What Happens When You Want to Sell Your Business?

If you’re like a lot of business owners, your business is your world. While you’re running the day-to-day, it can be hard to consider what might happen when you’re someday ready to retire or sell your company.

But like most things in life, thinking about the future now can help you succeed in the short and long term.

One of the services we offer at Casey Peterson, LTD is succession planning. Thinking about where you want to be 10, 15, 20, or more years down the road can help you set up best business practices now. That way, your company is worth as much as possible when you’re ready for your next adventure. Those same practices can also aid your bottom line in the present. Plus, finding the right person to help you can make it easier to navigate the tax laws and regulations so your options aren’t limited.

So, let’s use an example. Say you have a successful business that’s worth quite a bit right now. And let’s say your business only has a couple of partners, so you have a lot of leverage.

There might be several people who want to buy your business right now. But there are a lot of variables you have to consider first. Where is your business located? Do you own or lease your space? What’s your specialty? What kinds of customers do you have? Are they longtime customers? Do you have staff? Are they highly trained and highly paid? What about your partners? Will they want to sell? Or buy you out?

Those are just a handful of questions that’re important to ask. In fact, here are a few more:

• Do you have a complete estate plan that you’ve updated in the past five years?
• Do you have a completed succession, exit, or transition plan defining your eventual exit from the business?
• Have you ever had a formal business valuation completed for your business?
• Do you have a completed contingency plan in case the unexpected happens and you become incapacitated?
• Do you have a completed strategic business plan?

If you answered “no” to any of those questions, we should talk. As one of only a handful of Certified Exit Planners in the region, I can make sure you have a solid plan in place, no matter where you’re at or what your goals are.