Larry Grimes

Larry Grimes led W.B. Grimes & Company, described as "one of the nation's leading boutique media and entertainment mergers and acquisitions firms." The firm was founded in 1959 by his father, Walter B. Grimes, and Larry subsequently ran it as owner and president, making it the oldest family-owned media M&A firm in North America. Under the Grimes name, the firm sold more than 1,600 media and event businesses and appraised thousands of newspaper and magazine properties, operating through a network of offices across the country with a special emphasis on small- and medium-market publications.

In January 2018 (announced February 12, 2018), Larry Grimes sold the firm's Global Media, Events & Information Services Division and its Newspapers Division to John J. McGovern, a former senior associate who had run the firm's global media, events and information-services group for a decade. The business was renamed Grimes, McGovern & Associates and continues to operate at mediamergers.com. Grimes stayed on initially as chairman and adviser; the firm now notes that "the Grimes family is no longer involved in the firm, but their name lives on." At the time of sale, Grimes said, "I could not be more excited about having a long-standing member of our team take the company reins," calling McGovern "an industry trailblazer, always at the cutting edge of new technologies."

Separately, Grimes founded The Sports Advisory Group in January 2005, where he serves as Founder & Advisor, and is also associated with the Sports & Entertainment Advisory Group (SEAG). His professional expertise spans mergers and acquisitions, business strategy, broadcast, advertising, marketing strategy, digital media, and the sports and entertainment sectors. He is based in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and is reported to have attended the University of Maryland. He has also been active outside advisory work, including credited involvement as an executive producer in country music.

• Operates primarily as an M&A advisor, appraiser, and "capital broker" rather than a venture angel — he intermediates the purchase and sale of media businesses and helps fund business acquisitions/franchise deals.
• Focuses on media and entertainment: newspapers, magazines, broadcast, digital/new media, events, information services, and sports/entertainment properties.
• Historically concentrated on small- and medium-sized markets and owner-operated, family-owned media businesses — the segment W.B. Grimes was built around since 1959.
• His accredited-investor profile lists a transaction/check range of roughly $1M to $10M+ with a U.S. geographic focus and a self-description of being "both investor and service provider."
• Values long-term relationships and continuity — evidenced by handing the firm to a decade-long internal team member rather than an outside buyer.