Assisting business owners sell their business privately or through a business broker

Category Archives for "Business Brokers"

When selling a business most business owners seek a business broker to assist them prepare the business and take it to market. But is that necessarily the right thing to do? Our answer is a resounding no.

1) The first thing to bear in mind is that all is not what it seems when it comes to business brokers. In the UK there are no qualifications or certifications required to become a business broker and, amazingly, there is no regulation of brokers! Inevitably, the industry has attracted a lot of less than reputable players. In fact, some of the best known names in the industry are brokers that are repeatedly exposed in the media for how they exploit clients (and hardly ever succeed in selling their clients’ businesses).

2) The second thing vendors need to be aware of is that it is extremely difficult to find a broker with the right credentials – someone with expertise in selling business in *their* industry / sector, who has a high success rate when it comes to selling businesses, who is trustworthy and who charges reasonable fees. Vendors realise they cannot be found by browsing through Google. That’s why we put together the largest knowledge base ever on all the business brokers in the UK. Our data covers all the vital information you need to know before making your choice on the road to what is probably going to be the biggest commercial deal of your life.

3) Business brokers go by many names – Business Transfer Agents being the main variation. But they also call themselves corporate finance firms, M&A advisory houses, M&A boutiques, merchant banks (yes!), investment banks (yes!) and others. Our database includes information on all these intermediaries as well, complete with the geographical areas they cover, their sector expertise, their fees and fee structures, the fairness of their contractual terms, their special skills (MBOs / IPOs / cross border deals / languages spoken / in-house qualified valuers etc) … and much, much more.

Below are links to business broker related articles on this site.

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Open To Public

Here’s Why You Have No Chance Of Finding The Right Business Broker To Sell Your Business!

It is almost impossible to find the right business broker for your business* As below, there are over 100 brokers just under the letter “C”!*Unless you talk to us Which of the 1000+ brokers can find you the right buyer, in the right time frame & get the best price? The choice of business brokers is […]

in Business Brokers , Open To Public

Choosing A Business Broker Based On Their Success Rate

How Do You Choose A Business Broker Based On Their Success Rate With Selling Businesses Like Yours? When choosing a business broker to sell your business it makes sense to choose one with a higher success rate rather than one with a lower success rate, right?Wrong! But why wouldn’t you choose a broker who sells […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Open To Public , Selling A Business - Tactics & Techniques

Business Broker: 10 Facts You MUST Know Before Engaging One!

The Business Broker10 Facts Every Business Owner Must Know Before Engaging Business Brokers Selling a business is a significant event. Getting the business broker choice wrong, as most business owners do, is an expensive mistake. Background: We manage the UK’s largest database of business brokers. We track their expertise, sector specialisation, fees, contractual terms, awards […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Open To Public

Should You Hire A Sector Specialist Business Broker?

Sector Specialist Or A Generalist Business Broker To Sell A Business? What is sector specialisation? Pros and cons of using a sector specialist broker to sell your businessShould you use a sector specialist?Dealing with generalist (sector agnostic) brokers who say sector specialisation is irrelevantHow to find a sector specialist? What is sector specialisation?There are 1000+ […]

in Business Brokers , Buying A Business , How To Buy A Business , Open To Public

Why Your Business Broker Is Not Attracting Any Buyers

Listed A Business For Sale With A Broker And Getting No Calls? Here’s Why. IntroductionThis light hearted look at the world of business brokers was written pre 2010 and when I was actively looking to buy businesses. The below is what buyers like me used to typically experience when we contacted business brokers to enquire […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Open To Public

How Do I Choose A Business Broker To Sell My Business?

How To Choose The Right Business Brokers To Sell Your Business? The best way to choose a broker would be to have us shortlist from the 1000+ UK firms to choose one that is best matched to the sector, size, geographical location etc., of your business and fine tune based on fees, fee structures, contractual […]

in Business Brokers , Business Valuation , Open To Public

Interpreting What Your Business Broker Is Really Saying

Is The Business Broker Making It Up As He Goes Along? Let’s say you haven’t used my advice on choosing brokers and you’ve found a business broker or business transfer agent in Google and believed the broker’s claims. Maybe you did worse and didn’t find them in Google but, instead, fell innocent victim to a […]

in Business Brokers , Open To Public

Business Broker Jobs, Careers In Selling Businesses

Jobs and Careers In Business Broking Looking For A Job As A Business Broker Taking Up A Career As A Business Broker Setting Up In Business As A Business Broker Looking For A Position In A Business Broker FirmBusiness Transfers Agents are often called business brokers. You likely already know what they do and that […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Open To Public

Reviews, Feedback, Testimonials on Business Brokers & Business Transfer Agents

Client feedback on business brokers & business transfer agents they used Added in 2017: This page has, quite unexpectedly, become the most viewed page on this site! Our summary advice for any small business owner (sub £2 million in turnover) is to not use a business transfer agent or broker to sell your business. You’re […]

in Business Broker Reviews, Feedback, Complaints , Business Brokers , Open To Public

Business Transfer Agent

Business Sales Agents / Business Transfer Agents – All You Need To KnowWhat is a business sale agent? What is a business broker? Some FAQs What is a business transfer agent / business sale agent? There is no textbook definition for business transfer agent (business broker). However, anyone who calls himself a business transfer agent […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Open To Public , Selling A Business - Tactics & Techniques , Selling Businesses - Legal Matters and Contracts

Motivate Business Brokers To Do A Better Job At A Lower Price

Save thousands of pounds – motivate business brokers to do a better job at a lower price It’s not cheap to hire a competent business broker (business transfer agent) to sell your business. In fact, it’ll cost you between 5% – 10% of your selling price (read more about business broker costs & fees). Yes, […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Partially Public Content , Selling A Business - Tactics & Techniques

How Hard Do Business Brokers Work To Find You A Buyer? (you’ll be surprised!)

Is your business broker charging you for “research” that he’s not really doing?Note: Only part of this article is available to non-subscribers Subscribers to my newsletter know I advocate avoiding business brokers who take businesses on, email their details to a database, post them for sale online … and sit back. That’s not how you find […]

in Business Brokers , Open To Public

UK National Directory Of Business Brokers?

UK directory of business brokers (business transfer agents)?…and why you’ve got no chance of finding the most competent ones in Google or in business directories. Update: Dated Feb 2020This page was created five years ago. There is now a UK National Directory of Business Brokers. It has separate sections for business brokers who sell small […]

in Business Brokers , Partially Public Content , Selling Businesses - Legal Matters and Contracts

Broker Fees, How Much Do Business Brokers Charge?

How much do business brokers charge? Fees, charges, commission?Note: Subscription may be required to read some parts of this article. Subscription is free. How much does it cost to sell a business?This page is about business broker fees but bear in mind that there are other costs. You will need a lawyer as contracts for […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Partially Public Content , Selling A Business - Tactics & Techniques

Precautions To Take Against Business Brokers

What you need to be cautious about when hiring a business brokerNote: Subscription may be required to read some parts of this article. Subscription is free. 4. Business brokers’ claims of eager buyers / large database of buyers<< This is a continuation of our article from hereWho can resist this? Business brokers often go to […]

in Business Brokers , How To Sell A Business , Partially Public Content , Selling A Business - Tactics & Techniques , Selling Businesses - Legal Matters and Contracts

Are You Aware Of These Tricks Business Brokers Play?

Top broker sharp practises that business sellers need to watch out forNote: Subscription may be required to read some parts of this article. Subscription is free. If you’re selling a business and intend using a broker, you need to know that not all you see in the press about brokers & Business Transfer Agents is […]