Succession planning (Exit Strategy)
Sometimes a business is more than just a business. Sometimes it’s a legacy.
In this case, succession planning can be critical. Not only does succession planning financially reward you, but it also protects your business and gives the new owner the best possible chance for success.
The team here at CIBB have helped hundreds of owner managers hand down their businesses. We’ve spent decades gaining understanding what personal motives lay at the heart of business succession. We’ve mastered the art of attentive listening to find the most practical way to satisfy our clients in order to ensure that the succession plan we create for you is realistic, robust, and of course, highly rewarding.
What is succession planning?
In simple terms, succession planning is simply deciding ‘who’ is going to take over your business when you decide to retire….. and ‘how’ this will happen.
A succession plan includes strategies such as:
Training your successor Helping them to buy the company Managing the transition smoothly Safeguarding the future success of the business
It is strongly recommended that you plan your exit strategy sooner rather than later. By doing this, you have time to ensure you achieve the best outcome for your business. Once you have a timeline, you can then begin to set meaningful targets.
Management/Family Succession Buyouts
A succession buyout allows you to hand your business over to either your family or a staff member. It’s basically a management buyout (MBO) that’s tailored to business succession. As a result, a succession buyout is sometimes referred to as VIMBO (vendor-initiated buyout). Or, when it’s handed over to the family, it’s referred to a FAMBO.
Channel Island Business Brokers craft succession buyouts that work for everyone. This means that we give you a good price, your successor an amazing opportunity, and your business has the chance for a great future.
We also ensure that we create a positive and memorable experience. After all, business succession doesn’t happen every day. We want the final handover to be a proud moment for both yourself and your successor, and make the whole process as satisfying and stress-free as possible.
Important points to consider with succession planning:
Is your business going to sell? How quickly will your business be sold? Who is likely to buy your business and why? What price will someone pay for your business? Who will pay the highest price for your business?
Succession (Exit) Planning
When?
A lot of business owners don’t want to think about selling their business – but they need to have a plan. It’s easy to get carried away with the daily routine of running a business and forget about it. One of the most important aspects of owning a business is to plan your exit of the business in advance.
Who?
CIBB can become your team of advisors and help you to achieve the outcome you want. We will support your exit strategy at every stage.
Why?
We’ve all heard the saying….. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail… As a business owner, you need to have the following: Business Plan Marketing Plan Exit Plan
How?
Just like any journey, we need to plan out the final destination at the beginning. We can then determine the required steps to be taken to reach your goals.
This is how CIBB will administer your succession buyout:
Developing your succession plan
We make sure that everything is in place for a smooth transition. You can count on our expertise in succession planning with over 80 years’ collective specialist experience.
Structuring the buyout
The buyout will be designed so that it suits everyone. We take into account the ownership structure, the valuation of the business, finance, and tax options.
Financing the buyout
We can help your successor find the funds for the buyout. They will usually have plenty of options available to them. These range from bank or equity finance options to ‘loan notes’ (these are referred to as an IOU to you).
Legals and tax work
We have a team of solicitors and business tax experts to make sure that your business succession is absolutely watertight as well as being tax efficient.
Completion of your succession buyout
At CIBB, we manage the buyout right through to completion. This gives you the time to run your business as usual. We don’t stop there, though. We guide you through the transition and stay in touch for months after completion to help answer any post sale questions.
Let’s discuss business succession
Please feel free to get in touch with us for an informal chat about developing your succession plan. Please note that ALL calls are confidential. Our team will also be honest and realistic with you as well as offering practical advice about your choices.
