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August. Here in Southeast Missouri, that means sweltering heat and school starting back up. As families get back into a routine, we also see an uptick in business owners recommitting to their business goals. For some, that’s thinking about strategic growth. For others, it’s considering if it is ...
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The Rhythm of the Deal

Business Buy a Business Sell a Business

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So much in our lives follows a natural rhythm – breathing, heart beating, asleep/awake, the rising and setting of the sun, the ocean tides, music.  These rhythms are comforting – necessary even.  They help us keep track of time.  Occasionally they go completely wrong:  We get short of breath ...
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2023: A Year to Get Creative

Business Buying a business Sell a Business

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Despite some obvious challenges in the economy like inflation, rising interest rates, a looming recession, a bear market, soft staffing, and an ongoing war in Ukraine…deals are still taking place among main street and lower middle market companies. There was a dry period for buy/sell transacti ...
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Know Your Company’s Worth

Business Business For Sale Business Information For Sellers Valuation Valuing

Posted by Melanie Smollen on

Most people know what a business valuation is (the process of figuring out what your company is worth), but not everyone knows the different reasons valuations are performed. Aside from the obvious need for a valuation when you’re ready to sell the business, valuations are preformed for many d ...
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When is it Time to Sell?

Business Business For Sale Business Information For Sellers Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

How do you know when it’s time to sell your business? To some it might seem like a silly question, but for a business owner (and particularly for a family-owned business), the decision can cause some sleepless nights. Since we work with a lot of sellers, here is a list of some of the tell-tale sig ...
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Recommended Reading

Business Business Information General Business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

We see a lot of businesses. And financial statements. And business models. And methodologies. Some good, some not-so-good. Because of that we’re often asked for recommendations and best practices to increase the value and sellability of a business. So, we thought we would dedicate this month’s n ...
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Buyer’s Search

Business General Business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

A trend that we’re seeing in 2022 is an increased demand for strategic acquisition, initiated from the buy side. There have always been more buyers than sellers in the market, but buyers are now approaching their goals in a more targeted and intentional way. This brings us to an incredibly pre ...
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Steps to Selling

Business Business Information For Sellers Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business Small Business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

Have you ever wondered HOW people sell their business when they’re done running it? You may know intuitively that it’s not like selling a car or a piece of real estate, but most people don’t know where to begin when they’re ready to sell their business. At Murphy Business of Cape, we gui ...
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One Million Dollars!

Business Business Information For Sellers General Business Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business Valuation Valuing

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

If we had a dime for every time a business owner who told us they wanted to get a million dollars for their business (or even five or ten million)…well, we’d have a LOT of dimes! While we would love to sell every small, main street business out there for this nice, round figure, often times t ...
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How 2020 is Impacting Business Valuations

Business Business Information Buy a Business Buying a business For Buyers For Sellers General Business Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business Valuation Valuing

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

Let’s talk more about 2020. Wait…stay with me here…I know we’re all sick of talking about the year that shut down the globe, but it’s one of the most often asked questions we receive these days: “How are you handling 2020 when valuing businesses?” So, let’s talk about it! Firs ...
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Throwing Good Money After Bad

Business Business For Sale Business Information For Sellers Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business Small Business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

“Know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, and know when to run…” Kenny Rogers may have been talking about gambling, but the lyrics work for business owners too. Over half of businesses in the US have been impacted by COVID this year to some degree and as we ...
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Marketing Blindly and Nationally

Business Business For Sale Business Information For Sellers Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

If you’re a savvy business owner, you know that maintaining strict confidentiality is critical when selling your business. Only a handful of people should know you’re thinking of selling: your spouse, financial planner, accountant, and attorney. Often, this element alone will push a seller towar ...
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The US Economy and Business Sales

Business Business Information General Business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

Three quarters down and one quarter to go for 2020…we can do this!  If you’re exhausted with running your business, think COVID is a dirty word, and you’re disenfranchised with all things related to our economy and this upcoming circus of a presidential election:  You’re not alone. There i ...
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Lending Posture

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Posted by Jennifer Smith on

One of the top questions we’re asked in this unprecedented COVID environment is “are you still selling businesses?” The answer is a resounding YES! The follow up question usually has something to do with how banks are supporting those transactions, so we thought we’d examine what we’re see ...
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Coronavirus and Business Brokerage

Business Business For Sale Business Information Buy a Business Buying a business For Buyers For Sellers General Business Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business Small Business

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

[embed]https://youtu.be/VQFHdUgdgTc[/embed] Coronavirus. Yep, we’re jumping on the bandwagon. Why on earth are we, business brokers, talking about Coronavirus?! It has nothing to do with buying or selling business, right? Hang with us for a minute… On March 3rd, the Federal Reserve cut int ...
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Retaining Key Employees

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Posted by Jennifer Smith on

Think about the key employees in your business. The ones who understand how everything works: employee roles, client preferences, supply chain, cash flow, compliance, etc. When they take a well-deserved vacation, you FEEL it and so does everyone else. They might be in sales, support, administration, ...
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2020 Forecast

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Posted by Jennifer Smith on

2019 is in the books. In general, people are feeling pretty good right now. The S&P 500 was up 28.9% and the Nasdaq was up 35.2%. Unemployment is crazy low at 3.5%, optimism is high, and although there has been lots of turmoil nationally and globally, it has mostly impacted a few specific sector ...
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The Importance of Knowing Your Business’s Value

Business Business For Sale Business Information For Sellers Sell Sell a Business Selling Selling a business Valuation Valuing

Posted by Jennifer Smith on

How much is your business worth? How much is it actually worth to a buyer if you were to sell it right now? Even if you’re not ready to sell at this moment, knowing this number is very important for a few reasons: Planning: We know that most business owners work with financial planners and ac ...
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Competition

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Posted by Jennifer Smith Hendrickson on

Non-competes. You’ve probably been exposed to them at some point. Perhaps you have employees sign them or maybe you have signed one yourself at some point. Non-competes are also a very important component of a business transfer. Imagine this: You bought a high-end restaurant. Since you struck a ...
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8 Ways to Make Buying a Business Less Scary

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Posted by Jennifer Smith Hendrickson on

In addition to eating a ridiculous amount of candy corn, with Halloween around the corner, we’ve been thinking about all things scary. Here are some things that can make an entrepreneurial leap a little more comfortable. If you’re a business owner looking to sell, take note of these things too a ...
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