by johnireland | Business Builder
An owner says the business sold for four million. What actually completed was two and a half, with the rest depending on profits over three years. That is an earn-out, and it appears in a large share of private company sales. Why they exist. Sellers price on what the...
by johnireland | Business Builder
An Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) is a third succession route alongside a trade sale or passing the business to family. You sell your shares to a trust that holds a controlling stake for employees generally, usually paid in instalments rather than a lump sum. Where...
by johnireland | Business Builder
Most owners have a figure in their head for what their business is worth – and it’s usually a guess, not a valuation. Valuation is an evidence-based estimate; price is what a buyer actually agrees on the day, and the two often differ sharply. Private...
by johnireland | Business Builder
Most UK SMEs with more than one shareholder never put a shareholders’ agreement in place. Without one, the Companies Act and model articles decide what happens — and the defaults are poor. Shares pass to the deceased’s family under their Will, so you can...
by johnireland | Business Builder
If your top three clients account for more than half your revenue, your business is structurally fragile. Lose one and cash flow collapses. It also destroys business value — buyers and lenders discount heavily for concentration risk, and if you die with key...
by johnireland | Business Builder
Key person insurance is a policy your business takes out on the people it cannot afford to lose — the founder, the sales leader, the technical expert. If they die or suffer a critical illness, the business receives a lump sum to cover recruitment, lost revenue, loan...
