Selling my small business

Selling my small business

Author
Discussion

TimmyTommy

Original Poster:

4 posts

125 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
Posting from a burner account.


Hi Everyone,
Not one for asking for advice but I am feeling a little stuck and don’t have anyone close I feel comfortable enough asking.

I have been running my own business for around 12 years now which runs on a ebay/AMZ/Website. Its had its highs and lows and run as a limited company.

Long story short even though it has lots of potential to improve and get back to its hay day I just don’t have the excitement or will power to do it even though I have tried. I feel like a change and a change in my personal life too.

My question is that I am trying to think of the best way to sell my business and how to package it up to get it ready. It currently runs as a limited company and I have a warehouse but it could easily be repackaged to be as a sole trader business and run from a double garage in a house with a container offsite. This would bring the business to sales of around between 70-90kpa with a NP of around 38%.

For me valuation would be around 1x-2x profit + stock but I am wondering where to sell it.

I know we have rightbiz for selling businesses but I would rather use a small broker to help with the headache of selling.

22

2,396 posts

144 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
Could someone run it for you, potentially a passive income and a motivated manager so you all do better.

Or do you already have staff? Sell to them (tax-free) into Employee-Ownership?

When the company I now work for was originally for sale with an agent - the interested parties were typically folk with a bit of cash who wanted to be a company owner. The agents had no real interest in who they were.

TimmyTommy

Original Poster:

4 posts

125 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
22 said:
Could someone run it for you, potentially a passive income and a motivated manager so you all do better.

Or do you already have staff? Sell to them (tax-free) into Employee-Ownership?

When the company I now work for was originally for sale with an agent - the interested parties were typically folk with a bit of cash who wanted to be a company owner. The agents had no real interest in who they were.
I have contemplated this, the business is very easy to run, around 1-2 hours work a day max 5 days a week. I have children around 10 years old that could actually run it with guidance as they used to help out in certain parts of the business anyway. I started to wonder about it being over complicated with the tax implications etc.

It's just weighting letting it go for a "fresh start" or keeping it and working with it
No staff.

lizardbrain

2,465 posts

44 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
Just one quick point . No upfront fee brokers do exist - absolutely no need to pay anything up front.

mini95

241 posts

252 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
Just out of interest what is the business? I am currently in a corporate job and getting a bit fed up and have been considering if running my own small business could be the answer to do something different.

Panamax

5,077 posts

41 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
TimmyTommy said:
business for around 12 years now which runs on a ebay/AMZ/Website. Its had its highs and lows and run as a limited company.

For me valuation would be around 1x-2x profit + stock but I am wondering where to sell it.
Sounds optimistic to me.

On what basis is the warehouse occupied?

On what basis is all the existing stock considered saleable?

How many times a year does the stock turn over?

What's the margin on sales?

How can the business be expanded by the buyer so they're not working for nothing for the first year or two?

What's to prevent someone who wants a business like this simply setting up their own version from their own garage?

Any personal guarantees in place over the premises or anything else?

Is there any "brand" value?



DSLiverpool

15,124 posts

209 months

Sunday 11th February
quotequote all
Try that
https://empireflippers.com/

Depending on what you sell I might be able to find a buyer.

biggiles

1,836 posts

232 months

Monday 12th February
quotequote all
Good book I have recommended in the past: "Built to Sell" by Warrillow. It's unlike most of the "business books" littering Amazon.

minghis

1,570 posts

258 months

Monday 12th February
quotequote all

Have a chat with your accountant, they may well have contacts who value and sell businesses.

n3il123

2,674 posts

220 months

Wednesday 14th February
quotequote all
I'm looking to buy into something, but finding something online that isn't an obvious scam, a coffee/ takeaway or a million pounds overpriced seems very hard, unless the hidden gems are very well hidden!

Panamax

5,077 posts

41 months

Wednesday 14th February
quotequote all
n3il123 said:
I'm looking to buy into something, but finding something online that isn't an obvious scam, a coffee/ takeaway or a million pounds overpriced seems very hard, unless the hidden gems are very well hidden!
Lots of small business owners think they have something valuable to sell - but haven't.

The world is full of "subsistence businesses" where the proprietor works and just about manages to pay their bills. That typically doesn't create value, it's just a job. Simply working for yourself rather than working for someone else.

muppets_mate

783 posts

223 months

Thursday 30th May
quotequote all
TimmyTommy said:
Posting from a burner account.


Hi Everyone,
Not one for asking for advice but I am feeling a little stuck and don’t have anyone close I feel comfortable enough asking.

I have been running my own business for around 12 years now which runs on a ebay/AMZ/Website. Its had its highs and lows and run as a limited company.

Long story short even though it has lots of potential to improve and get back to its hay day I just don’t have the excitement or will power to do it even though I have tried. I feel like a change and a change in my personal life too.

My question is that I am trying to think of the best way to sell my business and how to package it up to get it ready. It currently runs as a limited company and I have a warehouse but it could easily be repackaged to be as a sole trader business and run from a double garage in a house with a container offsite. This would bring the business to sales of around between 70-90kpa with a NP of around 38%.

For me valuation would be around 1x-2x profit + stock but I am wondering where to sell it.

I know we have rightbiz for selling businesses but I would rather use a small broker to help with the headache of selling.
Any update OP? Did you manage to progress this at all?

I'd be interested to hear if you managed to move this forward.



Fessia fancier

1,176 posts

190 months

Friday 31st May
quotequote all
I may know someone who this could suit if you could mail me