First things first: there is no such thing as the perfect business.  Serious buyers should come to grips with this fact early.  This simple notion is often what separates a successful buyer or entrepreneur from a tire kicker that is unable to make a purchase.   The successful buyer recognizes the blemishes and relishes the process of improving the business.

Businesses, after all, are not off the shelf products.  Each one of them has a life and personality of its own.  Each has its own set of characteristics that defines it:  quality of cash flow, management style, vendor relations, location, etc.  But each of the qualities is on a sliding scale, with very very few businesses having all qualities at the top of that scale.  Those that are at the top are usually priced accordingly!

The successful buyer uses the weaknesses of a business to their advantage.  The key, of course, is to recognize those weaknesses and develop an improvement plan.  Since the business is often priced based on current earnings, the potential buyer will do well to evaluate the negatives and make a quick assessment of what he/she can improve.  Once the business is bought, the benefits of those improvements flow directly into your pocket.

Small business buyers should take a page from the corporate buyer- buying a company with a few blemishes is a great opportunity to grow an imperfect business into a healthy, vibrant company.

Things to remember:
-       How can I improve cash flow?
-       Are there unnecessary costs that can be cut?
-       Is there any effective advertising or marketing in place?
-       Are there more / better / complimentary products that I can add?
-       Do I have the ability to improve on the current operation?

The bottom line is that the savvy buyer recognizes that no business is perfect, but that each has attributes that can be improved upon.

Contact us to discuss your situation or talk to a CRB professional.  

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