Selling a Business

Keys to a Successful Closing

The closing is the formal transfer of a business. It usually also represents the successful culmination of many months of hard work, extensive negotiations, lots of give and take, and ultimately a satisfactory meeting of the minds.  The document governing the closing is the Purchase and Sale Agreement.  It generally covers the following: • A description …

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Why Seller Financing?

Many business owners would like to receive all-cash for their business when selling. And yet they are often told that this is really not possible. Why? Most people are accustomed to financing just about everything – home, car, vacation home, even college for their children. The first question business brokers are often asked is, “How …

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Financing the Business Sale — Some Questions to Answer!

Structuring the purchase of a business is an issue that should be faced early in the selling decision. Ultimately, the final structure of the sale will be determined by actual negotiations between buyer and seller, but the seller must still answer the following questions: What is the lowest amount of cash acceptable from the sale? …

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What Is Goodwill?

In the practical sense, when selling a business, goodwill is all the hard work and effort the seller has put into the business over the years. When acquiring a business, goodwill is the difference between the tangible assets and the purchase price. Goodwill value should not be confused with going-concern value. There is a big …

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Confidentiality Agreements

“Confidentiality Agreement – A pact that forbids buyers, sellers, and their agents in a given business deal from disclosing information about the transaction to others.” The M&A Dictionary It is common practice for the seller, or his or her intermediary, to require a prospective buyer to sign a confidentiality agreement, sometimes referred to as a …

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The Anatomy of a Deal

The following might be a subtitle for this true account of how one deal was put together: “In spite of everything, you need only one buyer – the right one!” (Although the details are factual, names and financial data are fictional.) The company (let’s call it ElectroCo) has carved a niche in a billion dollar …

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The Confidentiality Myth

When it comes time to sell the company, a seller’s prime concern is one of confidentiality. Owners are afraid that “if the word gets out” they will lose employees, customers and suppliers. Not to downplay confidentiality, but these incidents seldom happen if the process is properly managed. There is always the chance that a “leak” …

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Does the Deal Fit?

“The most successful integrations were directed by people who placed the common good of the combined organization and its customers before all else.” From: The Mergers & Acquisitions Handbook. By now, most business owners are familiar with the problems created by the merger of Daimler, the German automobile company, and Chrysler, the American car maker. …

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