Planning your business exit

We all know that it is better to plan things in order to avoid ending up somewhere we didn’t plan to be! 

You need to get your business in the best possible shape for an exit – in whatever form that may take.

Careful planning will:

• Ensure you mould your business into the ideal shape for your chosen exit option – maximising the value you get from it;
• Ensure your family and your business is secure if anything should happen to you in the intervening time;
• Enable you to groom successors if they are coming from within the business - whether a family member or part of your management team;
• Ensure you are prepared - and, so far as is possible, exit at the time of your choosing, when conditions are advantageous.

Owner managers can find the prospect of selling or retiring from their business a disturbing one – issues related to the future continuity of the business feature high on the entrepreneurial worry list.

Careful preparation can do much to lessen such fears and will give you an opportunity to establish:

• whether the younger generations of your family have different plans;
• whether they, or your management team, are ready to take over the business; and
• if planning to sell your business, help you avoid being an ill-prepared seller being haggled down from your starting price.

Planning will help you identify where you need assistance, whether that is expert guidance on different exit options, advice on associated tax or other implications or advice on the best way to prepare.

There are a number of very different ways of achieving an exit to consider, and a good quality adviser will be able to help you identify the best options for you, working with your other advisers to align those with tax planning. Having a plan enables you to focus your efforts on your business and what is required to achieve your exit goal.

“A goal without a plan is just a wish” Antoine de Saint-Exupéry​

Our Business Team are experts in advising and assisting business owners with their exit strategy, please contact me if you would like to discuss your options.