Posted in Become a Business Owner, Business Broker Why & How, Buyers Articles

You’ve just entered the business market with the intent of buying yourself a small business, and you are shopping around for a business broker to help you.

There are many factors that separate the good brokers from the bad – but one of the big ones is experience.

Rookie brokers make lots of mistakes, and if you’ve hitched yourself to their wagon for your transaction then you get to live those mistakes right along with them.

As experienced brokers, it can be very frustrating to try and work with these newbies. It becomes increasingly difficult when they are trying their hand at the business transaction process alone and without any guidance (or if they have an experienced broker they work for who has given them little to no training).

One of the major ways this lack of experience shows through? Too many showings.

What do we mean by too many showings?

If you’ve ever bought a house, you know that going to see a plethora of homes is part of the game – especially in a fast-moving market where a house might have multiple offers the first day it lists. This is not, however, how business sales works – so newbie business brokers (especially those fresh out of the real estate industry) will sometimes try to play the same game by attempting to line up a litany of businesses for their clients to see. It doesn’t work.

First of all, when you are buying a business, you are buying an existing business – one that is open and running with staff and customers. The importance of confidentiality means that the staff and customers can’t know the business is for sale. Therefore, a business seller can’t have a parade of semi-curious buyers waltzing through the front door on a regular basis – it would make confidentiality impossible.

If done properly, the process to go see/tour a business is much more extensive:

It starts by having a conversation with your business broker about what you are looking for in a business and what your goals are. You will also talk about how much capital you have to invest in a business, and your broker will then take that information and find you a number of listings to look at that will be within your budget and meet your entrepreneurial goals. Out of that initial batch of potential businesses, you will typically be asked to narrow down the choices to just a few – think two or three – that peak your interest. You will then sign non-disclosure agreements for those listings in order to receive the marketing package, complete with the name and physical location of the business. After thoroughly reviewing the marketing materials for your few choices, you will probably prefer one business over the others. Your broker will help you form a list of additional questions you have for the sellers, and you will be given an opportunity to ask those questions during a conference call including the sellers, the brokers involved and you. After all of those steps have passed and you are still very interested in the business, your broker will set up a walk-through of the physical location of the business either before or after business hours when the staff and customers are gone.

What you can’t do in this process is decide that you want to spend a few days touring businesses and line up 5, 10 or more “showings” with your broker. No experienced broker worth their salt is going to waste their seller’s time by trying to coordinate a visit when the buyer hasn’t even bothered to narrow down their choices or ask any good questions. It’s just not going to happen. They’re also not going to put the confidentiality of the business at risk by having too many unfamiliar people coming to the business to meet with the seller during business hours as the staff will know something is up.

If you ask for this type of multi-tour approach and your broker says “Sure!”, beware that you probably have a rookie on your hands. The experienced brokers on the other side of the table aren’t going to play along, and you will be stuck seeing only the businesses listed by fellow rookie brokers.

If you are serious about buying, get yourself an experienced broker and go through the proper steps. You will end up only seeing the businesses that are right for you instead of wasting your own time looking at businesses that don’t fit the bill.

Are you a first-time buyer with more questions about the business buying process? Have you had an experience with a rookie broker that you’d like to share? Please feel free to leave comments or questions and we would be happy to help.

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
5111 Ocean Boulevard, Suite E
Siesta Key, FL 34242

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

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Posted in Buyers Articles

We all know that first impressions are of the utmost importance. It’s why business people wear suits and why car dealerships keep the cars on their lots shiny and clean. 

Business buyers who come to the business marketplace looking for an immaculate, shiny business are in for some serious disappointment. 

Why?

Businesses (small businesses in particular) can initially seem like ugly monsters. At a cursory first glance a business that has recently listed might seem outrageously overpriced, have seemingly unintelligible financial records and look like an unorganized mess teetering on the brink of collapse. These terrible first impressions, however, mean that buyers regularly pass over perfectly good businesses just because they aren’t perfect.

Why do they look so bad?

Small business ownership is a tough gig. Owners who are very capable of holding everything together and helping the business grow may not be so great at keeping their books organized or at explaining why they listed the business for the price they did. As a buyer, you want a strong business, so overlooking businesses because the current owners focus more on the strength and growth of the business instead of focusing on neatly curated paperwork would be a very big mistake.

