History

Founded in 1994 as Grimes Business Brokerage, CBI-Sunbelt has grown to the largest business brokerage company in Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma with four offices serving the Mid-America region.

The idea of a business brokerage based on principles of integrity and fair dealing came to Carl Grimes in 1992 as he handled two closings for a local business broker as part of his duties as a closing agent in a title company Grimes had owned and sold. Grimes discovered that although business brokerage could be lucrative it was also fragmented and had an unsavory reputation. Grimes saw how Sellers and Buyers could be manipulated by a business broker who was only focused on collecting a commission, not doing what was best for the Sellers and Buyers.

Grimes wrote a business plan in 1992 and in December 1994 when his contract with the title company expired and he began operations in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

In March 1995, Grimes learned about Sunbelt Business Brokers, a national franchise network based in Charleston, South Carolina. After attending training in Dallas, Grimes bought the franchise for Northwest Arkansas and founded Sunbelt Business Brokers of the Ozarks.

In 1999 the Northwest Arkansas operation was named “Office of the Year” by the Sunbelt Network of over 250 worldwide offices.

In 2000 Grimes bought the franchise for Springfield, Missouri and established a full service business brokerage there.

In 2007 Grimes bought the Joplin, Missouri territory and added Fort Smith, Arkansas in 2009.

The company has moved its corporate offices to Lowell, Arkansas, the center of booming Northwest Arkansas.

In 2009 the company added the name CBI (Confidential Business Intermediaries) to represent the growing presence and ability of the CBI team to handle Mid-Market Mergers and Acquisitions.

The CBI-Sunbelt team has handled numerous large M&A transactions and is a member of the International Business Brokers Association and Chambers of Commerce in Fayetteville, Springdale, Roger-Lowell and Fort Smith, Arkansas, Joplin, Missouri and Springfield, Missouri, the M&A Source and Grimes is president of the Professional Association of Arkansas Business Brokers (PAABB). Grimes was also the first president of the President’s Advisory Council, an organization Grimes established with some other Sunbelt office owners to represent the franchises of the Network.

The CBI-Team has handled hundreds of business sales with the best trained business brokerage force in the nation.

In November 2011, Grimes received the status “Fellow of the International Business Brokers Association.”

In 2010 Mr. David Potts, CPA, became Managing Partner of the Fort Smith/River Valley office for CBI-Sunbelt.

In 2011 Ms. Vicki Bronson assumed the role of Managing Partner for the Joplin, Missouri office of CBI-Sunbelt.

The CBI-Team has handled hundreds of business sales with the best trained business brokerage force in the nation.

Grimes was selected to do the training DVDs for the entire Sunbelt Network in 2004. The DVDs are still being provided to new Sunbelt trainees around the world. Grimes also trained the broker force for the United Kingdom, Scotland and Wales and Ireland in 2006 as part of his duties as First Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of SBAN (Sunbelt Business Advisors Network) a group of 83 Sunbelt office owners that bought the Network from the founder, Ed Pendarvis.

SBAN was sold in 2005 and Grimes has been focused on growing CBI-Sunbelt of the Ozarks since.