Merger & Acquisition Insights

Developing an “Options” Strategy for Your Transportation Business

Posted on April 01, 2015 by Spencer Tenney

Business owners are often reluctant to formulate formal exit strategies. After all, “why spend money and time to plan for something I don’t even know that I want to do…sell my business.”  This sentiment underlines a common disconnect between many hard working transportation business owners and the purpose behind an exit strategy.

An exit strategy is not designed to set you on an irreversible path toward a sale. It is designed to get you focused on the issues that matter in a business sale so that you can position yourself to have “options” if you desire to make a career change in the future.

As an added bonus, owners who are intentional about their exit strategies often reap the benefits of improved cash flow and quality of life as a result of building a better, self sustaining business. When the time comes for these business owners to sell, according to their plan, they often have a completely different perspective about the timing of a sale because of the positive changes in their lives stemming from owning a better business.

Every business owner will exit the transportation industry at some point—either by choice or by force. Proactively formulating an exit strategy will put you in control over the timing and conditions of your future business sale. And it usually makes owning and operating your business a lot more fun in the meantime.

Transportation business owners work too hard to allow the return on their greatest financial investment to hang in the balance. So many factors will influence the timing and net result of your future business sale—economy, personal health, fuel prices, life changes, divorce, emerging markets, etc. Get educated and get a plan in place that positions you to have options for your industry exit and your financial future.

Tags: Selling a Business

Category: Articles