It's Never Too Soon To Think About Your Business Endgame. Seriously!
Posted on April 24, 2024 by Bob Graham, One of Thousands of Business Coaches on Noomii.
Most small business owners are woefully unprepared and overly optimistic about selling their business at their own peril later on.
The time to think about selling is the day you start your business. If you missed that day, year or decade, you are not alone and all hope is not lost.
The time is now though to start thinking about your exit strategy. As difficult as it is to ponder (like drawing up a will), the more prepared you are, the easier the exit will be.
Knowing roughly how and when you want to sell will help you better make important business decisions along the way. Contracts, leasing, tax strategies, how books are prepared, marketing expenses, expansion and capital improvements — how you handle each can make or break that magic number you hope to get when you sell.
A good percentage of the small business owners I talk to think that all they have to do is say they want to sell and everyone will make them an offer.
If only.
The fact of the matter is that selling businesses takes a lot of work. If you can get from offer to completed deal in less than a year, bravo to you.
In the coming five to 10 years, a lot of businesses are going to be up for sale. Think of how many people in their 50s to 70s own them.
When they all start selling, it will become a buyer’s market.
A buyer’s market means lower sale prices and buyers who will pick and choose.
Will your business be ready for that kind of scrutiny?
Do you have the processes, people, partnerships and promotional efforts in place to be ready for that day?
Odds are you don’t. The time to think about them is now.
I have helped small business owners build value in companies so when the time comes, they are ready to sell.
If you haven’t started planning for that eventuality, we should talk.
One other note: The number of employees who have the means and willingness to buy your company, no matter what they tell you and what you think, is FAR smaller than you realize. If you are hoping for an employee to take over, you need to embrace a new plan. Same with family members, especially Millennials and Gen Z.
