Christie & Co vs Sell Ltd — sector edge vs modern stack

In pub sales, care home sales and pharmacy sales, the buyer universe is consolidated among a small number of well-known acquirers — regional pub cos, national care groups, pharmacy chains — plus a wider pool of owner-operator buyers who Christie has cultivated relationships with over decades. That network is real, and it's the single legitimate reason to pay a specialist broker's fee.

For a £1.5m independent pub, a Christie mandate typically results in 3–8 credible viewings within 3 months. Replicating that via marketplace + outreach is possible but slower. In these specific sectors, Christie's edge is genuine.

Outside Christie's specialist sectors — professional services, manufacturing, B2B SaaS, distribution, e-commerce, general retail chains — the sector-broker edge disappears. Christie is competing with generalist brokers in those markets and doesn't win on buyer depth, IM quality or process speed. The fee, however, stays at specialist levels.

If you're a £2m distribution business, a Christie mandate is a bad choice — you're paying for a network that doesn't apply to you. Sell Ltd is the correct default.

If your business is a pub, care home, hotel or pharmacy: take the Christie mandate for its buyer network, but negotiate multi-agency terms so you can also list on Sell Ltd. This runs at approximately Christie's fee level (the success fee applies to whoever closes) but gives you a second exposure channel and full dashboard visibility.

Owners who do this typically get 20–40% more viewings and a modest bidding dynamic that raises final price above what a single-channel process delivers.

Outside the four specialist sectors, the pattern is the pattern: £0 retainer, flat or optional success, no exclusivity, full dashboard visibility, AI-drafted IM at investment-grade quality. On a £2m services business, that's £70k–£150k cheaper than any specialist mandate, and outcomes are equivalent or better on speed.