// The Business
Scaling your business for sale Since I started my consultancy business, I’ve been contacted by a number of business owners who are thinking about selling. In the current economic climate, this is sadly understandable – but for many scaffolding business – particularly those that are significantly exposed to the housebuilding sector at present – it’s not surprising. Every business should be built with a view to a profitable exit strategy, but in all too many instances, this is not the case
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hat I’ve discovered, however, is a gap between ‘wanting to sell’ and ‘being ready to sell’. In fact, this is a litmus test for the health of your business – is it sellable, or not? It’s not unusual for business owners to be unsure about whether they have built a desirable asset – if you’ve never sold a business before, how would you know what investors are looking for? So I thought it would be helpful if I put an article together that highlights the things that business owners – if their business is an appropriate size – need to do in order to be sale-ready. And, because this includes building your business into something that another company might want to buy, I’m also looking at how to scale your business successfully to make it an attractive proposition. It’s important to note here that scaling your business for sale requires planning and action several years before you want to sell. It’s not something you can do in six months. Just as with everything, preparation and planning is all. WHY SCALE YOUR BUSINESS?
If your exit plan is selling your business, you need have something valuable to sell. It’s important to note that it’s not you, the business owner, that you’re selling. It’s the actual business. In many cases, people work hard over many years to build a business. And when they are ready to move onto something new or retire, they are surprised to find that no-one wants to buy. Scaling your business develops it from being merely a ‘lifestyle’ business to something that will have commercial and long-lasting value to an investor. So it’s worth thinking about how you can grow your business to make it an appealing purchase option – including considering your existing management structure as part of your plans. This is paramount.
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