About Northmarch
A practical view of what a business can become.
Northmarch Advisory was formed to help owners and investors in family and closely held businesses navigate transition.
The business reality
A successful transition begins with the business itself.
Before an owner can determine whether to transfer the company to the next generation, sell it, or pursue another course, the owner must understand the strength of the enterprise, whether it has been built to endure beyond its present leadership, and how it will be viewed by the market.
An owner’s objectives matter, but they do not alone determine what is possible. The market in which the business operates has its own life cycle, competitive forces, and changing demands, all of which shape the company’s prospects and the transition paths realistically available.
The company’s financial performance, operations, workforce, competitive position, and need for future investment also influence those options. If a sale is contemplated, the market for the business itself will have a further say in whether the company can be sold, how it will be valued, and what a buyer will require.
What can be improved
A clear-eyed path forward.
These factors are not necessarily fixed. With sufficient time and the right assistance, an owner can address underlying concerns, strengthen the enterprise, and improve its readiness for transition.
Northmarch helps identify the issues that matter, distinguish what can be changed from what must be accepted, and develop a practical course of action designed to preserve and realize value.
Legal, financial, and other professional advisers each bring essential expertise to this process. But they often encounter the business from the outside, through the lens of a particular discipline. Northmarch begins inside the enterprise.
We seek to understand how the business actually operates, what drives its value, where its vulnerabilities lie, and what the owner wants to accomplish. That understanding provides the foundation for objective decisions about the available paths and what each would require to execute successfully.
How Northmarch works
Working alongside the owner.
Northmarch works alongside owners, investors, and their existing advisers to bring these considerations together. We help clients understand their options, choose a realistic direction, and, when requested, support its implementation in coordination with their broader family and estate planning.
Scott Fewell, Founder
Experience from both sides of the decision.
Scott Fewell brings more than three decades of experience advising, operating, and leading closely held businesses.
Over twenty-five years in legal practice, Scott’s work evolved from litigation into a broader business practice focused on advising owners and closely held companies through disputes, transactions, and periods of consequential change. He subsequently served as general counsel, chief operating officer, and chief executive officer of an aerospace manufacturing company.
During ten years as CEO, he was responsible for the full range of issues affecting enterprise value, including operations, workforce, capital requirements, customer relationships, and ownership transition. He successfully prepared the company for sale and led it through the transaction and due diligence process.
That combination gives Scott a perspective that is both advisory and operational. He understands the work of professional advisers, but he also understands what it means to be responsible for the business itself: to make decisions with imperfect information, address weaknesses before they become transaction problems, and guide an organization through the demands of transition and sale.
Northmarch was founded to bring that experience directly to owners and investors facing decisions that will shape the future of the business and the people who depend upon it.
Begin a conversation