You Don't Have To SELL Your Business To Exit It

You Don’t Have to Sell Your Business to Exit It(And why most small businesses aren’t worth what their owners think)

This is an online event - the Zoom link will be emailed after registration.

Every business must be “Built to Sell”. Whether you sell or not is almost irrelevant. A business that is sellable, is likely to be enjoyable.

Here’s a few hard truths: most small business owners assume they’ll one day sell their business and ride off into a well-earned sunset. But when the time comes, many find their business is worth far less than expected, or worse, no one wants to buy it at all.

Or, worst nightmare scenario, the business has a negative value, and yes, that’s possible.

That’s why over 80% of businesses listed never sale. It’s not that they are bad businesses, they are just not sellable businesses (yet).

Why? Because the business has been built entirely around them. It works because they work. Take them out of the equation and the whole thing grinds to a halt. That’s not a business, it’s a job with a fancy title on the business card.

This event is for those ready to change that. Those who want to plan an exit, AND those who DON’T.

Yes, some owners dream of selling to a buyer. Others imagine handing the reins to a family member, a management team, or simply stepping back and enjoying passive income from a business that runs without them. But none of that is possible if the business only functions when the owner is in the building, making decisions, chasing invoices, and solving every customer issue personally.

Here’s the difference between a business you own and a business you can exit:A business you own might give you an excellent income, but what do you need to do to earn it?A business you can exit gives you income and freedom.

Let’s talk reality.

A plumbing firm turning over £800k, with no clear processes, no middle management, and no consistent marketing, might be profitable, but it’s not easily sellable.

A buyer sees risk, not value. Now contrast that with a smaller firm turning over £500k, but with a foreman managing jobs, admin systems that don’t depend on the owner, and a steady pipeline of work through automated marketing.

That business might not only be more attractive, it might actually sell for more. Here’s the sucker punch too, it could be making less money, but the second business is more scalable in the eyes of a buyer.

Buyers want to invest in a machine, not a person. And if you want to keep your business and still exit operationally, that machine needs to run without you.

And here’s the kicker: you don’t need to be thinking of selling in the next year or two. You could be 10 years away. We all exit our business at some point, that could be a sale, succession or taken away in a wooden box with brass handles.

The earlier you start building value beyond yourself, the more options you have. That might be selling for a great price, passing it on to the next generation, or simply stepping back and collecting the profits while someone else runs the show.

Think of it this way: the true value of your business is what it’s worth without you in it.

At this event, we’ll break down:

• What makes a business valuable (to you and to others)
• Why make a business sellable if selling isn’t even a consideration
• Why most small businesses fail to sell
• The systems, structures, and people that turn a business into an asset
• Real examples of exits without sales, and how to plan for them

You don’t have to sell your business to exit it. But you do have to stop being the business.

Here’s a final point to consider. Many business owners want to sell due to “Push Factors”, factors that are literally pushing you out of the business. The very factors that are pushing you to sell are the very factors preventing a sale. No one buys push factors.

Here’s the thing, by REMOVING the Push Factors you have a business that is enjoyable, profitable, exciting, and a lot less stress. Why would you sell that?

Join us and start building something that lasts whether you plan to sell, step back, or stay involved on your own terms.