Employee Retention Strategies During the Sale of a Business
In a perfect world, when one business buys another, the staff of the purchased company would be able to transition into a role with the buying company. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. What’s more, the company being purchased may not know what is...
Will There Really be a Business Exit Bubble for Baby Boomers?
When an asset has a grossly inflated price, it is by definition an asset bubble. Does this apply to many small businesses in the US? Probably yes, in my opinion. Most small businesses have a balance sheet listing some assets; therefore they are subject to being part of a bubble.
Indemnification Provisions of a Purchase Agreement
Indemnification allocates the risk of various post-closing losses between buyer and seller. For this reason, the indemnification provisions of your purchase agreement will very likely be among the most heavily negotiated provisions in your purchase agreement.
It’s Entrepreneurial Malpractice | NOT Exit Planning
A friend called me recently and asked a question: Do you think you could help a young man, he has a big problem? It turns out that my friend’s friend knew this young man and his father. The father is a well-regarded attorney who has a solo practice – sounds like thousands of other attorneys in the US.
Selling a Business to a Competitor? Pitfalls to Avoid, Precautions to Take
There are many pitfalls to avoid and precautions to be taken when contemplating the sale of your business to a competitor. In particular, selling a business to a competitor can have tricky antitrust implications that require much care prior to closing.
Employees Ownership Incentives — Implications When You Sell
Many entrepreneurs faced with the demands on cash of a growing business are tempted to sell equity to outside investors, or perhaps give away stock to retain a valuable employee. Diluting your stake in this way may solve the immediate problem, but it can have unforeseen consequences when the business eventually is sold. Stockholders’ personal circumstances evolve in different ways over the lifetime of a company, and whatever the original intention everyone may not be on the same page when you are ready to sell.
Surviving Due Diligence & Contract Negotiation
You have endured multiple meetings with potential buyers. You’ve written dozens of emails and suffered through several rounds of negotiations to secure the best price and deal structure. At last you have decided on the offer to accept. That’s the worst of it over then? Think again – you have yet to experience the joys of due diligence and sale contract negotiation.
5 Ways to Prepare a Business for Sale at a Higher Price
The reasons for selling a business are many and varied; in the end, however, the desired result is the same – money. So how does one go about maximizing profit when selling a business?
The Value of a Business Plan in Selling Your Business
A business plan is critical to the success of any business. And, if the plan is frequently reviewed and updated, it becomes increasingly valuable over time. It provides valuable historical information to help a business owner make decisions on the future direction of the company.
Exiting The Business, But Not Entrepreneurship
For Bill Hinchey, his entrepreneurial journey was one of rapid growth. Just not in the way he initially hoped for. In just 13 years, he saw the sun care product company he started with two partners in a Pennsylvania basement develop into a worldwide leader in the medical device industry.
Going After the Next Opportunity
It’s the late 1980’s and Bill Hinchey just saw his young company, Solar Care Technologies, featured in a complimentary Wall Street Journal piece. Hinchey, along with two other guys he met while working for consumer products giant Proctor and Gamble, had recently set up shop in a business incubator in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley to develop a sunscreen towelette.
A Father’s Wish, an Entrepreneur’s Rise
This is the second part in a series called The Exit Interview featuring life-long entrepreneur Bill Hinchey. Read part two here. So here’s the setting. It’s Pittsburgh in the 1970’s and no longer will just “working hard” make ends meet. Pink slips are coming down in a...
Will Transferring Your Business To An Employee Or Family Member Meet Your Exit Objectives?
For many entrepreneurs protecting the livelihoods of loyal employees after selling their business is an important consideration. There is always a fear that a trade sale to a rival will lead to job losses, perhaps even the closure of the entire business, as the new owners seek to boost profits by eliminating duplicated resources.
What is my Business Worth Calculator
Most entrepreneurs build a business with a view to an eventual profitable exit. Most probably have lifestyle aspirations in mind that imply a certain amount of money to be realized from a sale. Whether they are looking at an exit now – or a decade from now – they need more than the subjective opinion of friends and acquaintances as to how much their business is worth.
What a Letter of Intent Expiration Date Means?
When the Letter of Intent (LOI) expiration date and time is defined, the buyer is putting the seller on notice that he or she must either agree to the terms defined in the letter or lose the opportunity to sell the business to the buyer authoring the LOI.
Business Buyers: Finding the Perfect Match When Selling Your Business
In many cases, the business owner finds it difficult to know who they should target as a potential buyer for their business. At first glance, any buyer with a checkbook may be attractive. In practice finding the right buyer when selling a business is both an art and a science.
Have You Considered a Management Buyout?
Management Buyouts, or MBOS, can sometimes have a negative connotation. Maybe that’s because it sounds like the management team is getting “taken out”. On the contrary, it is the exact opposite. A Management Buyout is a fancy acronym for when the current managers buy controlling interest of a company from its owners. That’s a good thing for management!
15 Ways to Leave Your Company Unsuccessfully – And How to Avoid Them (Part 2)
(This is Part 2 in a post series by Transition Planning Expert Paul Cronin. Read Part 1 here.) So, for all of you not planning, stuck on planning, or simply afraid of selling your business, here are the final 6 ways to leave your company unsuccessfully: 9....15 Ways to Leave Your Company Unsuccessfully – And How to Avoid Them (Part 1)
Some entrepreneurs claim to not be ready to plan a succession. Some know they need to, but are scared to even think about it because “they don’t know, what they don’t know”. Some are simply in denial, “why would I leave?” they ask, “I love my business”.
