Exit Planning Tips
Selling a Hamburger and Hot Dog Stand
Few entrepreneurs relish the idea of selling a business in a struggling economy. Yet hamburger and hot dog stand continue to be sold at a brisk pace, outperforming the sales of many other types of businesses.
When it comes to selling a hamburger and hot dog stand, there are no shortcuts to success.
If you're ready to move on, now is the right time to sell your hamburger and hot dog stand.
Tips for Seller Financing
Capital is hard to come by these days. Banks and other lending institutions aren't eager to lend to unproven and undercapitalized hamburger and hot dog stand 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.
Signs You're in Over Your Head
Many hamburger and hot dog stand 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. As a rule, no business should sit on the market for more than six months without attracting the interest of at least a handful of qualified buyers. Lack of buyer enthusiasm or persistence indicates that something is wrong. The remedy is professional brokerage or a consultation with more experienced sellers.
Sale Preparation Timeframes
There are no effective shortcuts for selling a hamburger and hot dog stand. Buyers want to see growth trends, healthy profits and other variables that increase the likelihood of long-term success. Next, the business will need to be documented in professional financial statements and manuals that facilitate the ownership transition. Since all of this takes time and effort, a hamburger and hot dog stand can rarely be ready for the marketplace in less than six months. A more likely scenario is that it will take more than a year to create the conditions necessary to receive the maximum sale price.
Share this article
Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs