Posts Categorized: Business Valuation

Similar Companies Can Have Huge Value Differences

Can two companies in the same industry have very different valuations? In short, the answer is a resounding, yes. Let’s take an example of two companies that both have an EBITDA of $6 million but with two very different values. In fact, Business One is valued at five times EBITDA, which prices it at $30… Read more »

Third Time’s A Charm: From False Starts To Finishing Big

Scott Miller grew Miller Restoration to a $3M business specializing in cleaning up the mess caused by floods and fires. When a new business idea caught his attention, Miller decided to sell his business. After two false starts, he ended up successfully selling for 3.5 times pre-tax profit. Miller knew telling his employees would be… Read more »

How To Avoid Disappointment When It’s Time To Cash Out

How do you avoid not being disappointed with the money you make from the sale of your company? Perhaps you’ve heard that companies like yours trade using an industry rule of thumb or that companies of your size sell within a specific range, and you want to get at least what your peers have received…. Read more »

Difficult Issues Often Attached to Valuing a Business

There is little doubt that valuing a business is often a very complex process.  In part, this complexity is due to the fact that business evaluation is somewhat subjective. The simple fact is that the value of a business is often left to the mercy of the person conducting the evaluation.  Adding yet another level… Read more »

Why VEEV Vodka Went for More Than 7 Times Revenue

Courtney Reum left Goldman Sachs in 2007 to start a Vodka business. He built VEEV up to more than $10 million in annual sales before he sold the company for more than seven times revenue. Reum has gone on to start and invest in a number of businesses through his M13 venture firm, and in this episode you will… Read more »

Your Company’s Undocumented Worth

The valuation is a major factor that influences the overall selling price of the property. Business appraisals are based upon a multitude of criteria and indisputable records such as comparables, projections, discount rates, EBITDA multiples, and more. While the appraiser may have all the information he or she needs, the business elements might be overlooked…. Read more »

What Are Your Company’s Weaknesses?

Every company has weaknesses; the trick is to fix them. There is a saying that the test of a good company president or CEO is what happens to the company when he or she leaves. Some companies–on paper–may look the same, but one company may be much more valuable due to weaknesses in the other… Read more »

Work “On, Not In” Your Business

For the better part of 40 years, Michael Gerber has been encouraging business owners to work “on, not in” their business. In this interview of Built to Sell Radio, you’ll hear some of Gerber’s sage advice and get a summary of his new book, Beyond The E-Myth, including: – Why every company should be built as a… Read more »

Inside the Mind of a Private Equity Investor

Frank Cottle led an investor group to buy Hi-Mark Software for 10 times EBITDA.  Cottle then sold a chunk for 15 times and ultimately sold his last tranche of equity for more than 16 times EBITDA to Lufthansa.  In this interview, you’ll get deep inside the mind of a private equity buyer and learn: – three… Read more »