Niche Market Exit Planning Tips
Selling a Beverages Retail Business
Few entrepreneurs relish the idea of selling a business in a struggling economy. Yet beverages retail businesses continue to be sold at a brisk pace, outperforming the sales of many other types of businesses.
You won't find any magic formulas for selling a beverages retail business, especially while the market is struggling to overcome the perceptions created by a down economy.
Does that mean selling your beverages retail business will be a piece of cake? No -- but you might be surprised to learn that the beverages retail businesses that are selling these days are finding success though simple, common sense selling strategies.
Signs You're in Over Your Head
Many beverages retail business are tempted to save brokerage fees by selling their businesses on their own. Although there are exceptions, solo sales typically take longer and are less productive than brokered sales. If you decide to go solo and your business has been on the market for more than six months without a single buyer inquiry, it's time to hire a professional business broker. Lack of buyer enthusiasm or persistence indicates that something is wrong. The remedy is professional brokerage or a consultation with more experienced sellers.
Seller Financing
Capital is hard to come by these days. Banks and other lending institutions aren't eager to lend to unproven and undercapitalized beverages retail business buyers regardless of the business's potential. Rather than abandon their plans entirely, many buyers are pursuing finance concessions from sellers. It's common for sellers to finance as much as 70% of the purchase price with a payoff period of four or five years, sometimes in the form of a balloon payment at the end of the repayment period.
Setting the Stage
Effective beverages retail business preparation focuses on communicating value to prospective buyers. In our experience, it pays to solicit the advice of a professional business broker as soon as possible. A good broker will guide you through the preparation stage and make sure you've covered all the bases. At a minimum, you'll want to position your business to receive the highest possible sale price, prepare a packet for prospective buyers and perform an initial appraisal before you put your beverages retail business on the market.
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