The process of selling your company
is a lot more complicated than simply listing it for sale and then taking the highest
offer.
In fact, it's NOT a good idea to
publicly list your company for sale. Your employees, suppliers, customers and
bankers may all start to become uncomfortable with an uncertain future.
Additionally, those buyers that pay
the highest prices {corporate and strategic buyers} also prefer to work discreetly and
with professional intermediaries who have pre-qualified the company both in terms of price
and the earnestness of the seller.
Generally, they have no desire to
get into a bidding war. Once you show them the value of your company and how you
arrived at that value, discussions will quickly move to terms and closing . . . or
that particular buyer will move on and not waste your time and money with fruitless
discussions.
Professional corporate and strategic
buyers know the value of your company and are willing to pay for it up front.
No one,
neither the seller nor the buyer, wants to waste time with someone who is simply "testing the market".
Consequently, you should have a
clear game plan BEFORE you start to sell your company.
That game plan includes clearly
explaining your company beyond its financial statements, identifying your price range,
developing alternative terms and alternative deal structures, and targeting specific
buyers BEFORE you approach the buyers.
WHAT IS THE PROCESS OF EITHER
SELLING MY COMPANY OR RESTRUCTURING ITS FINANCES ?
Briefly, after you have made the decision to use a professional specialist, the process
consists of;
-
Collect data [financial and other]
-
Valuation of your company
-
Review Operations and Finances
-
Prepare a Background Information
Document [including financial review,
financial forecasts, operations review, strategic plan summary, market analysis, etc.]
-
Develop Alternative and Equivalent
Deal Structures
-
Identify specific and qualified "target"
buyers
-
Obtain concurrence on the Background
Document, Deal Structures, and with
whom the deal will be discussed
-
Obtain a Confidentiality Agreement from those to be contacted
-
Contact and present the deal to those identified
-
Conduct preliminary negotiations with those who express an interest
-
Conduct advanced negotiations with those who have a
continuing interest
-
Prepare "Points of Agreement" document for incorporation into Definitive
Purchase Agreement or Loan Agreement or Investment Agreement
-
Review closing documents
-
Close
Capital
Markets Group, Inc.'s knowledge of
the numerous facets involved in selling your company allows us to help you in
structuring realistic and preferential acquisition terms and price for your company.
For over
27 years, we
have worked with company owners, management, lendors, investors, and buyers in
Europe, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, The Caribbean, and of course throughout the
United States.
Since 1979, our experience gives us
the intimate knowledge of hundreds of professional investors, lendors and buyers and
allows us to provide you with the best alternatives to reach a well thought out and
executed solution.
