The Decision To Sell Your Business
As the owner of your business you have put your heart and soul into making it grow. Are you ready to walk away and give someone else the reigns? Do you have a plan of what you will be doing with your time and with the funds you will receive? Are your spouse and family on board with your decision? How will your employees and customers react to the sale of your business? You need to consider how you will address these issues before you start the sales process. ABBG was formed to help guide family businesses through to a successful transition.
Is The Business Ready? ➝
Are there issues that if corrected can increase the value of your business and allow for a smooth transition to a buyer? A buyer will only want to pay for your business in “as is” condition. You can’t expect a buyer to pay for a value that “could be” if only they did this or that. Because of this, you may want to invest some additional time and resources to give your business the best (financial and operational) look it can have. Doing so will give you a better chance of getting the price you want. Think of this process as staging your business so that it receives the highest price possible. ABBG can help you with this.
Maintaining Confidentiality ➝
Don’t be afraid to discuss the transition with your customers, employees and key suppliers. These business partners may already believe you will be selling your business in the not too distant future. They will appreciate letting them know about your plans to transition to someone new and making them aware of your decision and process. Some of them may also be interested in purchasing your business.
What Are Some Things You Should Consider Doing? ➝
You are likely to be working and involved with the future buyer for a significant period of time after the sale is complete so be professional and respectful and have your business ready:
Focus on building your business’ cash flow; this will raise the value of your business.
Make sure your income tax returns match your financial statements and all taxes are correctly filed and paid.
Your facilities should be brightly lit, clean, dusted and if necessary, repainted.
Your processes and procedures should be smooth, efficient and well documented
Create an operations manual to easily show a buyer how your business operates
Can I Do This Myself? ➝
Although you may say we are biased because we offer this unique service, the best answer is most likely no. We say no because:
As a seller your emotional attachment to the business can cloud your decision process
Preparing marketing materials and getting them distributed confidentially to the right market-place takes time and the right process
Valuing your business requires a combination of experience using special valuation tools that individual business owners don’t have access to
Responding to prospects and weeding out “the lookers” can be time consuming and annoying
These are just a few of the challenges that a business owner faces when wanting to transition their business. ABBG can assist you in overcoming these issues.