual results. Not typical, not guaranteed, and results will vary.
What You Will Actually Be Able To Do Afterwards
Define what kind of business you are looking for and why.
Read a set of accounts and know which lines matter.
Understand how vendor finance, deferred consideration and asset-backed lending work, and which professionals to involve at which stage.
Leave with a written plan for the next thirty days.
And before you think “that sounds great for other people, but my situation is different”, meet some of the people who have sat where you are sitting:
"I planned to grow my financial services business organically. After FastTrack I went the acquisition route instead, and it reshaped the whole plan."
"Honestly, if you are looking to acquire a business, save yourself thousands and get on the course. It's the small things that cost you, and Jonathan's plan catches them along the way."
"Just do it. The longer you wait, the more excuses you will come up with. I met my deal partners at FastTrack. Together, we've now bought three businesses."
Jas on How He Structured His First Acquisition
Tim, a Primary School Teacher, on Going From Employed to Business Owner
Brian Went From Beginner… To Nearing His First Deal
Three Days. One Proven Path. A Complete Plan You Can Execute Monday Morning.
DAY 1: TODAY, YOU STOP WATCHING AND START DOING
You’ll arrive at the venue, always in the inspiring countryside, and join a small group of people who, like you, have decided to stop circling and start acting.
By the end of Day 1, you’ll have:
✔ Your target sector identified and validated, based on my “sector filter” that narrows 10,000 options to the 3 to 5 that match your goals, experience and risk profile
✔ Your acquisition criteria written down – the size, revenue range, and type of business you’re looking for
✔ Your first approach scripts: the exact words to use when you contact a business owner
✔ A clear understanding of how to find off-market deals that 90% of buyers will never see
What you’ll discover:
▶ The 21-Step Acquisition System: how to find, fund, negotiate and close a deal from start to finish
▶ The single fastest way to find motivated sellers, which most buyers miss entirely
▶ Why business brokers are not your friends, and how to use them to your advantage anyway
▶ The “coffee shop script” that gets sellers to open up in minutes
▶ How to spot the 3 seller types instantly, and which one to target first
▶ Why everything you’ve read about “multiples of EBITDA” is a sucker’s game
▶ The hidden line in financial accounts that tells you whether to walk away
DAY 2: TODAY, THE MONEY QUESTION GETS ANSWERED
This is where it gets real. You’ll see how deals are actually structured, with real numbers from real transactions.
By the end of Day 2, you’ll have:
✔ Your funding strategy mapped: which of the 8 funding routes fits your specific situation
✔ Your funding route chosen, and the reason it beats the other seven
✔ A clear view of what these deals look like in practice, from Mastermind members who are mid-deal right now, with your questions answered in the room
What you’ll discover:
▶ The 8 deal structures sellers actually say yes to
▶ How vendor finance is structured, and what sellers expect in return for offering it
▶ What legal and due diligence actually cost on a £1m deal, and where the bill runs away
▶ How to detect when a seller is lying – before it costs you
▶ The 7 red flags that scream “walk away now”
▶ What banks and funders need to see in a proposal before they say yes
▶ The exact words to use when making your first offer
▶ Why most accountants and solicitors kill deals, and how to stop them
DAY 3: TODAY, YOU BECOME A DEALMAKER
Day 3 is about what happens after you buy, and it’s what separates owning a business from being employed by one.
By the end of Day 3, you’ll have:
✔ Your complete 30-day action plan written: what to do Monday morning, who to send letters to, what to say
✔ Your first 10 target businesses identified (real companies, researched during the event)
✔ A post-acquisition growth strategy: how to increase the value of the business you buy
✔ Membership of the UK’s largest community of active business buyers
What you’ll discover:
▶ What to do in the first 100 days after acquisition so the handover holds and the numbers stay on track
▶ How to avoid buying yourself a job, and instead own a business as an asset
▶ The key levers that increase the value of a business after you acquire it
▶ “Buy and Build”: why five businesses sell for more than five businesses
▶ How to create your 100-day action plan so you never lose momentum
"Where does the money for an acquisition actually come from?"
