Sellers

General Information for Business Sellers

A privately-held business is usually the owner's principal asset and often represents a lifetime of work. The sale of your business is a major life event. We know this and treat you as a very important person.

View of a large commercial printer's work floor

View of the work floor of a large commercial printer

The wide range of businesses we have sold gives us a far-ranging knowledge. Business sectors we have served include:

machining and fabrication
commercial printing
employment agencies (medical, high tech, legal)
transportation and trucking services
collision centers
mechanical contractors
computer assembly and distribution
laboratory
cabinet and countertop manufacturing
building product manufacturer
print and print finishing
food product wholesaler
display fixture manufacturing and distribution
cable harnessing
sign and display manufacturing
box manufacturing
musical instrument dealership

The sale process

I wish I had sold the company back in 2001 when you had advised me to do so. Nevertheless I am quite pleased with the buyer you brought to the table and the price that he offered to me.

—

Mark Zueger,
Polaris Machining Inc.
May 2005

Valuation: The first step is an informal valuation of your business and a consideration of the current business climate for its sale. Our principals are in daily touch with the markets and can advise you with a high degree of accuracy. Our President Salim Dada has been in M & A for over 25 years.
Preparation: It could take up to three years at times to prepare your business for a sale at the best possible price. For this reason, it is best to consider an exit strategy before you absolutely need to sell (due to ill health, divorce, etc). We will consult with you on how to best prepare your business; we do not charge extra for pre-sale consultation. You may need to restructure management, address some legal issues, improve operations, etc. If your company requires serious attention, we will recommend an appropriate consultant. The planned exit is always best.
Sign Agreement: Once the time is ripe for a sale, we both sign an agreement. Our goal is to obtain the best possible price for you and the maximum cash at the close. The price is part of the agreement. Marketing: We prepare a professional marketing packet to show to prospective buyers and banks for financing. We search for buyers in our database and through outside sources. We only present qualified buyers to you. We maintain a complete confidentiality, so much so that employees, vendors, and customers only know of the sale after it has closed.
Offer: Once a buyer is determined, we help prepare the Letter of Intent. We may call upon your accountant to guide us to the structure that will best serve your interests.
Financing: We locate and help obtain financing for the sale from local and regional banks. We work with a number of financing sources in the region and nationally. This is the most difficult step.
Closing: It usually takes several months to close. We act as liaison between you, the buyer (and his counselors), your accountant, your attorney, our attorney, the closing attorney, and the chosen bank. We help with the due diligence process and the large amount of paperwork required.

Testimonials

Please visit our testimonials page to read what our sellers have written about us.

Sheet metal being formed at the press brake machine in a fabrication company.

References

Please contact our office for a list of references. Feel free to call any one of them about us.

Detailed information

For more detailed information, please visit our Sellers FAQ page.