Bass, Berry & Sims is proud to once again sponsor the Smart Business Dealmakers Conference. The 2026 event will be held on Thursday, February 5, at Hillwood Country Club in Nashville, Tennessee, and will feature an impressive lineup of business owners, entrepreneurs, M&A advisors, and investors.
The conference will include middle-market CEOs, top private equity and venture capital firms, major lenders and leading service providers participating in sessions that cover the breadth of the merger and acquisition landscape. Sessions will feature topics such as buying and selling companies, to alternative asset investing and more.
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Frank Pellegrino will moderate a panel titled, “Inside the Buyer’s Mind: How Strategic, Sponsor, and PE Acquirers Win Deals.” Frank will be joined by Phil Gamble – Partner at Lockeland Capital Partners; Rhett Hogan – Co-Founder at Village Partners Group; Pat O’Brien – CFO at Smyrna Ready Mix; and Kevin Robb – Partnership Development at Seven Hills Capital. This session explores how different buyer types, strategic acquirers, independent sponsors, and private equity firms approach acquisitions, structure deals, and collaborate with sellers. the options available to founders and family business owners, examining the benefits and challenges of each path. In addition, Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Howard Lamar will moderate a panel titled, “Navigating the Complex Sale: Lessons from a High-Stakes, Nontraditional Exit.” Howard will be joined by Carolyn Hamby – Former CEO at Facility Management Services Inc.; Terry Hamby – Former Advisor at Facility Management Services, Inc.; and Luke Horanski– Senior Vice President at Hyde Park Capital. This session will cover a real-world case study of a woman-owned government contracting company whose complex sale required creativity, persistence, and expert execution. The full agenda can be found here.
As a sponsor, we are pleased to offer discounted registrations to our clients and friends. For more information or to register, please contact Katie Henderson.