Any thriving economy needs a broad range of viable and sustainable businesses across a wide range of industries - I believe it is more difficult to start, grow and sustain a profitable business than it is to buy an existing one.
It has been a tough 18-24 months to be in business and to a large extent, the playing fields have changed - buyers of businesses are more critical, take longer to make decisions, battle to raising funding and are of course still fairly uncertain about the future of the local and international economy. I have focused on this aspect before but really believe that sellers of businesses, now more than ever before, need to think like the potential buyers of their businesses.
This entails 'putting your best foot forward' and presenting the best possible picture of your business - this will take some time and may require attention to various aspects of the business. There are of course many factors that buyers consider when assessing a particular business and in some cases, will vary from sector to sector - at the end of the day though, the numbers have to make sense and will be the most important factor in determining a price for the business.
For a great deal of business owners, selling their business may be a 'once off' experience - having spent many years building the business and increasing it's value, it is vital that they plan well ahead to ensure they realise an optimal price.
To do this, one needs to think like a buyer
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
Fulfilling a business need
The original purpose of this blogsite was to share my experiences of interactions / interventions with small to medium business owners across a wide range of industries - I consider myself very fortunate to be in a position where I can try and fulfill the needs of business owners in my field of expertise and passion.
With any initial interaction with a potential client, we first sit down with them and establish exactly where they are and what they need - this provides a 'status quo' on the business and what will be required to satisfy their need. If we believe we can be of assistance, we provide an indicative fee quote to the client & if acceptable, we start working together.
Every week I will share an experience(s) with a business owner in terms of their needs / challenges and how we plan to assist them.
There are 3 core services we focus on :
1) Help business owners raise finance (R3m or more) for capital expenditure - this would entail assisting with putting together a business plan / funding proposal for submission to a suitable financial insitution and facilitating the process to it's conclusion
2) Provide business development services - this would include viability studies on new businesses / projects, due diligence on a business they intend buying etc
3) Assist business owners in sourcing & securing investors or selling their businesses - this would include a valuation of the business, putting together a comprehensive document for interested investors / buyers and facilitating the process to conclusion. Our focus area is those businesses generating annual before tax profits exceeding R3m.
With any initial interaction with a potential client, we first sit down with them and establish exactly where they are and what they need - this provides a 'status quo' on the business and what will be required to satisfy their need. If we believe we can be of assistance, we provide an indicative fee quote to the client & if acceptable, we start working together.
Every week I will share an experience(s) with a business owner in terms of their needs / challenges and how we plan to assist them.
There are 3 core services we focus on :
1) Help business owners raise finance (R3m or more) for capital expenditure - this would entail assisting with putting together a business plan / funding proposal for submission to a suitable financial insitution and facilitating the process to it's conclusion
2) Provide business development services - this would include viability studies on new businesses / projects, due diligence on a business they intend buying etc
3) Assist business owners in sourcing & securing investors or selling their businesses - this would include a valuation of the business, putting together a comprehensive document for interested investors / buyers and facilitating the process to conclusion. Our focus area is those businesses generating annual before tax profits exceeding R3m.
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