Exit Planning Tips
Selling a Health Food Store
You've learned a lot during your tenure as a health food store owner. Now the trick is to convince cautious buyers that your operation is worth the asking price.
Business-for-sale markets are less dependent on economic conditions than most sellers think they are.
Yet what many sellers don't appreciate is that a down economy can present the perfect opportunity to sell a health food store.
Should I Hire a Business Broker?
When selling a health food store, you have two choices: Hire a broker to facilitate the sale or perform the sale unassisted. Business brokers typically charge a 10% "success fee" when they sell a business, but they also handle many of the hassles that are associated with selling a health food store. If you're on the fence, do your research before you make a final decision. BizBuySell.com and other websites offer detailed information about brokers and the process of performing a brokered health food store sale.
Why Confidentiality Matters
Highly publicized health food store sales are risky health food storesales. A low-key selling strategy is a low risk activity because you can control who does (and doesn't) know that your business is on the market. Eventually, word will leak out. When that happens, it can damage your standing with customers and vendors. Although it can be difficult, it's important to strike a balance between confidentiality and sale promotion. Brokers and consultants can mitigate the risk by implementing confidential sale techniques.
Average Preparation Time
There are no effective shortcuts for selling a health food store. 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 health food store can rarely be ready for the marketplace in less than six months. If you can afford to wait, we recommend investing a few years in improving your business's financial position before you put it on the market.
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