Paramount Business Brokers

Paramount Business Brokers is a boutique business brokerage firm specializing in the sale, merger & acquisition of all types of SME businesses throughout Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland & Tasmania, with offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Hobart in order to assist our clients.

We ensure the highest degree of Ethics, Integrity and Professionalism and the strictest Confidentiality in order to achieve the desired outcome for our Clients. With over 85 years of combined business & brokerage experience, we know how to take care of your business transaction whether buying or selling.

We are committed to excellence and to our clients….

To us, this is Paramount.

Fred Samoun

Principal – Business Sales, Mergers & Acquisitions

Fred Samoun is the Principal and Director of Paramount Business Brokers, a boutique business broking and advisory firm specialising in the sale, merger, and acquisition of SME businesses across the broader eastern seaboard of Australia.

Fred’s business career commenced in the early 1990s. Over more than 35 years, he has owned and managed multiple successful businesses across Melbourne and interstate, providing him with practical, first-hand experience in business operations, growth, and exit planning. This background underpins his disciplined, commercially grounded approach to business sales and mergers.

For more than 20 years, Fred has specialised as a business broker and M&A advisor, assisting business owners to sell businesses, and execute mergers and acquisitions across a wide range of industries. He has personally listed and sold over 500 businesses, including manufacturing, industrial services, foodservice, transport, logistics, wholesale, distribution, engineering and retail businesses.

Fred is widely regarded as a leading business broker in Melbourne and Victoria, known for his no-nonsense advice, strict confidentiality standards, and ability to manage complex transactions through due diligence and completion. He works closely with vendors, purchasers, accountants, lawyers, and financiers to ensure transactions are correctly structured, finance-ready, and defensible under scrutiny. His insights are based on real market activity, typically overseeing up to 50 transactions per year.

In recognition of his results and professional standing, Fred was awarded AIBB Specialist Business Broker of the Year in 2020, 2021, and 2022, and has been a national finalist in industry awards most years, reflecting consistent performance and peer recognition among Australia’s leading business brokers.

Fred is an accredited Certified Practising Business Broker (CPBB), a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Business Brokers (AIBB), and a Licensed Estate Agent (CEA), licensed to operate across Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and Tasmania, including 20+ years as a member of the Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV).

03 9021 9888

0417 319 873

Chris DeMarte

Senior Business Broker

Chris has a hunger to learn. He loves immersing himself in business knowledge, market information and practical experience. After all, he gained hands-on business knowledge from his 15-year career in owning and managing cafes, restaurants, bars, gourmet food stores, corporate and private catering businesses.

Since 2015 Chris has specialised in selling businesses in medical & allied health, professional business services, franchise & hospitality,  agricultural, industrial, wholesale and manufacturing businesses and understands that pride and emotion are potent factors for business owners. This is why Chris handles each business sale uniquely with care, empathy and respect.

He credits his strong work ethic, listening skills and strategic execution experience combined with his business knowledge as essential factors to sell businesses for his clients successfully.

What’s more, he uses his management skills to work closely with all parties’ accountants, lawyers and business advisers to ensure due diligence is undertaken with each sale.

Chris’ communication skill is his biggest strength in his role as a Senior Business Broker. He uses this skill to genuinely understand his clients and their business, so he can learn about their business, value the company accurately and find the right buyers.

When you ask Chris what drives him, it’s his passion for business, love of learning and helping others. He knows that although fundamentals guide business, no two companies are ever the same, which ignites his curiosity.

Due to Chris’ solid reputation, he has successfully built a strong network of professional relationships based on integrity, honesty, respect for others and meticulous attention to detail, which is why his clients and accountant partners refer him.

03 9021 9888

0401 691 184

John Klonaris

Senior Business Broker

John Klonaris has been involved in business full time since 1993 and part time before that. John’s experience is wide and varied: from his early years in the family supermarket to running a café, and owning a wholesale distribution business, food manufacturing plant and currently in the professional business service industry.

John knows and understands the effort required in running a business in an ever-increasing competitive environment and can relate to the needs of a business owner wanting to sell their business that they have worked hard to build up, and a purchaser looking for a quality business opportunity to further put their mark on it.
Additionally, John has also been involved dealing in land holdings, subdivisions, and new housing developments.

John has a Bachelor of Environmental Design and has completed his MBA (Master of Business Administration, specialising in Entrepreneurial Management) and has a Diploma of Property Services (Agency Management).

“We ensure the highest degree of Ethics, Integrity and Professionalism and the strictest Confidentiality in order to achieve the desired outcome for our Clients.”… sums up exactly what John’s expectations and principles are, and along with this, John’s love of business and the ability to assist people achieve their goals is what attracted John to be associated with Paramount Business Brokers.