This is the single most common question I get. And it’s the reason I bring my right-hand man, Martin, to every FastTrack event.
Martin is my “funding wizard” who analyses over 50 live deals every single week, and when you see what he does, you’ll understand why.
During a dedicated session at FastTrack, Martin will walk you through the exact mechanics of how UK acquisitions are funded, and which routes apply to which kind of deal.
He’ll show you:
▶ How vendor finance works, and why more sellers offer it than you would expect
▶ How earn-outs and deferred payments are structured, and what sellers accept in return for them
▶ How much of the price a lender will advance against assets, and how much against cash flow
▶ Which lenders are actively funding acquisitions right now, and what they need to see in your proposal to say yes
▶ The exact deal structures that are getting approved this month. Not last year, not in textbooks, this month
You’ll leave Martin’s session knowing what vendor finance typically covers, what lenders are approving this month, and what the money actually costs.
You Cannot Learn This In Isolation. The Company You're In Matters As Much As The Content You Consume.
Here’s something you won’t find on any other training event.
Scattered throughout the room at every FastTrack are at least 10 current Mastermind members, people who are actively in the middle of finding, funding and closing deals right now.
They’re not there to sell you anything. They’re not planted. They’re there because they want to give back to the community that helped them, and because I’ve asked them to be available to you.
Because it’s capped at 30, you actually get time with people.
During breaks. Over dinner. In the bar after the evening session. At the lunch table. You can walk up to any of them and ask the questions that really matter:
▶ “What was your first deal like? Were you terrified?”
▶ “How did you find the time while working full-time?”
▶ “What would you do differently if you started again?”
▶ “How long did it take between the training and your first acquisition?”
The people who get this done rarely do it alone. They surround themselves with people who are already doing what they want to do. FastTrack puts those people in the seat next to you for three days.
Join 13,000+ Dealmakers In The UK’s Largest Business Buying Community…
Why 2026 Is An Unusual Year To Be A Buyer
Three forces are pushing more owners towards a sale than at any point in recent years.
- Tax rises are prompting owners to sell. Capital gains changes and rising business rates mean owners who were “thinking about selling someday” are selling today, often on terms they would not have considered two years ago.
- The baby boomer retirement wave is accelerating. There are hundreds of thousands of profitable UK businesses owned by people in their 60s and 70s who want to retire but have no succession plan. These owners are motivated, flexible on terms, and often willing to finance part of the deal themselves.
- Economic uncertainty shifts the terms towards buyers. When confidence is low, sellers accept lower prices, deferred payments and structures they would never have considered in a boom.
The most motivated sellers are selling now. By the time the market stabilises, the terms will tighten and the competition will be fiercer.
The same opportunity exists right now. The question is whether you’ll take it.
FastTrack Is Built For Three Types Of People. Which One Are You?
- You’re Employed And You Want Out.
You’re earning decent money but trading time for it. You’ve been thinking about “doing something on your own” for years, but starting a business from scratch feels slow and uncertain.
FastTrack shows you a different path: buy into a business that already has staff, customers and cash flow rather than building one from nothing.
James was employed full time and now owns a business.
- You Already Own A Business And Want To Grow Faster.
Organic growth is slow. You’re fighting for every customer, every percentage point of revenue. Or you could grow by acquisition rather than one customer at a time.
FastTrack shows you how: the exact process for finding, funding and integrating an acquisition into your existing operation.
Chris used the 21-Step Acquisition Process to acquire a business and grow his existing operation.
You’re A Property Investor Looking For A Different Asset.
You already think like an investor. You understand leverage, cash flow and asset acquisition. But you’re tired of poor yields, void periods and tenants who don’t pay.
Business acquisition uses the same investor mindset applied to trading companies rather than property, and the deal structures are different.
The skills you’ve built in property transfer directly. You’re not starting over. You’re changing vehicle.
And If You Go On To Join The Mastermind Programme, You’ll Also Receive…
These two bonuses are reserved for FastTrack attendees who decide to continue with the Mastermind Programme after the event.
