Divest
Divest is a New Zealand-based business brokerage and M&A advisory firm licensed under REAA 2008, helping private and commercial SMB clients buy, grow, and sell businesses across New Zealand and Australia through a small senior team.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersTakapuna, New Zealand
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Divest does
Divest is a New Zealand-based business brokerage and M&A advisory firm that helps private and commercial clients buy, grow, and sell businesses across local, regional, and international markets. Founded in 2013 and headquartered at Smales Farm in Takapuna, Auckland, the firm operates under a Real Estate Agents Act 2008 (REAA 2008) licence and runs a small team of senior M&A specialists, including overseas-investment expertise. The core service is full-life-cycle sell-side and buy-side representation covering valuation, marketing, buyer screening, negotiation, and transaction management, with active listings spanning SaaS, wellness, tourism, marketing, electrical, engineering, and facilities-services businesses at ask prices ranging from NZ$500K to NZ$15M.
The firm's product surface extends beyond brokerage into adjacent tools and platforms. It offers confidential business appraisal services, distributes a patented online business valuation scorecard via a partnership with B-star (typically available only through select accountants), maintains a wholesale-investor-only Investment Opportunities platform under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013, and operates a business-alert newsletter subscription service. Cross-border activity is supported through established referral relationships with New Zealand immigration advisers and lawyers, channelling overseas-investor demand into local SME acquisitions.
The business model is professional-services commission-based, with fees negotiated per transaction and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, relying on referrals, repeat clients, direct broker engagement via phone and email, and the website's listing catalogue as a demand-generation channel. Revenue concentration risk is low at the customer level but transactionally lumpy, given the binary nature of deal closures and the absence of recurring fees.
Divest firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Divest
- Legal name
- Divest Limited
- Website
- https://divest.co.nz
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Divest is a New Zealand-based business brokerage and M&A advisory firm licensed under REAA 2008, helping private and commercial SMB clients buy, grow, and sell businesses across New Zealand and Australia through a small senior team.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Divest industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Business Brokerage Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Divestitures, Carve-Outs & Spin-Off Advisory (FSAEAGAL)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Divestitures, Spin-offs & Carve-outs Advisory (BPAHADAJ), Distressed Business Sales & Turnaround Brokerage (FSAEAIAJ)
Keywords
Where Divest is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Takapuna
- HQ country
- New Zealand
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
Divest business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Business Sales and Acquisitions Commission: Divest earns fees for helping clients sell or acquire businesses. They provide M&A advisory, business valuation, and brokerage services to private and commercial clients, whether local, regional, or international. The company also offers business appraisal services.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Divest product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Divest is a business sale and acquisition company that provides a full life-cycle service helping clients buy, grow and sell businesses and companies across New Zealand. The firm connects business sellers with qualified buyers, delivers business appraisals and valuation services, and offers wholesale investors curated investment opportunities in pre-approved businesses for sale.
Product overview
Divest is a business sales and company transition specialist offering a suite of services for buying, growing, and selling businesses. The core offering consists of business sales and acquisitions brokerage services, supported by a patented business valuation tool and confidential appraisal services. Additional modules include an investment opportunities platform for wholesale investors and a business alert subscription service for tracking new listings. The company acts for private and commercial clients across local, regional, and international markets.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Business Sales and Acquisitions End-to-end brokerage service helping business owners sell their businesses and helping buyers acquire companies, with full life-cycle support from listing through settlement. Targeted at SME owners, investors, and corporate acquirers across New Zealand.
- Business Appraisal Service Professional valuation and appraisal of businesses, conducted by qualified registered business valuers to determine the market value of a company prior to sale. For business owners preparing to sell.
- Investment Opportunities Platform Curated platform showcasing wholesale investment opportunities in pre-approved businesses for sale, available exclusively to eligible wholesale investor clients.
- Business Alert Mailout Subscription Email subscription service that alerts subscribers to newly listed businesses for sale matching their criteria, keeping prospective buyers informed of fresh opportunities.
Quantifiable outcome
- Clients have achieved prices more than triple what other brokers predicted
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Divest
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Divest technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Divest partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- B-star Business Valuation Tool ProviderminorDivest offers clients access to a patented business valuation tool through B-star, usually only available through select accountants. This tool helps SME owners understand their business value.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Divest competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- VR Business Brokers: International business brokerage franchise specializing in SME sales and valuations. Comparable in service offering to Divest but at a much larger franchise scale and with North American dominance.
- Sunbelt Business Brokers: Large international business brokerage franchise network with ANZ presence. Comparable SME M&A brokerage focus to Divest but with a far larger broker network and broader geographic footprint.
- Harcourts NZ: Large NZ/AU real estate group with a business sales category. Overlaps with Divest in serving SME owners seeking to sell businesses, but operates as a much broader property-led network rather than a specialist brokerage.
- Bayleys Real Estate: Major NZ full-service real estate and business sales firm with a commercial/business brokerage division. Comparable because it competes for the same SME M&A mandates and buyer pool, but offers broader real estate services beyond business brokerage.
- Benchmark International: Global mid-market M&A advisory firm with a presence in Australia/NZ. Comparable in M&A advisory and business brokerage activity for SMEs and lower mid-market, but at significantly larger scale and broader geographic reach.
Direct peers
- LINK Business Brokers: One of the largest NZ/AU business brokerage networks, selling SMEs across industries. Directly comparable to Divest in customer base (SME owners, investors) and core offering (business sales brokerage, valuations), with a broader franchise footprint.
- Murphy Business & Financial Corporation: Established business brokerage franchise focused on SME mergers, acquisitions, and valuations. Comparable business model and customer base to Divest (SME owners selling/buying businesses) though primarily North American with selective ANZ exposure.
- ABC Business for Sale: NZ-based business brokerage focused on selling small and medium businesses. Directly comparable to Divest in service scope, target customer, and geographic market (New Zealand).
- Roche Finance: NZ-based business brokerage and finance advisory firm selling SMEs. Directly comparable to Divest in local market focus, customer segment (SME owners, investors), and core service of business sales and acquisitions.
Regional players
- Hilton Parker Business Sales: Australia-based business brokerage firm selling SMEs across sectors. Comparable in service offering and SME customer base to Divest, but primarily Australian-focused rather than NZ-led.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Divest social profiles
Digital presenceDivest compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Divest financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Divest leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Divest funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Divest M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Divest
What does Divest do?
Divest is a business sale and acquisition company that provides a full life-cycle service helping clients buy, grow and sell businesses and companies across New Zealand. The firm connects business sellers with qualified buyers, delivers business appraisals and valuation services, and offers wholesale investors curated investment opportunities in pre-approved businesses for sale.
Is Divest a public or private company?
Divest is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Divest founded?
Divest was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Divest based?
Divest is headquartered in Takapuna, New Zealand, in the Oceania region.
How does Divest make money?
One revenue line is on record: business Sales and Acquisitions Commission.
Who are Divest's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are VR Business Brokers, Sunbelt Business Brokers, Harcourts NZ, Bayleys Real Estate and Benchmark International. Direct peers are LINK Business Brokers, Murphy Business & Financial Corporation, ABC Business for Sale and Roche Finance. Hilton Parker Business Sales is listed as a regional player.
Does Divest have an API?
No public API is recorded for Divest.
What industry is Divest in?
Divest's product category is Business Brokerage Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAEAGAL, Divestitures, Carve-Outs & Spin-Off Advisory, with a secondary code of BPAHADAJ, Divestitures, Spin-offs & Carve-outs Advisory.