SELL A BUSINESS OR DIVESTING A BUSINESS UNIT
Looking to sell your business or divest a business unit no longer connected to your company's strategy?
Let us help you find the right buyer.
Our efforts often attract buyers and venture partners that had not previously considered themselves in the market. By skillfully identifying the prospects most likely to advance our clients’ strategic goals, and professionally presenting that strategy, we often convince acquirers or prospective partners to negotiate. Significantly, we run a controlled auction where each buyer receives the individual attention they need to evaluate the opportunity and maximize the value for the seller. We save our clients considerable time by introducing them only to viable pre-qualified candidates.
Selling a business you have built over a lifetime or divesting a business unit that is no longer core to the parent companies strategy is a momentous decision. We've been advising sellers for over 30 years and have developed a seven-step program to help maximize the value and more importantly minimize disruptions to the business and the people who work there.
American Corporate Services draws upon global insight and broad vision to help clients maximize value when they sell a business. Often the best buyer willing to pay the highest price is not the obvious buyer. American Corporate Services can help you plan for and navigate through rough currents that left unchecked, can cause a deal to capsize.
1.
Defining an Exit
Exiting is a process, not an event. There are different ways of doing the deal depending on who the buyer can be. Initially, you'll want a business valuation reference point. Alternative strategies need to be identified and a written-plan prepared and finally you may want to select an advisor. No single advisor is an expert in all aspects.
Setting Goals
Are you looking to maximize the after-tax wealth extracted from the business immediately upon the sale? Are you looking to preserve a legacy? Do you have family and friends in the business whom you would like to protect? Do you want to stay involved in an operating or advisory role? We can help you establish clear goals for an Exit.
2.
Selecting a Team
An M&A Advisor can be a specialty firm with expertise in your industry, a major-bracket investment banking firm with global coverage, a business-broker or a trusted legal or professional Accounting firm. The team should include the necessary knowledge, skills and experience in Mergers & Acquisitions, Corporate Law, Taxation and Financial Planning/Wealth Management.
3.
Writing the Plan
You can't always time your exit, there is no "right time" or "best time." Your advisor should collaborate with you to prepare a written Exit Plan incorporating a valuation, statement of goals and objectives and a review of strategies (options) for realizing the goal and achieving your objective.
4.
Reconciling Goals and Options
Maximizing value may require you to stay with the business or guarantee contracts for a period of time. But "money isn't everything," you may want to sell to management or a friendly competitor to avoid a "close and move" which could make you a pariah in your community.
5.
Positioning Strategies
What can you do today to better position the business for sale? Would a "Business Value Enhancement" strategy implemented over a year or two result in a higher return? Because of the multiplier effect built into earnings-based valuations, a $1m earnings improvement may increase the valuation by, say, $5m.
6.
Exit Strategies
Your advisor should prepare a comprehensive analysis of options for the corporation including sale, recapitalization, merger, transfer or gift. For the sale of the business, partners, competitors, strategic buyers, financial buyers, international buyers or ESOP options all need to be documented.