✔ Full Recordings of All 3 Days — so you can revisit every session at your own pace.
✔ A hard copy summary of the key learning points from the Business Buying Strategies podcast, 360+ thirty-minute episodes condensed into one document.
The FastTrack Refund Terms
I don’t want your money if I can’t deliver.
So here’s the deal:
Attend all 3 days of FastTrack. Complete the workbook. Participate in the sessions.
If, at the end of Day 3, you don’t agree that FastTrack was the most valuable 3 days you’ve spent on your business this year, walk up to the desk, tell us, and you’ll receive a full, prompt refund of every penny you paid.
The only condition: you must attend all 3 days and complete the exercises. This isn’t a free holiday. It’s intensive training, and the refund is for people who show up, do the work, and genuinely feel it didn’t deliver.
Three Things People Get Wrong About Buying A Business
Myth #1: “You need to quit your job and do this full-time.”
Many people begin the process while working full time, and the early stages are research-led. Buying a business is only time consuming when you are using trial and error.
Myth #2: “This is only for people with a finance background.”
FastTrack starts from first principles: reading a set of accounts, valuing a business and structuring an offer. The three days also help you decide whether acquisition suits you.
Myth #3: “It’s impossible to find good deals.”
Thousands of profitable businesses are available to buy each year. Many are never publicly listed or go unsold. Learning how to approach owners directly opens up off-market opportunities most buyers never see.
Why Listen To Me? Because I've Done What I'm Teaching You. Over 70 Times.
I’ve written three books on business acquisition. I’ve recorded 360+ podcast episodes and produced 500+ YouTube videos. I’ve built the largest community of dealmakers in the UK, over 13,000 people and growing.
But here’s what matters most about my background:
I don’t have a business degree. Everything I know comes from the real world, from doing deals, making mistakes, and learning what actually works versus what sounds good in a textbook. In fact, I dropped out of university.
I’ve failed. Not every deal I’ve done has been a success. The failures taught me the red flags and risk management strategies that I now teach at FastTrack.
I’m still active. I’m not someone who did a few deals in 2005 and now sells courses about it. I’m acquiring businesses right now, in the current market, using these exact strategies. I don’t sell courses. I help people implement.
Today I spend my time teaching the 21-step system I built over 25 years of deals, and being present for my family. That is the work I do now, and it is what I teach.
FastTrack is three days with me and my team for £99 +vat.
This Isn't a Virtual Event. It's Three Days in the Room, Not on a Screen.
FastTrack takes place at carefully selected country houses in the UK.
You’ll arrive to rolling grounds, a private setting away from distractions, and the kind of environment where leaders and decision-makers have gathered for centuries.
Your ticket includes everything:
✔ Lunches and dinners
✔ All training materials
✔ Access to Jonathan and his team throughout
✔ Special guest presentations from successful Mastermind clients
✔ Martin’s funding masterclass
✔ 10+ Mastermind members available to you throughout the event
✔ Roughly one experienced dealmaker for every six attendees
✔ Real deal breakdowns. Real answers to your specific questions
FastTrack seats are strictly limited to 30 people so you get greater access to my team. This doesn’t happen on a webinar or a Zoom call. It happens when you’re in the room.
A Word About What Happens After FastTrack
I want to be completely transparent with you.
On the afternoon of Day 2, I’ll briefly explain how the Dealmakers Mastermind Programme works.
The Mastermind is our 12-month (or 36-month) programme for people who want ongoing mentoring, deal support and access to the wider Dealmakers community. It’s where many FastTrack graduates go next.
This is not a hard-sell presentation.
It’s simply a chance to see what the next step looks like, and decide, on your own terms, whether it’s right for you.
By the time we reach that point, you’ll already have spent nearly three days with Mastermind members who are actively buying businesses. You’ll have spoken with them, asked questions and heard their stories. So you’ll already know whether it’s something you want.
Some people attend FastTrack purely for the three days of training and never join Mastermind. They still tell us it was one of the most useful three days they have spent on their business.
Either way, FastTrack stands on its own.
What Happens After You Secure Your Seat?
