Meeting potential purchasers of your baby (the business) can be a little like your sixteen year old son or daughter bringing home a potential boyfriend or girlfriend. Yes, it’s exciting and gets your heart racing, but you may very well feel defensive and judgemental. This boy has a mullet and a nose piercing. Not the right sort for my daughter. Never mind that he is doing a double degree in Philosophy and Quantum Mechanics and has a very safe car. We are hyper-sensitised to the things that aren’t right and our focus is muted around the things that may be perfect.
You have to try and imagine this person as a whole and complete being with their personality, character, temperament, life and professional skills and think – what could they bring to the table that would not only protect the existing business but drive it the next level. If you can’t do that, you run the risk of finding that there is no “right” boyfriend for your daughter or your business and you’re stuck in a no-mans-land of uncertainty, disappointment and no traction.
Getting help
Through the course of exiting your business, there are going to be a number of people who can provide great service to you. A word of caution. There is a lot to think about before you need lawyers and accountants. The bulk of the heavy lifting will be undertaken by people from within the business, including you as you deconstruct the operation and fully understand how and why it works the way it does. The best help at the early and mid stages is from a business exit strategist who can help you maintain a helicopter view which should be maintained for as long as possible. Specialist advisors such as lawyers and accountants tend to get down in the weeds preparing sale and purchase agreements and costly financial report packages way too early. Business exit is truly like dating. The first part is working out what you are comfortable with and meeting people and getting a sense of what makes them tick and whether you can find common ground where there is mutual respect and trust and the foundation on which to build a bond that will lead to a successful transaction. Get the right help at the right time and getting what you really want becomes much more accessible.
Contact us for a confidential conversation. Exit Strategy Group Burton Worth: +64 27 266 4492 Hugo Sandall +64 21 64 64 50