Episode 33: Sell Side Short on Life After the Sell

Hey everybody, this is Michael Stanley.

Welcome to this episode of Sell Such Shorts.

Today, we're going to talk about some of the wealth management aspects of selling your business and a key, you know, kind of two key concepts there are what is my finish line and what does life look like after the sale? So, you know, at KeelPoint, we obviously have a robust wealth management practice and we offer owners that support as they're preparing to go to market.

One of the key things that we focus on before we even start preparing to go to market is what is our finish line? Taking in all of the assets and the things that you've saved and put together over the years, what does your retirement look like when you're no longer, when you have already liquidated what typically is your most valuable asset? We want to do our best over time to make sure that that we're not backed into a corner where we have to sell for a certain price to fund our retirement.

But sometimes that's the case.

And in either instance, we need to make sure that we know what that number is.

And from an M&A advisory perspective, we really want to make sure that the number that we need to make sure that our retirement goals are met is in line with the fair market value of that business.

And when that's the case, we can definitely start preparing to go to market.

If it's not, then maybe we need to consider doing some things inside the business that are going to increase the value of it and push the timeline back for transaction.

Once we figured out what that financial finish line is and it's inside the realm of the possible for an M&A process, will go to market.

And at that point, uh, it's really important that sellers recognize a couple of things.

Number one, this is a very emotional process.

Uh, and in most cases, these are businesses that have been handed down for generations that, um, you know, the owner started with their blood, sweat and tears over the year and has invested, um, all, you know, most of their working life into oftentimes families are involved, their children, they're active in the business, children have grown up around the business.

it's very much integrated into the lives of these families.

And so it's important not to lose sight of the fact that it's going to be emotional.

There are going to be things that come up through this process that, uh, that you know are pretty powerful um feelings we want to make sure that we have a plan for that when this transaction is over and you as the owner no longer own the business what are you going to do what does the rest of life look like and it's really important that you spend some time thinking about what What's your purpose? Are we going to spend more time with family? Are we going to devote our lives to being with our children, our grandchildren? Are there hobbies that you really want to focus on? I will tell you it's going to be hard to play golf six days a week for the next 20 years.

I think we should think broadly about real purpose, something that drives you, just like running this business and growing it and providing for the families of your employees and for your own family members.

just like that drove you.

And it's a very good exercise to spend time thinking about that before the sale, during, and definitely after.

Many of our clients get very, very involved in nonprofits that they have a passion for, and they transfer that same intensity and that same professionalism into those arenas and build something great.

But purpose is a key thing that a lot of people miss as they're thinking about the financial ramifications of this deal.

So, you know, I want to leave you with the idea that we need to know what we need before we start a process, and then we need to know what we're going to do after the process.

And that's something that your sell-side advisor should have long conversations with you about to make sure that we're clear as we go into this next phase of our lives.

Thanks for joining.