In their book, The $10 Trillion Opportunity, Richard Jackim and Peter Christman note that: “…Within the next 20 years, more than 90 million people in the US and Canada will be retiring. These are the “baby boomers,” the generation born between 1946 and 1964…Baby boomers have been the most affluent and influential population group in the history of mankind, and now they’re getting ready to retire.”
Economist and demographic expert Robert Avery at Cornell University predicts baby boomers will transfer 10 trillion dollars to later generations — the largest generational transfer of wealth in the history of humankind. The vast majority of this wealth is held as stock in more than 12 million privately owned businesses, and during the next 10 – 15 years, more than 70 percent of these companies are expected to change hands.”
Yet, according to the authors, in spite of overwhelming evidence that exit planning is a vital part of business ownership, most business owners don’t create an exit plan.
“Due to lack of good planning, only 30 percent of family-owned businesses survive through the second generation. A study of 300 former business owners who sold their companies within the last 12 months showed that 75 percent of the respondents felt the sale did not accomplish their personal or financial goals. These statistics suggest too few business owners are proactively planning for the inevitable exit process.”
M&A professionals know that the secret to selling your business for the best possible price and terms is preparation, sometimes beginning 2-3 or more years before you actually hope to sell.
If you know of a business owner who’s thinking of selling or buying a business and who might benefit from a complimentary, confidential, consultation, have them contact me at mertel@transworldma.com
Mike Ertel, CBI, M&AMI, CM&AA
Managing Director
Transworld M&A Advisors
813.299.7862 Direct
©2020 J. Michael Ertel PA