Preparing to sell your business is a huge undertaking, requiring significant due diligence—both formal during the deal and informal before it begins. Leaders invest significant sums into deal success, hiring experts and assembling forecasts. Despite all of this, half of mergers fail. Your odds of success are no better than chance. And it may feel like there’s little you can do to change that.

Cornerstone International Alliance (C.I.A.) members completed 146 business transactions in 2021, setting a new record of more than $1.1 billion in value.  “This is an incredible accomplishment and a testament to our members’ expertise, the strength of the organization and the global network it creates,” said Nick Olsen, Managing Director of Cornerstone International Alliance. “The members’ combined experience,

If you’re considering selling your business, you may be anxious about the process, especially if you know your company has shortcomings or issues with bookkeeping. The right M&A advisor or investment banker is critical in these scenarios, since they can prepare you to intelligently market your company to the right buyer.

With the right support,

If you’re planning to sell a business in 2022, you probably already know that you need the right team in your corner. A DIY approach to M&A is a recipe for absolute disaster, and one of the very best things you can do to ensure the success of a sale is to begin assembling your team now.

Many business owners say selling their business feels like giving a child up for adoption. As it turns out, that’s not just a metaphor. Research shows entrepreneurs really do think of their business as a kid. 
 
Researchers found parallel brain activity between owners thinking about their business and parents thinking about their kids.

For many owners, it’s the ultimate dream of running a business: a buyer approaches, offering to buy the business without any effort on your part. Even if you’ve never before considered selling your business, a particularly enticing offer might change your mind. After all, no one relishes the idea of marketing a business for months,

If you’re contemplating a Denver business acquisition, you may be reluctant to trust the seller and concerned about the inherent risks. Or perhaps you’re excited about the investment, and how you might use it to change the world—or at least your own life. Many people planning to buy a business vacillate between these two extremes.

(Used with permission of the author, C. Peter Smith)
 
 

PREPARE YOURSELF
 

Have a personal financial plan prepared that projects your financial future after business is sold.  Qualified financial planners can assist in projecting retirement needs, college education expenses, life insurance requirements, etc.  In order to project a realistic personal financial plan,

The thought of running your own business can be exciting, and a little scary. One way to transition to entrepreneurship without all the upfront labor is to purchase an existing company. There are lots of costs, of course, but you don’t have to come up with an idea and grow it on your own. You can invest in something that’s already succeeding,