When to Sell Your Business: A CPAs Perspective

We were introduced to a new client who had been running his own small business for many years.  Unfortunately, profitability was stalling.  In fact, year over year, no matter how hard the client tried to reposition his operation, he just was not able to generate target profit levels.  Therefore, he ultimately decided to sell.

An interested/potential buyer spent some time reviewing his financial statements and noticed the client's profits had been trending downward for some time.  The buyer half jokingly stated that the client should pay him (the buyer) to take over the business.  If our client had been proactive in auditing his operation and reorganizing to meet the demands of changing market conditions, (especially when more considerable challenges arose), he would have realized that he didn’t have the appropriate management and operational structure in place. 

This is a simplified example of how important it is to know and be able to project and plan for your future.  When thinking about selling a business, you should always commence the process of selling that business 5-10 years before the date of that sale.

Contact Stanislawski & Company, Inc. for a thorough business analysis so you can prepare to sell at the right time under the right conditions. Call or email today email today.

626.441.0330 / chuck@stanislawskiandcompany.com