The process of selling a business looks simple; run an ad, answer the phone, negotiate a deal.

But, like most things in life, it’s never that easy.

At BPS Advisory, we start by conducting a detailed analysis of the business that includes:

  • Review of current business plans
  • Review of current contracts and tenders in progress
  • Examine business structures
  • Consider fixed and variable costs
  • Examine product costings
  • Identify potential areas for savings
  • Identify scope for growth
  • Identify any “quarantined areas” and eliminate them from calculations
  • Review the industry and consider likely purchaser profiles

Then we follow these 10 steps to sell the business:

  1. Consider the potential to sell the business assets separately
  2. Consider and, if necessary, prepare a brief strategic plan for the business to demonstrate growth potential and the likely investment required to access that growth
  3. Value the business
  4. Prepare a a vendor due diligence kit
  5. Prepare an information memorandum
  6. Prepare an advertising strategy and implement
  7. Receive enquiries and obtain non-disclosure agreements
  8. Negotiate a deal
  9. Arrange for contracts to be prepared and check them to ensure that they accurately reflect the deal
  10. Participate at settlement as required – for stocktakes, employee entitlement calculations etc.