You’ve decided that it is time to step down from your business, for whatever reason. You’ve also (correctly) concluded that you need an established mergers and acquisitions organization to help you through the process. The question remains – which advisor will you choose? How will you know that you have made the right choice? Here’s our guide.
Alignment
The first thing that you should look for is a company that can align itself with your specific goals. What you want to achieve with the sale of your business is not the same as anyone else: you have unique needs, requirements, and aspirations. Some M & A firms will adopt a boilerplate approach – they don’t take the time to get to know you and your business and they don’t fully understand your motivations and expectations. You need an advisor that will work alongside you, collaboratively, to ensure that a reasonable strategy is designed and that all of your needs will be met.
Expertise
There are mergers and acquisitions companies out there that will take on any business in any industry and in any sub-sector. This approach is hit and miss at best – particularly when it comes to a digital health or pharmacy business. You need to work with a company that has a focus – staying up to date with legislative changes, evolving technologies, customer demographics, and a broad range of other factors requires dedication. Make sure that whomever you work with knows the industry as well as you do, and you can be assured of a better, quicker deal.
Skillsets
What is it that the M&A firm can actually offer you? There are a number of key steps in the sale of a business – valuation, strategy and planning, seller representation, buyer screening, negotiating, financial structuring. Make sure that your advisors have the internal skillsets to excel at each step – otherwise you will end up having to coordinate with other consultants and third parties to make sure that the deal process is successful.
Pedigree
Finally – and as a way of encompassing the previous points – you need to check the pedigree of the mergers and acquisitions firm. Do they have an established, provable track record of completing satisfactory deals in your specific sector of the industry? Have they been operating for a number of years, with a history of happy clients? Do your due diligence on the M & A company and you will know what you can expect when you deal with them.
At Pinnacle Pharmacy Group, we have been working solely in the pharmacy and digital business sectors for years, and have 100% satisfaction from everyone we have worked with. When it comes to helping sellers find the right buyers, and the right deal, we have everything you need.
