In the 34 years I’ve worked in corporate finance, I’ve been involved in the sales of probably hundreds of companies.
I thought it might be helpful to share some thoughts for families or entrepreneurs who are thinking of selling their businesses.
1. Consider the effect of the sale on the life and future goals of you and your family. Many entrepreneurs are unprepared for the emotional impact of having sold the thing that had been so important to them.
2. The seller should be as in control of the process as possible at every stage of the sale. Don’t let management or any individual buyer reduce the control you have as a seller. This means preparing rigorously.
3. Ensure the management team is fully formed so it can operate without shareholders who plan to step down post-sale.
4. Founders/shareholders have a high impact on the business even when part-time/non-exec. Management succession can be emotional and take time.\
5. Ensure that forecasts and business plans are confidently put together and strong – they should be ambitious but achievable.
6. You must hit your monthly forecasts during the sale process. A dip in sales in the month before completion has a disproportionate impact!
7. Ensure that the management of the business is not distracted during the sale process – they need to deliver during the process.
8. Think of every business that might be a sensible buyer for the business and then whittle the list to the more obvious ones.
9. Make the effort to meet obvious buyers in advance to start the relationship and understand why they may want to acquire the business.
10. Make sure that the management information available is high quality – the focus from buyers on the metrics and data of the business is higher than ever.
11. It’s often worth doing a dry run of the financial due diligence process to make sure the business can produce the data it will need during a sale process.
12. PR about the business in the year or two pre-sale is part of the sales documentation. Buyers will look at the electronic footprint of the business during the sale process.
13. Published financial statements are also part of the selling message. Make sure they are helpful when published.
14. Understand how the private equity market works. There is an option to sell to private equity for most companies now, but it’s a world many sellers are unfamiliar with.
15. Understand how the private equity buy-and-build model works. Even modestly growing businesses can be value-enhanced if they can consolidate a fragmented market (or be acquired by a consolidator).
16. Incentivise the management team to benefit from a sale so they are aligned with the sellers and feel positive about the outcome. You usually need them to pitch to buyers.
Let me know if I’ve missed anything – especially if you have sold your business recently.
Needless to say, I’m always happy to chat with people who are wrestling with issues around how to go about selling their business.