SELL MY BUSINESS – Is Now The Right Time?

By Darren Cherry

The “Multi-Million Dollar” Question!

Many business owners make this decision after hitting a milestone in their personal life. But recently, I’ve had many conversations around “perhaps now is the right time, given the activity level in the market.”

EXTERNAL FACTORS:
Generally speaking, we are in what I feel is a STRONG market for selling your business. There is high investor confidence combined with what appears to be available capital. Additionally, while fading somewhat, the cost of debt remains attractive.

INTERNAL FACTORS:
Yep, you knew it was coming, BUT the external environment does not significantly influence your ability to market and sell your business successfully. While willing to pay high multiples, buyers today still apply sound fundamentals in evaluating your business.

X-FACTOR: How easy will it be to transfer your business to a new owner

While having a company that is growing or in a growth market may get buyers to swipe right (notice your business), the TRANSFERABILITY of your business is the special sauce. Essentially a buyer wants to be able to replicate and grow the profitability of your business without you. Here are a few things that help with demonstrating transferability:

✅ Strong management team – action-oriented, accountable [people and results], and easily adapts to change.
✅ Marketing systems that drive opportunities to the sales team
✅ Selling processes and team that executes as a growth engine
✅ Scalable systems and methods that could handle 2-4x growth
✅ Transparent financials (reviewed or audited)
✅ Businesses that are NOT dependent on the owner, vendors, or key employees
✅ A healthy mix (no concentrations) of loyal customers

More than 70% of all business transitions are unplanned. Preparing your business for a transition is more about building a successful strategy than preparing to exit. Owners that work on and master these key areas will have an attractive company that is ALWAYS EXIT READY.

Owners should consider succession/exit planning as a component of their ongoing business strategy instead of starting when they are ready to exit.

Get in touch to talk through succession/exit planning.