Preparing Your Business for Sale

As Ben Franklin once said, “By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail.” The last thing an owner wants is to lose the ship and sell because they are on the down swing, or they are overwhelmed. The object of preparing the business for sale will focus on the essential selling building blocks and key drivers of value that should be in place to drive a maximum value from a potential buyer. A big side benefit is these steps play well into creating value day to day in operations as well and putting more money in the owner’s pocket along the way as well as at the time of a transaction. The more you can show a buyer that this business can run without the founder and owner, the more valuable it is, the more likely a deal will close, and, just as importantly, the owner(s) can get their lives back. Mertz and Taggart can help you with:

• A Quick valuation of the business worth. Based on financial information you share with us; we can provide a range of value (sales price) for your business.
• Preparing for the sale - much as one would stage a home for sale, we assist sellers in cleaning up financial data, identifying pressure points, providing market guidance, gathering the right information for an industry buyer’s review, and ideally, going to market when sales are trending up.
• Evaluating the business - What is driving your desire for a transaction? Is there a value threshold that needs to be met? What qualities do you want in a buyer or financial partner? Are you interested in retaining equity? The more we know about you and your company, the better we can position your company to potential buyers and/or investors...when the time is right for you.
• Weighing selling options - When we take your company to market, we will not include an asking price. In order to ensure that your expectations are set appropriately, Mertz Taggart will render an opinion of value from the very beginning of the process. We will also provide you with general industry trends affecting your business so that you can make the most informed decision on whether or not to go forward with a potential sale of all or part of your business.
• Committing to the process - In order to maximize value, it does take time to maximize value! The typical process takes about 5 months from start to finish and you need to be mentally committed to the process and running your business. We’ll shield you from much of the heavy lifting, but it will still require some time from you, especially at the later stages.