Unsolicited approaches are common for good manufacturing companies in this region, and accepting one without a process is the most reliable way to leave money behind.
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Private equity firms and strategics both run outbound programs, so an owner of a healthy $10M-revenue machine shop in Mecklenburg or Union County will get letters and calls. Those approaches are real, and some are from excellent buyers. The problem is structural: a single buyer negotiating against no one sets the price, controls the timeline, and knows the seller has no alternative. Owners who respond to an unsolicited approach by quietly preparing and creating even a small competitive process routinely see the original buyer improve their own offer. Talking to one buyer is not a sale process, and the difference between the two is measured in the same units as several years of profit.