TEMpting; How Business Buyers and Sellers Have Been Tempted This Week…

How Saleable is Your Business in 2014? How Saleable do you want Your Business 2014? What are you waiting for? GET YOUR SCORE…

OK, so renovation of the transferred website was supposed to happen this week also… but alas, business owners got in the way! Not a bad thing of course but my schedule was pushed out as a result. After all I do need to double the numbers first off, to make it worth continuing the process. Next week!

In the meantime, over the last weeks, I have been invited to many an event where the keynote is discussing something along the Exit Strategy line. The more I hear, the more it’s all sounding the same.
Plan a few years out,
go for the BIG pay-day strategic sale and
all will go swimmingly.

In my day-to-day role as a Business Broker, the sale of a business does not just roll along like that; at all. 

Strategic sales are RARE. And I mean rare.
Most businesses are lucky to get 1-3 times multiple, let alone 6+ the strategic sale advocates are spruiking.
Most businesses are not on the radar of larger players.
Most businesses do not know how to get on the radar of the larger players.
Most businesses are not interesting or big enough for larger players to pay attention.

By all means, go for it if you are in a position to facilitate a strategic sale but if you’ve not fostered that as an option, then let it go. It will be very rare for it to magically materialise when you’re ready.

Just keep your business sale-ready, all the time.
If you choose to sell, the broker (under your instruction), can court the strategic players by all means. But don’t expect it to be quick, if at all.

Instead, build a business that someone else wants to buy and then let the market fight about who eventually buys it.

GOT A WEBSITE FOR SALE?

If you want to sell a website or you’re looking to buy a website (excellent bolt-on possibilities), please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au


If any of the following tickle your fancy, please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au, letting me know which one it is…

FOR SALE…

BS30 Online Venue Business
Completed Sellability Score
The revised IM is due by end of week. As suspected, the numbers are not looking good. Hence the nature of the sale now will be quite different to the time when we had an offer on the table (which was declined). When there’s a delay like this, one of two things happen. The time has been used to either actively write more business and really get it firing or sit back and hope all falls into place.  Sadly, this falls into the later category.

BS49 Home Help…
Exclusive Due Diligence has commenced. The meeting of the Franchisor went well. Now getting into the detail.

BS53 Balloons! and all that goes with them…
Three are interested. Current information has been supplied. Meetings on premises have taken place. Hope to see a few offers next week.

BS59 Niche Service Provider in Building Trade
via Sellability Score.
It’s all systems go! Awaiting on sign-off of IM and advertisement. Once done, we go to market. This is a cracker for a white-collar wanting to get out of the office or a tradie wanting to get off the tools.

BS60 Advertising and Events agency
(via Sellability Score)
IM finalised. Advertisement on websites. Linkedin campaign about to commence.

BS72 Niche Bookseller and Training Provider
Waiting on finalisation of the IM.

Training provider
Assisting colleague by introducing the perfect buyer for his selling client. My contact is taking this one slowly as another deal needs to come through first. May not suit sellers timing but it is what it is…with another showing interest too. IM will go to them in due course.

Health Care Provider
Assisting colleague by introducing the Home Help interested party to their client, now that the authority has been signed. Awaiting on finalisation of IM to send through.


It’s all happening…. Others I’ve talked too.. are you interested in any one of them?

  • a particular event
  • sales and services
  • magazine
  • specialty bed linen
  • facilities management
  • speciality giftware
  • technology reseller
  • specialty children’s products x 2
  • overseas medical procedures
  • online products
  • electronics retailer
  • niche manufacturer

If yes, let me know…


 

Exploring the Sale Option?

GET YOUR SCORE…

Onwards and Upwards!

how to raise the lets-sell-the-business idea with your business partner?

how to start.jpg

Late last week I had a chat with a chap who owned a business and was looking to explore the option of selling it. Having not done a sale before and not knowing anyone around him that had, his first soft approach was to complete the “Sellability Score“.

No surprise, his business rated “average”, as do all businesses who have completed the score up to this point in time. Given he was only exploring however, it gives he and his business partner plenty of time to sort things out and raise that score… but there in lies the problem, they don’t even know if this is a path they want to take yet, because they hadn’t talked about it.

It this particular instance, it did not help that one of the partners was in Melbourne and the other in Brisbane but I’m seeing it more and more again as I play in this “how to sell” space. The partners have not had the hard discussions that need to happen prior.

I say hard because the true answers as to what has to happen next usually do not revolve around the business per se. It usually gets personal around what do you want life to look like and does this business feature.

Much harder to articulate too if
a) you’ve not thought about it before
b) if you’ve not had this more in depth discussion with your business partner before
And just because they’re hard discussions does not mean they should not be had.

It’s a lot easier to put this stuff off.
“We’ll talk about it next time we see each other”.
Ah, no you won’t.
Or at least not get into the depth that is required.
And that can’t be done on a whim either.
You have to have done some personal navel gazing first to be able to even start.
You have to book a date/time/place to do so.

So where I left this conversation was, they have to talk to each other and work out what each wants, articulate that and then plan accordingly. Sometimes a third party facilitating this process can be most beneficial as they ensure you work through the agenda and not get side-tracked. I did of course offer my services as I have been through this particular scenario myself. Whether they take it up remains to be seen.