Once you reserve your place at FastTrack, we’ll guide you through everything step by step so you arrive prepared and ready to get the most from the three days.
- Choose your event date
Select the FastTrack date that works best for you and secure your seat. Each event is capped at 30 so everyone gets time, attention and access. - Receive your FastTrack welcome pack
You’ll receive a confirmation email with all the details you need, including the event schedule, venue information and what to expect over the three days. - Access the pre-event preparation training
We’ll send a short series of pre-event videos so you arrive already understanding the fundamentals. - Our team will reach out
A member of the Dealmakers team will contact you before the event to answer questions, explain how everything works, and make sure you feel clear and ready. - Arrive at the venue and meet your fellow dealmakers
Spend three focused days learning the acquisition system, meeting other business buyers, and working directly with Jonathan and the team.
Leave with a clear 30-day action plan
By the end of the event you’ll have your first target businesses identified, your acquisition criteria defined, and a practical plan for moving towards your first deal.
There Are Two Types Of People Reading This Page Right Now
The Professional:
Invests in expertise from people who’ve actually done it. Follows a proven process rather than cobbling together YouTube videos. Takes action quickly and decisively. Builds a team of advisors. Treats business acquisition as a serious discipline.
The Dabbler:
Watches free content endlessly but never acts. Thinks they can figure it out alone. Waits for “the right time” (which never comes). Lets fear of the unknown paralyse them. Stays a spectator.
FastTrack is built for the Professional. It’s not for the Dabbler.
If you’ve read this far, I suspect you’re a Professional, or you want to become one. Either way, this is your moment. The process is proven. The opportunity is real. The only variable is you.
Are you a spectator – or a Dealmaker?
Still Have Questions? Everything You Need to Know Before Booking
Why is it only £99 +vat if it's so good? What's the catch?
Three days with this team is worth a great deal more than £99, but you would not pay thousands to people you have never met. So the low ticket price is deliberate: an easy way for you to spend three days with us before committing to anything more.
Aha! So you're going to hard sell me for three days, are you?
In fact, the exact opposite. We know that professional people absolutely hate being pitched to. You’d walk out. So, if you want to find out how we can help you buy your first business and hold your hand throughout the process (with all the legal and financial support you need), then stay AFTER we finish the training to find out more. Or just leave at that point. It’s up to you.
Got it. Tell me how much this support and training will cost me...
A lot less than your lawyer or accountant. Fees range from £12k to £30k depending on how much help you want and for how long. There’s no pressure to become a client, but you should at least be in a position to do so if you like what you see, and you’ll find that what we do for you is excellent value for money.
But if this guy is so good, why isn't he doing it, rather than teaching it?
It’s BECAUSE he’s good that he can teach it. You wouldn’t want to learn from someone who didn’t have a track record. Jonathan “retired” aged 50 when he had the chance to cash out and walk away, and since then he has focused on Dealmakers.co.uk and making it the premier place for entrepreneurs to learn dealmaking. Over 70 acquisitions and business sales, to and from private equity and trade, big ones and small ones in all different sectors, some amazing, some not so. He’ll share his experience, warts and all. Jonathan is the first to say he’s not a perfect guru. He’s someone who learnt from trial and error over 27 years, and can now shortcut your learning with a system developed from experience.
Do I need capital of my own to do a deal?
It depends entirely on the deal, the seller and the lender. Acquisitions are usually funded from a combination of sources, and part of the training is working out which combination a given deal can support. Anyone telling you there is a single answer is selling you something.
It’s a lot more than the money though: finding the right deal, negotiating price and terms, navigating the personal elements of spouses and adult children in the business, getting external finance, coordinating the professionals for due diligence and legal, negotiating the sale and purchase agreement, planning the first 100 days of ownership, then getting it over the line. We can help you with all of that. We’ve done it many times with people who started just like you, on the FastTrack course.
I've never bought or owned a business in my life. Isn't this for people who already understand finance and M&A?
How will I know how to manage a business in a sector I'm unfamiliar with?