Another major first impression hurdle is the aesthetics – peeling paint, outdated decor, dirty floors – but again the point here is you want a business with an owner focused on the bones of the business itself, not someone who only worried that the place stayed immaculate.

How do I see past the ugliness?

Get some professional help. Business brokers look at ugly (but wonderful) businesses every day, and they can help you as a buyer navigate the shoddy paperwork and stained carpet to see what you really would be buying underneath. When you buy a business, you aren’t really buying furnishings and a sign anyway – you are buying cash flow – so having someone to help you determine what the cash flow looks like for the businesses you find interesting can go a long way towards helping you make a decision.

As you start your business search try to remember that in the business-for-sale world, it’s not the first impression that counts.

Have you been searching for a business but haven’t found one that doesn’t come across as a complete train wreck? Would you like advice about how to see past the first impression to find great businesses? Please ask us! Leave comments or questions and we would be happy to help.

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
5111 Ocean Boulevard, Suite E
Siesta Key, FL 34242

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

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Posted in Become a Business Owner, Business Broker Why & How, Buyers Articles

If you are thinking about taking the entrepreneurial plunge by buying a business, you may be wondering where to start. Who should you talk to? What should you look for? How do you begin a search?

Here are 3 tips to get your business search going and put you on the path to small business ownership:

Get In Touch With A Business Broker

Many new buyers think that the services of business brokers are only for sellers, but nothing could be farther from the truth. A good local broker can help steer you in the right direction – both to the right industry and businesses that you can successfully afford.

In your first conversation with a good broker you will likely discuss what your goals are for business ownership, what capital you have readily available to invest in a small business, the industries where you have practical experience and the businesses you are considering. In some cases a buyer who is considering one industry may have more success meeting their goals for business ownership (like setting your own schedule or employing members of your family) by buying a business in an industry they hadn’t even thought of.

Do Some Self Searching

Owning a small business is a life-encompassing affair, and before you decide what type of business would be right for you, you need to think about what you want to get out of business ownership. Have you always dreamed of owning your own bar, but you’ve never worked so much as one day in the restaurant industry? Buying a business and becoming an owner overnight can come with a steep learning curve – you don’t want to add learning a whole new industry to the mix.

You also need to consider what you want your life as a business owner to look like. If part of your reason for transitioning to an entrepreneur is to give yourself more time with your kids – then owning a business like a bar where you will work seven days a week from 3pm to 3am probably isn’t going to leave a lot of time for coaching their little league team.

Do An Exploratory Search

Many prospective business buyers have a general idea in their minds of the type of business they would like to own, but after a cursory search they discover that there are business opportunities out there they’ve never even heard of or considered. Do a cursory search of the businesses available in the geographical areas that interest you and you may be surprised what you find. You can start your cursory search by clicking here, and then ask us about any interesting businesses you find by contacting us today.

If you are thinking about joining the world of small business owners – do some soul searching, talk to a good broker and do a little exploratory searching on your own. By opening the field of available and potential businesses you will have a greater chance of finding the perfect business for you.

Have you thought about buying a business but aren’t sure where to start? Do you have questions about how the business buying process works? Ask us! Please feel free to leave any questions or comments and we would be happy to help.

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
5111 Ocean Boulevard, Suite E
Siesta Key, FL 34242

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

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Posted in Become a Business Owner, Buyers Articles

Another holiday season and the rapid approach of a new year can cause someone to rethink their current life and consider other options. Maybe you’ve been curious about what life might be like as the owner of a business. Maybe you’re visiting from a northern climate and the beautiful winter weather of Florida has you seriously considering a move south.

There are amazing business ownership opportunities in the Sunshine State, and we would love to help you find the one that is right for you – but there is one very important element of the business buying process that buyers should know long before they set foot on a plane.

You can’t call about a business one day and see it the next.

This one is frustrating for both business brokers and buyers alike. If you call us today and tell us you are only in town for another 24 hours and you want to see one of our businesses – the answer is always no.

We would love to accommodate you, but it just isn’t possible, especially during this time of year.

In order to see a business, we would have to know that the business is right for you and that it is a business you could successfully afford. There is no sense in wasting your time looking at businesses you couldn’t or wouldn’t want to buy. Then you would have to sign the appropriate non-disclosure agreements. A showing would need to be coordinated between your schedule, the schedule of your broker, the schedule of the seller’s broker, the schedules of the sellers themselves and at a time when the business isn’t operating or when the employees won’t be around (for confidentiality reasons).