Selling a business seems hard, but like anything, there is a process to follow.
Bringing up this conversation with your business partner may also be hard, but it is doable and there is a process to follow.
Getting your business-owner head and heart right is also hard, but it is doable and there is a process to follow.

Start the process, you’ll be surprised where it leads you…

Flowing to the river of Ultimate Performance: the science of productivity…

flowing...

“Researchers define flow as an ‘optimal state of consciousness,’ a peak state where we feel our best and perform our best. … If you’ve ever lost an afternoon to a great conversation or become so involved in a work project that all else was forgotten, then you’ve tasted this experience. In flow, we are so focused on the task at hand that everything else falls away. Action and awareness merge. Time flies. Self vanishes. All aspects of performance—mental and physical—go through the roof.

We call this experience flow because that is the sensation conferred. In the state, every action, each decision, leads effortlessly, fluidly, seamlessly to the next. It’s high-speed problem solving; it’s being swept away by the river of ultimate performance.

This last bit is no exaggeration. Over 100 years of research shows that flow sits at the heart of almost every athletic championship; underpins major scientific breakthroughs; and accounts for significant progress in the arts. … In recent years, flow has also become exceptionally critical to business.”

Is your business in flow too?
Read on

TEMpting; How Business Buyers and Sellers Have Been Tempted This Week…

How Saleable is Your Business in 2014? How Saleable do you want Your Business 2014? What are you waiting for? GET YOUR SCORE…

OK, so renovation of the transferred website was supposed to happen this week also… but alas, business owners got in the way! Not a bad thing of course but my schedule was pushed out as a result. After all I do need to double the numbers first off, to make it worth continuing the process. Next week!

In the meantime, very excited about a Heads of Agreement signed and a deposit collected. This, I think, is a great buy, a good deal all round really. Why? because it has felt like it all the way through the meetings and dealings to date. Only complication with this one is it is a Franchise. Which means then that the Franchisor can stymie all attempts to sell, if they feel so inclined!

The key learning out of this Franchise transaction for me is that the two-level approval process required i.e. that of the owner first and then that of the Franchisor second, adds a layer of complexity not seen in typical business transactions. This additional level should not cause grief, I agree. But having that level does add more steps where something could go wrong.

So far so good. Lets hope it continues that way…

GOT A WEBSITE FOR SALE?

If you want to sell a website or you’re looking to buy a website (excellent bolt-on possibilities), please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au


If any of the following tickle your fancy, please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au, letting me know which one it is…

FOR SALE…

BS30 Online Venue Business
Completed Sellability Score
The revised IM is due by end of week. As suspected, the numbers are not looking good. Hence the nature of the sale now will be quite different to the time when we had an offer on the table (which was declined). When there’s a delay like this, one of two things happen. The time has been used to either actively write more business and really get it firing or sit back and hope all falls into place.  Sadly, this falls into the later category.

BS49 Home Help…
The signed Heads of Agreement is completed and a deposit is paid. Next step, exclusive Due Diligence commences.

As for the other party, they have been advised accordingly. Fortunately though, I hope to have another similar to introduce next week.

BS53 Balloons! and all that goes with them…
So the one is interested. Additional information has been supplied. Next step is to meet on premises and really talk the numbers through. Hope to arrange a meeting next week.

BS59 Niche Service Provider in Building Trade
via Sellability Score.
It’s all systems go! Awaiting on sign-off of IM and advertisement. Once done, we go to market. This is a cracker for a white-collar wanting to get out of the office or a tradie wanting to get off the tools.

BS60 Advertising and Events agency
(via Sellability Score)
IM finalised. Advertisement on websites. An industry mailing list from our existing relationships has been pulled together and emails have been sent. One party has indicated interest so will call to chat initially. Be interesting to know how this fits in with their current growth plans.

BS72 Niche Bookseller and Training Provider
Waiting on finalisation of the IM. Looking to verify a few numbers first.

Training provider
Assisting colleague by introducing the perfect buyer for his selling client. My contact is taking this one slowly as another deal needs to come through first. May not suit sellers timing but it is what it is…with another showing interest too. IM will go to them in due course.


It’s all happening…. Others I’ve talked too.. are you interested in any one of them?

  • a particular event
  • sales and services
  • magazine
  • specialty bed linen
  • facilities management
  • speciality giftware
  • technology reseller
  • specialty children’s products x 2
  • overseas medical procedures
  • online products
  • electronics retailer
  • niche manufacturer

If yes, let me know…


 

Exploring the Sale Option?

GET YOUR SCORE…

Onwards and Upwards!

AIBBsales – Small Business Sales Index: March Qtr 2014

AIBB Sales Index_March2014

For those of you interested in the state of the Business Sales market in Australia, the AIBB Small Business Sales Index Report – The State of the Australian Market March 2014 Quarter has just been published.

The Report features Commentary & Data on topics such as:

  • Changes in Sale Price
  • Time Taken to Sell Businesses
  • Number of Qualified Buyers
  • Factors Restricting the Ability to Sell Businesses
  • Access to Finance
  • Buyer Demand
  • Reasons for Sale

The new Report is available to you free of charge. If you have any queries at all, please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au 

CLICK HERE to download the report as a PDF.

http://www.aibb.org.au/pdf/AIBBBusSaleIndex_MAR14.pdf

For more information about the real values of Small to Medium Businesses in Australia please contact your local AIBB Business Broker. A full list of Members is contained on our website at:

www.aibb.com.au

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