If there is no one to buy your business, you shut it down. In a liquidation you sell off your assets, collect your accounts receivables, pay of outstanding debt, and keep what’s left, if anything for yourself.
The primary reason to consider liquidation is that a business lacks sufficient income producing capacity apart from the direct [...]

You might begin the business transfer process with the thought that a sale to a key employee, co-owner or family member is the path to maximum cash on departure. This is very seldom the case. With proper preparation, more often than not, you can maximize the net dollars you receive by selling to a third [...]

Just last week I met with the owners of a manufacturing company in San Jose, California. Husband and wife had started the business 30 years ago and over the years had brought in their son and brother in law to work in the business. Now well into their 60s, the owners want to retire while [...]

We talked about the importance of determining your departure objectives as a first step to leaving your business under most favorable conditions. One of the goals outlined was deciding to whom you will transfer the business: children or family members; key employees; co-owners; or a third party known or unknown.
It is important to appreciate the [...]

We’ve talked about some important steps in developing a successful business exit plan: Setting a tentative Departure Date so that Advisors can put all planning efforts in context;  assessing your post-retirement financial needs because meeting them is a key measure of your Exit Plan’s success; choosing a successor to give structure to your Exit Plan. Keep in mind, it is not [...]

 
Maximize what you get and minimize what the IRS takes.
We talked about setting your “end game” objectives as an important step in mapping your business Exit Plan. Remember, if you don’t know where you’re going, any map will do. Equally important is the starting point. If you don’t know where you are…a map won’t help. Valuing [...]

Someone once cleverly pointed out that “if you don’t know where you’re going, any map will do.” No one statement better underscores the importance of setting goals as the first step in building a successful business exit plan.
We’ve talked about the importance of owner-based business exit planning and establishing your objectives to create a road map [...]