This complicated mix of conversations, paperwork and meshing of schedules is going to be extremely tough (especially during the holiday months because people are traveling or hosting family and won’t be available).  

It is possible, however, for all of the necessary background, non-disclosure agreements and schedule juggling to be done – with enough notice. Just realize that 24 hours or even a few days aren’t going to be enough.

If you are considering taking a trip south and looking at businesses, make contact with a broker and work on setting up these visits before you even buy your plane tickets.

We say this because we want your business search to be successful and we want you to find and see businesses that are right for you. The right business for you is going to depend on things we can’t know about you until we’ve had a chance to talk to you about your goals for business ownership and the amount of money you actually have available to buy a business. The right business for you will also be found by looking at many listings, reviewing financial statements and having conference calls with multiple sellers – all long before you set foot in an actual, physical business.

We also want you to be able to make the most out of your time here – so by researching and vetting the businesses that meet with your goals, by already talking to sellers via conference call – you can efficiently see the two or three businesses you are already serious about buying when you come for a visit.

Set yourself up for business buying success by starting your search BEFORE you buy your tickets to Florida!

Are you a buyer who has tried to see a business last-minute and would like to know more about why this isn’t possible? Are you curious about the business ownership opportunities available in Florida? Ask us! Leave any questions or comments here, and we would be happy to help you on your journey to business ownership.

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
5111 Ocean Boulevard, Suite E
Siesta Key, FL 34242

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

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Posted in Business Broker Why & How, Buyers Articles

We’ll start this one by saying as a caveat that if you end up with a dreadful broker who never returns your phone calls, doesn’t show up to scheduled meetings on a regular basis and is all around just bad – by all means, find a new broker.

Caveat aside, many business buyers come to the business-for-sale marketplace and try to play the field, and this never ends up working in their favor.

What do we mean by playing the field? If you’ve emailed 30 brokers in a small local area to request information on potential businesses, then you are doing yourself and your prospects for business ownership a big disservice.

Why?

Your business search needs to be focused in order to be successful, and in order to have a focused business search you need to have a relationship with a good broker.

This relationship should start with a conversation about several very important things – things that won’t come across if all you are doing is shooting email requests to everyone in the area.

Your initial conversation with a broker might start out as an inquiry into one specific business, but it shouldn’t stay that way for long. A good broker is going to ask you questions that will let them know what direction you want business ownership to take and then help narrow your focus to just those businesses that would fit with your goals.

What should a broker be asking you?

They should ask about what your goals for business ownership are. If what you are hoping to achieve is a very flexible schedule so you can spend more time with your kids, then some businesses are definitely out of the question. If schedule isn’t a priority, but making as much money as possible is – then a very different business would be for you.

They should be asking what your passions are. Entrepreneurship is no picnic. It can be an enormous amount of work, so you need to be doing something that you can be driven and passionate about or you will end up miserable.

They should ask about your experience. If you’ve never worked so much as a single shift in the restaurant industry, then it would be a terrible idea to buy a bar or restaurant. Business ownership is tough, especially if you are brand new to entrepreneurship. You don’t want to add learning an entirely new industry on top of it – you will be setting yourself up for failure.

They should be asking about your finances. You might think you have enough money to buy a particular business, but the reality of buying is that you need far more money than just enough to cover the listing price. You need enough to write the closing check, enough for the deposits for your utilities and lease, enough to buy new inventory, enough for licensing fees, enough for the first few rounds of payroll – the list goes on. A good broker doesn’t want to set you up for failure, so knowing your financial situation will allow them to find you businesses you can actually afford.

The point here is only by having a relationship with a single broker (who knows these very key things about you and about your business ownership goals) can you have any hope of finding the right business.

Approach you search for businesses by searching for a good broker first – then you can count on that relationship to bring you the businesses you should see.

Have you sent a ton of email requests but haven’t actually had a conversation with a broker yet? Do you want to know more about why a relationship with a good broker is so important for your success in purchasing a business? Ask us! Please feel free to leave any questions or comments, and we would be happy to help.

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
5111 Ocean Boulevard, Suite E
Siesta Key, FL 34242

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

No Comments »