Based in our Hobart office, feel free to give John a call to discuss your business needs further, for an appraisal of your business, to list your business or help you find your next business venture.

03 9021 9888

0417 141 621

Yasmin Samoun

Business Broker

Meet Yasmin, a dynamic and forward-thinking young professional with an innate passion for entrepreneurship and a keen understanding of market dynamics, Yasmin is reshaping the landscape of business transactions. Born and raised in Melbourne, Yasmin displayed an early affinity for business and negotiation. After earning a degree in Health Sciences from
Latrobe University, she embarked on a career that would see her quickly rise through the ranks of the business brokerage industry.

At the heart of Yasmin’s success is an unwavering commitment to her clients. Recognizing that each business is unique, Yasmin takes a personalized approach to every transaction, carefully considering the specific needs and goals of both buyers and sellers. This client-
centric philosophy has garnered Yasmin a loyal clientele.

What sets Yasmin apart is her ability to seamlessly blend traditional brokerage practices with a modern, tech-savvy approach. Leveraging the latest tools and trends in the industry, Yasmin stays ahead of the curve, ensuring that clients benefit from cutting-edge strategies
and a competitive edge in the market.

Known for her exceptional communication skills and unwavering integrity, Yasmin has earned the trust of clients and colleagues alike. Outside the boardroom, Yasmin is an advocate for community engagement, spending time with family, playing sport, and traveling.

As a rising star in the business brokerage arena, Yasmin is poised to leave an indelible mark on the industry. With a blend of youthful energy, industry expertise, and a passion for facilitating successful business transactions, Yasmin is undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with in the world of business brokerage. 

03 9021 9888

0476 220 301

Sean Brown

Business Broker

Sean Brown brings to business sales what can’t be manufactured, which is decades of lived experience running, growing, fixing and leading real businesses. He’s been in boardrooms, back offices, cattle yards, hotel kitchens, sales floors, digital war rooms and agency pitch rooms. This broad, hands-on background gives him an instinctive ability to understand how a business truly works and what makes a buyer lean forward.

Across 35+ years in media, hospitality, tourism, and digital marketing, Sean has learned how to build momentum where others see roadblocks. He’s grown teams from scratch, turned around underperforming divisions, launched new enterprises, negotiated major contracts, and built a marketing agency almost entirely through referrals. That experience developed the traits that now make him a sought-after broker: persistence, calm under pressure, creative problem-solving, commercial discipline, and an ability to read people quickly and accurately.

Sean’s strength is his dealmaker’s mindset. He can spot value others miss, articulate it clearly, and position a business so buyers understand its true potential, not just its numbers. He is relentless in preparation, meticulous in process, and comfortable navigating the complex emotions that come with selling a business. Owners appreciate his honesty, his steady hand, and his ability to tell the real story of a company in a way that resonates with the right buyers.

Above all, Sean has empathy for business owners because he’s lived their life. He knows the pride, the pressure, the long nights, and the personal investment behind every decision. This gives him a unique ability to guide clients with respect, clarity and confidence through what is often one of the biggest financial and emotional decisions of their lives.

Based in our Brisbane office, for clients who want a broker with substance, not just sales talk, Sean is the partner who gets deals done.

03 9021 9888

0438 363 729

John Khoury

Business Broker

John is an experienced Business Sales Specialist with more than 30 years’ experience in hospitality business ownership, management, and business sales advisory. He has a proven history of developing, operating, and exiting cafés and restaurants in Melbourne, particularly across the Melbourne CBD and outer suburbs. His background spans family-owned hospitality businesses through to independent ownership and multi-site operations, providing him with practical, real-world insight into the full lifecycle of business ownership.

John’s hands-on experience includes operational management, financial performance analysis, staffing, supplier and contract management, commercial lease negotiations, and regulatory compliance. Having operated through multiple economic cycles and changing market conditions, he understands the key drivers of business value, risk, and saleability — particularly within the hospitality, food and beverage, and small-to-medium enterprise sectors.

This depth of experience underpins John’s work in business sales, advisory and brokerage services. He understands that selling a business is both a commercial and personal decision, requiring careful planning, discretion, and a structured process. John provides clear, strategic guidance throughout the business sale process, from initial appraisal and pricing strategy through to buyer negotiations and transaction completion.

Known for his integrity, transparency, and straightforward approach, John delivers honest business sale advice focused on achieving strong outcomes for business owners. He works closely with vendors, purchasers, accountants, and legal advisors to ensure each transaction is handled professionally and efficiently. His objective is to maximise value, minimise risk, and deliver a smooth, well-managed sale while consistently upholding the highest ethical standards and long-term client relationships.

03 9021 9888

0400 500 065