Q2 Small Business Transactions Take a Dip but Strong Market Remains
Small business transactions have been enjoying record numbers. But as of the second quarter of 2019, the numbers have begun to take a small dip. Experts feel that the trade war with China is playing a role, according to a recent article, “Q2 Small Business Transactions Down as Trade War Questions Remain.” The numbers don’t lie, as the number of transactions stood at 2,444 for Q2, which is...Read More
The Variety of Variables Involved in Selling Your Business
Selling a business is more than a big decision, as it is also quite complex. Finding the right buyer for a business is at the heart of the matter. In the recent Forbes article, “Ready to Sell Your Business? Follow These 3 Tips to Find the Best Buyer,” author Serenity Gibbons outlines that selling a business is a multifaceted process with a lot of moving parts. A central variable for those...Read More
A Closer Look at 3 Major Factors to Consider When You Buy a Business
The simple but undeniable fact is buying a business is one of the single greatest financial decisions a person can make. Buying a business can lead to great financial success or great financial failure. This fact helps to underscore why it is so important to work with an experienced broker who can help guide you through the often labyrinthian process of buying a business. Table of...Read More
Alternatives for Owners of Eroding Industries
Let’s assume that you own and operate a company that manufactures a product in an industry that is eroding or going downhill. What are your choices or alternatives? Run the company as a “cash cow,” resigning yourself to the fact that your industry is slowly declining or is no longer a growth industry. Keep what you are doing profitable even if you have to increase prices and/or cut costs....Read More
Over and Above the Numbers
A close review of the financial statements is always in order when considering the acquisition or merger of a company. However, that is only part of what a buyer is acquiring. Other important assets are: Repeat customers or clients Patented product, government approvals, profitable copyrights Broad customer or client base (diverse & growing) Long-term contracts Recognizable brand or...Read More
Improving Your Prospects for Selling
According to a Price Waterhouse Coopers survey of more than 300 privately held U.S. businesses that have been sold or transferred, the most common steps companies take to improve their prospects for a sale, prior to taking the company to market, include: Improving profitability by cutting costs Restructuring debt Limiting owners’ compensation Fully funding the company pension plan Seeking the...Read More
Dealing with Inexperience Can Ruin the Deal
The 65-year old owner of a multi-location retail operation doing $30 million in annual sales decided to retire. He interviewed a highly recommended intermediary and was impressed. However, he had a nephew who had just received his MBA and who told his uncle that he could handle the sale and save him some money. He would do it for half of what the intermediary said his fee would be – so the...Read More
The Variables that Drive and Influence Business Valuations
If you’ve never bought or sold a business before, then the factors that drive and influence business valuations likely seem a bit murky. In a recent Divestopedia article from Kevin Ramsier entitled, “A Closer Look at What Drives and Influences Business Valuations,” Ramsier takes a closer look at this important topic. Business brokers and M&A advisors play a key role in helping business...Read More
Is Your Business Really Worth Handing Over to the Next Generation?
Before you begin your business, you should be thinking about how you will hand that business over to someone else. No one runs a business forever. Whether you sell your business or let a relative inherit it, at some point you will need to step away. When you finally do separate from your business, it is critical that you are certain that it is worth handing over. In his January 2019...Read More