Every New Year brings a fresh start. As one year ends and another begins, our thoughts naturally turn to what’s next. What do I hope to accomplish this year? What steps should I take now to make it happen?
If you think 2023 might be the year to sell your business, you are not alone. Running a small- to mid-sized business is harder than ever
News about successful acquisitions and ownership transitions in industry publications catch your eye. “How did that business owner get that deal?,” you wonder. “Will the former owner sail off into the sunset with a bank account full of cash and live happily ever after?” Probably not.
Selling a business is never as simple as the press announcements make it seem. Most transitions mix seemingly endless rounds of number-crunching and tough questions with high levels of stress, anxiety, and doubts. Emotional warfare is common, particularly in family businesses.
In private, many former business owners may admit that the process of selling their business was more grueling than expected. Even worse, the final outcome wasn’t what they had envisioned. Owners believe that everything they had worked so long and hard to build had been gutted.
Selling without Selling Out
One entrepreneur who understands these complicated feelings is Sunny Vanderbeck, auhor of “Selling without Selling Out: How to Sell Your Business without Selling Your Soul.”
Vanderbeck recounts some hard lessons he learned as an entrepreneur who sold one business the right way, then bought it back and sold it the right way, Other CEOs quoted in the book bolstered his conclusions with examples from their own experiences.
Today, Vanderbeck is co-founder and managing partner of the investment firm Satori Capital, which creates, funds, and inspires businesses that elevate humanity.
I loved this book because Vanderbeck reinforces my belief that selling a business isn’t just about the money. His advice focuses on how to find a buyer who understands that you didn’t build a business just to flip it. While he believes it’s okay for money to be important, the book explains why your happiness and satisfaction are likely to be driven by other things.
Although the book was published in the pre-COVID year 2019, Vanderbeck recognized that “For some CEOs, the decision to sell their business or take on a capital partner starts with a general unease about the way things are going. You might live for five years with a nagging sense of uncertainty – that the status quo isn’t quite working and something has to change.”
Of course, COVID did disrupt the status quo. Questions about worker shortages, inflation, taxes, supply chains, and regulations make us wonder if business will ever go back to “normal.”
So, I would encourage you to check out Vanderbeck’s book. Although he started his business in the technology sector, his advice about preparing for a sale, finding the right buyer, and bringing the sale to a quick close is spot on.
Plus, he devotes a whole chapter to some of the conflicting emotions you will feel the day after the deal closes.
While the process of selling a business has been expedited (and complicated) by easier access to better data and information from more sources, the human, emotional side of the process remains unchanged.
Firsthand Experience
I encourage you to read “Selling without Selling Out.” The book resonated with me because the content perfectly reflects my own experiences in selling and buying businesses and many of the deals I have been involved with over the past 40 years.
Unless you already have an experienced sell-side team in place, you might not be ready to sell your business by the end of 2023. My advice: Start preparing now. Get your sell-side team in place and your business in order so you will be prepared for a successful sale in 2024.
Subscribe to the blog so you never miss a post. Call me at 561-543-2323. I will be happy to share examples of how Vanderbeck’s advice has played out for the deals in the label, packaging, and specialty print industries.
The more you know about what challenges to expect during the entire process, the better prepared you will be to overcome them.
Recommended Reading
“Selling without Selling Out: How to Sell Your Business without Selling Your Soul” by Sunny Vanderbeck