Exit Planning Advice

Selling a Keymakers Business

Business-for-sale markets are susceptible to a variety of influences. As you know, the keymakers business industry has seen more than its share of fluctuations in business values. Many sellers have exited their companies under less-than-ideal circumstances. Yet it's still possible to achieve personal and professional goals when selling a keymakers business whem market conditions threaten a successful business sale.

In a down economy, many keymakers business sellers wait to list their businesses until they see signs that the economy has rebounded, making it difficult to accurately evaluate the number of keymakers businesses that are actually for sale.

If your exit strategy involves selling a keymakers business now, business sellers may need to apply a combination of incentives and techniques.

Leveraging External Resources

Rarely, if ever, do owners sell a keymakers business without outside assistance. Although it's wise to recruit a business broker, brokerage isn't your only concern. Additionally, you may want to hire professionals for legal, valuation and other functions before you put your business on the market. The benefit of soliciting outside assistance early is that seemingly small decisions now can have big consequences later. By consulting professionals throughout the sale of your keymakers business, you can avoid painful tax and legal complications both before and after closing.

Seller Financing

Capital is hard to come by these days. Banks and other lending institutions aren't eager to lend to unproven and undercapitalized keymakers business buyers regardless of the business's potential. Rather than abandon their plans entirely, many buyers are pursuing finance concessions from sellers. As you prepare for the sale of your keymakers business, expect to be asked to finance a substantial part of the sale price.

What About Market Conditions?

No one plans to sell a keymakers business in a down economy. So far, government intervention and promises that the economy is slowly recovering haven't been enough to alleviate many entrepreneur's fears. However, many business sellers don't realize that a full economic rebound can have devastating consequences, particularly if sellers who have waited to list their businesses suddenly create a glut in the business-for-sale marketplace. So what's our point? The economy isn't the most important factor in the sale of your business. Instead, you should be focusing on making your keymakers business as attractive as possible so to buyers right now.

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