ABA Keeps all information with regard to a buyer and seller in the strictest of confidence. Confidentiality is often critical in this process in order to maintain a high level of integrity for the buyer as well as for the seller’s business operations.
Selling a Business
 Perhaps you would like to sell a business of your own, a partnership or a corporation. This could be a family restaurant in Chicago, a liquor store, a printing company or some other type of business entity. For example, you have a “business for sale” and it has multiple locations in Chicago, suburban Chicago or Northern Illinois. ABA helps you sell a business by presenting your genuine business opportunity to qualified individuals or investor groups who want to buy a business or corporation. Ideally, ABA presents a business for sale at the height of its success and when it is most attractive to an interested party in search of this specific type of business. Doing business valuations or analysis and presenting genuine business opportunities is what we do and we are here to work for you.
In order to sell a business, it is very important for us to understand your particular business situation as completely as possible. The type of industry you are in, who it appeals to, what potential buyers are going to look for, where to find potential buyers, what is happening at any given time that might affect how to market the business, what might the business be worth etc...etc... Our job is to confidentially consult with you and help coordinate your exit plan by qualifying potential buyers in the business world and private sector and presenting them with a viable business opportunity. We provide exposure in the right places, conveying general information to the right contacts and all while acting as your eyes & your ears in places where we know buyers and investors go to seek new opportunities in business sales and acquisitions.
The Key
The key to selling a business is to have the ability to look at each situation from three different perspectives.
1). Your ability to objectively see your own perspective as the party selling a business.
2). Your ability to relate to the perspective of the buyer or party buying a business.
3). Your ability to understand our company (ABA’s) perspective as your representative. We as a company have to be able to almost read the minds of the each of the parties involved so as to ensure we maintain the highest level of service.
From your perspective as a seller:
The majority of seller’s that we talk with want to be able to establish a range of what Market Value might be. They also want to be recognized for their years of good will from running or building the business. Finally, they want to find a qualified buyer who is able to meet the seller terms. Some things have to be accomplished prior to finding a qualified buyer and we help walk you through the process of these simple issues.
In order to prepare and make your company attractive for sale, it is critical to understand the need to be able to do three things.
1). To independently determine the potential Market Value or range of value.
2). To be able to justify how you determined that value or range of value.
3). To be able to defend that value or range of value.
The true Market Value is whatever the market will dictate. Only the market or potential buyers can bring offers that will establish the conditions at that time. You can not set a value or defend a price that you yourself determined based on your own knowledge of your business no matter how accurate it ends up being. An independent party that is not the seller or buyer has to be the buffer and professionally analyze your specific situation as it is uniquely different than any other. They are then able to justify and defend what they find. This is what we do every day and we will discuss how we can assist you in this process of determining a range of value for your business when we meet. This is the critical first step in your exit strategy.
From the perspective as a buyer:
Through our experiences with buyers and investors of all kinds, we have found that most are focused on being able to justify the amount that they are about to invest for a business. The issue comes down to cash flow, return on investment and market value as it relates to the sale price. Therefore, potential buyers are seeking someone to do a business valuation or analysis in order to help determine the potential value of their business of interest. The buyer is about to invest 10’s or 100’s of thousands of dollars (or even millions) and needs to know what his / her money is going to buy or why they should spend their life savings on this opportunity verses some other. Presenting genuine business opportunities is what we do.
Our perspective as a company:
Here at ABA, the consultant will want to have all of the information at hand after having met with you, developed an understanding of your business and your needs. As your representative, we also want to be able to present all aspects of your company and defend the value of your business. We will be able to effectively do just that after completing a thorough confidential business valuation, analysis or profile. In order to do that, we will need to gather some information about your company upon our initial visit. We will provide a list of the information we will need to see in order to complete our analysis for you. At our meeting we will also discuss all aspects of our service, answer all questions and exchange necessary information in order to begin the process.
The Process:
As we begin the process we will:
1). Tailor a marketing strategy for your specific company.
2). Remain objective in our approach as we communicate your particular situation to our network of professionals.
3). Submit information to our database of previous and current investor’s.
4). Provide confidential multi-media exposure.
5). Provide consistent communication via activity reports.
6). Provide detailed information to buyers only when they have been qualified and have signed off on a confidentiality agreement.
Once we reach a point that an interested party has displayed a real ability to buy a business, has been qualified to move forward and has reviewed the details of the business, we will assist in the process of preparing a purchase agreement. ABA assists in all aspects from this point forward in conjunction with seeking or referring any needed professional legal counsel, accountants, bankers etc... We work closely to ensure a smooth and respectful transition for all parties involved. We know how much the business means to the seller and also how excited the buyer is to begin his new venture.
Planning and Financial Tools:
There are a number of planning and financial tools available to help you with the process of buying and selling your business.
Our quality service is your confidence.
Please see our referral page for professional services that may be needed as you undertake this process of buying, merging or selling. Legal counsel, accounting and financing sources that are very familiar with this process are available on our referral page. Please call or email us with any questions.
We are a Chicago business brokerage specializing in selling businesses or companies such as manufacturing, distribution, restaurants, liquor stores, storage facilities, logistics companies, dealerships and more in or near Chicago, Illinois. |
