Capability
Commercial Due Diligence
Deals move fast. We provide investors with independent, well-sourced evidence on the market and the target — structured around the questions that matter to the investment thesis.
Last reviewed by the Hoog research team
What is commercial due diligence?
Commercial due diligence (CDD) is an independent assessment of a target company's market, customers, competitive position and business plan assumptions, used by investors to validate the commercial case for a transaction.
The business problem
Problems it solves
- The business plan's growth assumptions look optimistic
- Management's view of customers needs independent validation
- Deal timelines leave little room for research
- The market is new and lacks reliable published data
Questions we answer
What you will know
- Is the market as large and fast-growing as the plan assumes?
- How do customers rate the target versus alternatives?
- How defensible is the target's competitive position?
- Are the business plan's revenue assumptions achievable?
When to use it
When to commission commercial due diligence
- Pre-LOI market screening and red-flag reviews
- Confirmatory commercial due diligence
- Vendor due diligence preparation
- Post-acquisition value creation planning
Our approach
How we deliver commercial due diligence
- 01
Thesis mapping
Translate the investment thesis into testable commercial hypotheses.
- 02
Market validation
Independent market sizing and growth analysis.
- 03
Customer referencing
Customer and lost-customer interviews and targeted surveys.
- 04
Plan review
Stress-test the plan's commercial assumptions and highlight risks.
Methods
Typical deliverables
- — Red-flag memo
- — CDD report
- — Market model
- — Customer interview synthesis
Decisions it supports
What the evidence is for
- Whether to invest, and at what valuation
- Which plan assumptions to adjust in the investment case
- What conditions or protections to negotiate
- Which value-creation levers to prioritise after the deal
The Hoog approach
What’s different about how we do it
Thesis-led
Work is structured around the hypotheses that move the valuation, answered in priority order.
Customer evidence
Independent interviews with current, former and prospective customers test revenue quality.
Built for deal speed
Red-flag findings arrive early; the full report follows on the deal timetable.
AI-accelerated. Human-validated. Decision-focused.
Applied by industry
How commercial due diligence is used across sectors
Specific engagements where this capability answers a sector question.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What does commercial due diligence cover?
Typically the target's market size and growth, customer satisfaction and loyalty, competitive position and differentiation, pricing power, and the commercial assumptions in the business plan — summarised as risks, mitigants and upsides for the investment committee.
What is commercial due diligence?
Commercial due diligence is an independent review of a target's market, customers, competitors and business plan assumptions. It complements financial and legal due diligence by testing whether the commercial story behind the valuation is supported by evidence.
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