Commercial Electrical Contractor, 25-Year Norfolk County MA

$2.5M

Revenue

$1.2M

SDE

4.6x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

This is a commercial electrical contracting business based in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, that has been operating since 2000 and generated more than $2.8 million in top-line revenue in 2025 (the listing's financial fields cite $2,541,435 in gross revenue, likely a trailing or normalized figure). The company has carved out a durable niche in commercial electrical work and, per the seller, is running so hot that it regularly turns away available work. That is a rare and valuable signal in the trades: demand is not the constraint, capacity is.

Operations run on a lean team of 7 (4 full-time, 1 part-time, and 2 contractors) that the listing describes as experienced, long-tenured, and low-turnover with internal leadership potential. That team structure is the crux of the deal. On roughly $2.5M of revenue the business throws off $1.2M in cash flow, a stunning ~47% owner-earnings margin for an electrical contractor, which strongly implies a working-owner who is deeply embedded in estimating, client relationships, and project management.

The seller is retiring and offering seller financing to qualified buyers, plus a 2-week transition. The asking price is $5.5M against $1.2M cash flow, a 4.58x multiple that sits at the high end for a sub-$3M revenue trades business. The real estate (a 3,000 SF owned building) is explicitly NOT included in the asking price, so a buyer should model a lease or a separate purchase on top.

Why we like it

The earnings quality is exceptional on paper: $1.2M of cash flow on $2.5M of revenue is a ~47% margin, roughly double what a typical commercial electrical contractor produces. That kind of margin usually reflects a lean cost structure and disciplined bidding, but it can also mean heavy owner labor is being counted as profit, so the number needs to be pressure-tested before you underwrite it.
Commercial electrical work is genuinely recession-resistant and non-discretionary. Buildings need power, code compliance, tenant fit-outs, and repairs regardless of the macro cycle, and licensed electrical labor carries a structural barrier to entry that protects pricing and keeps demand sticky across downturns.
The business is demand-constrained, not sales-constrained. The seller says they regularly turn down available work, which means growth does not require a new marketing engine, it requires more licensed capacity. That is a far easier and more predictable lever for a buyer to pull than trying to manufacture demand from scratch.
The team is described as experienced, long-tenured, and low-turnover with internal leadership potential. In the trades, the crew IS the asset, and a stable roster with a bench reduces the single biggest post-close risk: losing the field talent that actually does the billable work.
Seller financing is on the table and the owner is a motivated retiree, which gives a buyer leverage on structure. A meaningful seller note aligns the exiting owner with a smooth handoff and reduces the equity check needed to clear a $5.5M ask.

How to improve it

Immediately quantify how much work is being turned away and why. If the constraint is licensed electricians, build a recruiting and apprenticeship pipeline in the first 90 days so you can convert declined jobs into booked revenue rather than leaving margin on the table for competitors.
Add or formalize recurring revenue through commercial service agreements and preventive maintenance contracts. Electrical maintenance plans, code-compliance inspections, and emergency service retainers convert one-off project work into predictable monthly cash flow and raise the exit multiple.
Systematize estimating and project management so the business does not live in the seller's head. Document the bidding process, standardize markups, and put a PM tool in place so a new owner or a promoted lead can run jobs without the founder's tribal knowledge.
Push into higher-margin specialty commercial work such as EV charging installation, solar tie-ins, backup power, and building automation. These segments carry strong tailwinds in Massachusetts given state incentives, and they let you grow revenue without proportionally growing headcount.
Renegotiate the real estate arrangement early since the building is owned but excluded from the sale. Lock in a long-term lease at a market rate (or negotiate a separate purchase) so you are not exposed to a landlord who is also your retired seller with no obligation to renew.
Tighten pricing discipline and raise rates given the excess demand. If you are turning away work, you have pricing power, so test selective price increases on new bids to expand margin before you add cost by hiring.
Formalize a second-in-command with an equity or bonus incentive to de-risk the owner transition. With only a 2-week training window, retaining and elevating an internal leader is the difference between a clean handoff and a stalled business.

Diligence notes

Reconcile the ~47% cash flow margin against reality. Confirm exactly what add-backs make up the $1,200,496, how much of it represents the owner's own billable field and estimating labor, and what it would cost to replace that labor with a hire, because a large replacement cost meaningfully lowers true adjusted earnings.
Clarify the revenue discrepancy: the title and description cite $2.8M+ for 2025 while the financial field shows $2,541,435. Pull 3 to 5 years of tax returns and financials to understand the trend, seasonality, and whether 2025 was an outlier year or a sustainable run rate.
Analyze customer and project concentration. On a small base with only 7 people, a handful of repeat commercial clients or general contractors likely drives most revenue, so verify no single customer or GC relationship represents a dangerous share of the book.
Verify the licensing structure and whether it transfers. Confirm which master electrician license the business operates under, whether it belongs to the departing owner, and whether the buyer or an existing employee can legally hold or qualify for it post-close, since this is a deal-breaker in the trades.
Nail down the real estate terms before closing. The owned 3,000 SF building is excluded from the ask, so get a written lease or purchase option in place at a defined rate and term to avoid post-close leverage sitting entirely with the seller-landlord.
Assess backlog, work-in-progress, and how jobs are billed and collected. Review the current pipeline, retainage exposure, and accounts receivable aging to understand working capital needs and whether the demand story is backed by signed contracts or just anecdotal turned-away work.

Source

Originally listed on BizBuySell. View original listing →