Jonathan will show you how to buy bigger businesses which already have a tier of management. You are not expected to work in the business. In fact, buying businesses that are larger with management already in place makes them easier to finance.
Three days is a lot of time out of my life. I'm too busy for that.
Yes, it is a lot of time, but that’s why we don’t waste your time. From the moment you arrive you’ll be welcomed as a guest, and by lunchtime on the first day you will know that you made the right decision. When you are in a room full of like-minded people your whole thinking changes. You start thinking bigger. You start thinking of possibilities. Most people describe it as the most useful three days they have spent on the subject.
Why would anyone sell a good, profitable business?
It’s the question everyone asks, and the answer surprises people: most owners don’t sell because the business is failing. They sell because they’re done. Retirement with no children who want it, ill health, burnout, a divorce, a fallout between partners, or simply twenty years in and no exit in sight. Those owners care more about a clean handover and their legacy than squeezing the last pound out on day one, which is exactly why deferred terms and vendor finance work. You’re solving a problem the owner already has.
What if I buy it and it all goes wrong once it's mine?
Buying badly is expensive, which is why the process front-loads the due diligence: the accounts, the customer concentration, the contracts, the people. Where risk remains, it is priced into the terms, through deferred consideration, warranties and retentions, so the seller carries part of it. FastTrack teaches that process, including when to walk away.
Where do I actually find good businesses to buy? Aren’t all the best ones already owned?
This is one of the biggest misconceptions about buying businesses. Most of the deals we teach people to find are not sitting on business-for-sale websites waiting for you. In fact, we generally prefer to approach suitable business owners directly and find opportunities off market. Jonathan will show you how to decide what type and size of business makes sense for you, how to build a list of potential acquisition targets, how to approach owners, and how to start conversations with people who may never have formally put their business up for sale. And you don’t need to find hundreds of businesses. You need to find one good deal where the numbers work, the owner has a genuine reason to sell, and the terms can be structured in a way that works for both sides. That’s a process, and it’s exactly the process we teach you on FastTrack.
Secure Your Seats Today
Choose your preferred FastTrack date and location below. Each event has limited places.
3 days of live training · Full refund terms · Only 30 places per event
Business Buyer’s FastTrack Ticket
£99+vat
6th-8th
October 2026
- 3 days of training.
- Special guest sessions
- Martin’s funding masterclass
- Access to 10+ Mastermind members
Business Buyer’s FastTrack Ticket
£99+vat
13th-15th
October 2026
- 3 days of training.
- Special guest sessions
- Martin’s funding masterclass
- Access to 10+ Mastermind members
Business Buyer’s FastTrack Ticket
£99+vat
3rd-5th
November 2026
- 3 days of training.
- Special guest sessions
- Martin’s funding masterclass
- Access to 10+ Mastermind members
Latimer House, Buckinghamshire
Business Buyer’s FastTrack Ticket
£99+vat
17th-19th
November 2026
- 3 days of training.
- Special guest sessions
- Martin’s funding masterclass
- Access to 10+ Mastermind members
Horsley Estate, Surrey
Business Buyer’s FastTrack Ticket
£99+vat
1st-3rd
December 2026
- 3 days of training.
- Special guest sessions
- Martin’s funding masterclass
- Access to 10+ Mastermind members
Windsor Estate, Windsor
You Now Have Two Options
Path One: Close this page. Go back to watching YouTube videos. Keep telling yourself “I’ll do it next time.” Another year passes. Nothing changes. The 2026 buying window closes. The motivated sellers sell to someone else. You stay exactly where you are.
Path Two: Invest £99 +vat. Spend 3 days at a country estate with me, my deal team, my funding specialist, guest speakers who’ve done what you want to do, and 10+ Mastermind members who’ll answer any question you have. Walk out with a complete system, a written plan, a community of dealmakers, and the confidence to make your first approach on Monday morning. And if I’m wrong, if it’s not worth your time, you get every penny back.
There is no Path Three. You cannot learn this from the audience. You can’t prepare forever. At some point, you have to step out of the audience and onto the stage.
This is that moment.
Only 30 seats per event.
