Selling a business: the work that happens a year before

The call we least like is the one that starts with the money having already arrived. By that point several decisions are closed that were open twelve months earlier.

A year out, the questions are about structure: who owns the shares, how long they have owned them, what the pension position looks like, and whether a spouse should hold anything. These take time to arrange and look contrived if arranged in a hurry.

Six months out, we build the plan for after the sale. That means a number for what you need the proceeds to produce, a number for what you want to give away, and a realistic answer about whether you intend to work again. Most sellers say no and change their mind within two years, which the model should allow for.

Closer in, the work is coordination. Your solicitor handles the deal, your accountant handles the tax return, and we make sure the plan the three of us describe is the same plan.

After completion, the useful rule is to do nothing large for six months. Cash held sensibly for half a year has never ruined anybody’s plan. Rushed decisions in the first fortnight have.