McGovern buys W.B. Grimes & Co.

Feb 12, 2018

New York—W.B. Grimes & Co., a leading mergers and acquisitions advisory company serving the media, entertainment and professional sports industries, announced that its Global Media, Events & Information Services Division, and its Newspapers Division have been acquired by John J. McGovern, a former senior associate with the firm.
Founded in 1959 by Walter Grimes, and subsequently led by his son, Larry Grimes, the company is the oldest family-owned media mergers and acquisition company in North America, having sold more than 1,600 media and event businesses since its formation. The company has also appraised thousands of newspaper and magazine businesses.
Last year was one of the best in the company’s history with increases in the number of deals and deal sizes in both the Newspapers and Global Media, Events and Information Services Divisions, which were acquired by McGovern.
Commenting on the sale, Larry Grimes said, “I could not be more excited about having a long-standing member of our team take the company reins. John has been an industry trailblazer, always at the cutting edge of new technologies. As the media industry continues to evolve, there is no doubt the new company will remain an industry leader.”
The newly-formed entity, Grimes, McGovern & Associates (www.mediamergers.com); remains focused on mergers and acquisition advisory work including buy-side, sell-side and valuation services for small- and medium-sized businesses in the media, events, information services and newspapers sectors globally.
GMA owner, McGovern, takes the helm as chief executive officer, and Julie Bergman, former senior associate, becomes vice president of the Newspapers Group. Larry Grimes, former owner and president, will stay on as chair and adviser.
McGovern said: “It is an honour to take charge of such a storied company and to build upon the solid foundations the Grimes family has built over almost 60 years. Our company has incredible talent in Julie Bergman and our team of seasoned associates. We look forward to continuing to serve our clients and to innovate and grow in the areas of media and newspapers, as well as the emerging events and information services sectors, with renewed focus on international buy-side and sell-side work.”
Bergman added: “Our dedicated and experienced newspaper professionals are familiar with their regions and perfectly positioned to provide the personalized and expert attention buyers and sellers need in today’s fast-changing media landscape.”
Grimes, McGovern & Associates will be based in New York with representatives in Toronto, London and South America. GMA’s newspapers group has representatives in 10 U.S. states: Alabama, Colorado, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, South Carolina and Texas.
For more information, please contact John McGovern at 917-881-6563 or at jmcgovern@mediamergers.com.