The majority of sellers of small businesses will probably be dealing with individual buyers or partnerships. Often these buyers are mature veterans of the corporate world, ranging in age between 40 and 60. For these people, business ownership is not just a dream, but a...
Financial buyers often come into a business acquisition with a long list of demands. The bottom line for these buyers is that they want maximum leverage. Yet they may be a great fit for a seller who wants to continue to manage his or her...
A strategic or synergistic buyer is one who believes that acquiring another business would complement his or her existing business. By acquiring the new business, this buyer hopes to be able to lower costs, gain new customers, or incur other important benefits and advantages. It...
Whether you're a buyer or a seller, you're likely looking for ways to increase the value of your M&A transaction. One often-overlooked source you may not have considered is lapsed or surrendered life insurance policies. These policies can provide hundreds of thousands of dollars per...
Business competitors are frequently overlooked when it comes time to plan selling your business. Why? Usually there is a concern that a competitor will take advantage of the knowledge that a business is up for sale and may try to attract customers or employees away...
Making the initial decision to sell one's company is tough, but once that decision is made, there are a number of different options for potential buyers. Small and medium-sized businesses are more sophisticated than ever, and the parties purchasing these businesses can come from various...
Surprise #1: Substantial Time Commitment In the real estate business, once the owner engages the broker there is very little for the owner to do until the broker presents the various offers from the potential buyers. In the M&A business, there is a substantial time commitment...
One of the biggest factors in determining the value of your company is the extent to which an acquirer can see where your sales will come from in the future. If you’re in a business that starts from scratch every month or every year, the...
Successful growing companies often grow through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions. A strategic acquisition is defined as a transaction in which one company buys another company that complements its business. If they achieve some level of synergy, the result is a combination...
You may be eager to learn how to sell your business, and happy to have an acquirer at your doorstep, but what’s it like when an acquirer starts looking inside every inch of your business? Most professional buyers will have a checklist of questions – both objective...