Smart Exit Planning Strategies for Niche Markets

Selling a Grocers Wholesale Business

A good business is about more than dollars and sense. To make your grocers wholesale business what it is today, you've had to fully invest yourself in its success. Now it's time to put that same kind of focus into selling it.

Personal and professional concerns surround the sale of a grocers wholesale business. In our experience, a common owner concern is how the sale will affect customers and employees.

Most grocers wholesale businesses are good business opportunities, a fact that is not going unnoticed by today's discerning buyers.

Working with Accountants

Accountants come into play at several stages of the sale process. Most grocers wholesale business have significant tax consequences requiring the input of a qualified accountant. You may also want your accountant to assist in the preparation of professional financials to present to serious buyers. With seller financing becoming common, professional accountants are playing a more central role in negotiations and buyer qualification.

Finding Grocers Wholesale Business Buyers

Buyers of grocers wholesale businesses run the gamut. Some are seasoned grocers wholesale business veterans interested in expanding their operation or adding a new location. Others are first-time entrepreneurs with a taste for the small business lifestyle. To cover all your bases, you'll need to conduct a broad buyer search process. That means listing your grocers wholesale business in trade-specific directories as well as general business-for-sale databases. Sellers should also recognize the value of promoting their sale in trusted business networks, carefully balancing the need for confidentiality with the promotional potential of their contact base.

Average Preparation Time

It's critical to properly plan for the sale ofa grocers wholesale business. Since buyers prefer to see evidence of future cash flow, you'll want to to strategically lock in cash flows and increase profits before you list the business. Next, the business will need to be documented in professional financial statements and manuals that facilitate the ownership transition. Since all of this takes time and effort, a grocers wholesale business can rarely be ready for the marketplace in less than six months. A more likely scenario is that it will take more than a year to create the conditions necessary to receive the maximum sale price.

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