IBA is a referral driven company. A majority of the business owners we represent in the sale of their businesses come to us via referred recommendations of past clients, attorneys, accounting professionals, commercial or residential realtors, bankers, wealth advisers, private equity firms, or companies and individuals who have conducted business in the past with International Business Associates (IBA).

I, personally, also found IBA by way of a referral from one of my most trusted advisers, my father, Michael Kovsky. Dr. Michael Kovsky was a client of IBA when he sold his veterinary practice, the Animal Medical Clinic in Portland, Oregon, in 1983. Following the transaction, he always spoke glowingly about the representation he had received in the sale of his hospital and the related real estate. This endorsement cemented IBA in my mind as the premier brand in the business brokerage community in the Pacific Northwest. It also generated an easy recommendation when conversations with friends and business colleagues turned to the purchase or sale of privately held companies and family owned businesses.

In the spring of 1994, I returned to the Pacific Northwest from the Midwest ready for a career change. Many career opportunities were available to me based on my business acumen, education, integrity, and work ethic; however at the recommendation of my father, I scheduled a meeting with then IBA president, G. William Ososke, to discuss potentially joining IBA as a mergers & acquisitions broker. On the basis of IBA’s corporate culture, leadership position in the mergers & acquisitions community, and the economic upside potential with the firm, I joined the company as a business brokerage professional.

My first six years with the company passed rapidly as I rose in the company from the position of “rookie” broker to sought after mergers & acquisitions professional to managing broker for the Washington state territory. On the basis of this effort and the positive impact I had on the company, Bill Ososke approached me in 2000 to discuss his desire to downsize his managerial responsibilities and relinquish control of the helm of IBA. This preliminary conversation led to a succession plan where in December of 2000, I succeeded my friend & mentor as president of the company. I assumed this position with great honor and a sense of responsibility as the second steward & guardian of IBA’s reputation & legacy in the Pacific Northwest. I am now deep into my third decade as president of IBA and am pleased to report that the company continues to be viewed as the premier mergers & acquisitions firm in the region.

The foundation of IBA’s reputation and past success has always been the quality, experienced, professionals on its staff and their ability to confidentially sell privately held companies and family owned businesses with integrity employing knowledge, experience, a professional skill set as intermediaries in negotiations & deal facilitation, and a collaborative process with legal, accounting, and banking professionals employing “best practices”. I promise that this core element of our company will not change in the future. We will continue to be the regional leader in mergers & acquisitions in terms of the volume of Main Street and Middle Market transactions we successfully facilitate, integrity, knowledge, experience, and professional business acumen as business intermediaries in negotiations & deal facilitation.

I welcome your telephone calls and emails (gregory@ibainc.com). Please contact me if I can supply you with any information regarding IBA, the professional representation we provide our clients, or serve as a business community resource on any subject related to the purchase & sale of a privately held company or family owned business. I also encourage you to visit & read our blog and watch the videos on our website related to the services we provide our clients. Both were created to provide information to the entrepreneurial community about issues & subjects relevant to business brokerage and the knowledge & experience found at IBA and available to our clients.