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Be a Great Entrepreneur: Selling your business

by Alex MacMillan

Register with a reputable business transfer agent and let them sell it for you. They will have a portfolio of current purchasers and those that are perhaps more passive that they can approach.
You can potentially save a fee by doing it yourself, however if they were any good the higher price they realise should cover this anyway.

Approach people within your industry that are potential buyers. Accountants in your local area may also have contacts that are looking to buy. Put it on your social media site, spread the word that you might be interested in a sale.

Customers and indeed suppliers often buy businesses as they both know something about the enterprise.
A common purchase group is the employees of the business, assuming you have someone as your number two who has the skills to take over.

Prices are really finalised on how much development potential the new owner thinks there is. Deals can be much more varied than
just a price. You can offer ‘owner financing’ to help them purchase. So to get around the lack of credit out there you can finance the deal by a pay-off over time. You can also help them to arrange raising finance through factoring your current invoice book.


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