When is the best time to start grooming a business for sale? When you have decided you want to sell it? I don’t think so. Just as it takes time to prepare a house for sale if you want to get the best price, so it does for a business. In fact it takes more time. In our experience anywhere from 12 to 36 months.
Why do you think this is?

Have you ever considered what creates value in a private company? We meet many business owners who know all about the value of their home but have never really considered what might make their business really saleable and attractive to others. Creating real value does not happen accidently. There are all sorts of do and donts. If you were to examine our client files (they are confidential of course), you might be amazed at what you would discovered about what is both done and thought, some with very positive financial effects and some really negative.  

What do you think are the main attributes that improve the value of a private company?