Sell-Side QoE

A sell-side QoE is an independent accounting analysis the seller commissions before going to market. It applies the same forensic methodology the buyer's QoE firm will use — rebuilding earnings from the books up, testing every add-back against documentation standards, and producing a defensible EBITDA number. The sell-side QoE is the seller's only mechanism for reading the books the way the buyer will read them. It surfaces two categories of value. First, the documentation gaps that produce the QoE haircut — undocumented add-backs, personal expenses without receipts, non-recurring items that recur. Second, the reverse deductions — stale accruals, dead reserves, misclassified liabilities that understate EBITDA. Without a sell-side QoE, the buyer finds both. The buyer fixes the first category by reducing the price. The buyer captures the second category silently after closing. With a sell-side QoE, the founder reduces the haircut by 70–80% and captures the reverse deductions themselves before the buyer ever sees the books.