From Hillsboro to Troutdale, Vancouver to Wilsonville, Exit Equity is your trusted advisor to buy / sell a Portland Metro business. We know the Rose City, the state, the region, and the market when it comes to M&A for privately owned businesses. Our team helps clients with business valuations preparing for a business sale, finding the right buyers with the best possible terms, succession, estate, and exit planning. We guide clients through the transaction end to end, from the day you begin considering a company sale to the funds received when the business sells.
What factors to consider when hiring a business broker in Portland?
We are Portland market experts, having an extensive, active buyer base in the Pacific Northwest. We discretely and confidently work with great buyers who have an interest in acquisitions specific to the client’s industry.
When choosing a broker in the Portland metro area, you should consider:
- Valuation, M&A, and deal negotiation competence
- Industry accreditation, experience, and skills
- Personality and cultural fit (You will work with your advisor for up to 12 months in the sale process!)
- Broker urgency and project management capabilities to drive the sale forward
- Process, tools, and technology to reach the best fit buyers
Key Benefits to Hiring a Business Broker in Portland
Whether you own a small, family-owned business that requires a local buyer, or a growing business looking for a strategic outside buyer to take company performance to the next level, business sellers should hire a broker that has local roots but national reach to find the right group of buyers to give you a wide range of options for new ownership to take over your business. Running a business is hard enough and selling a business will increase the owner’s workload. Hiring a business broker in Portland has many benefits:
- Selling a business on your own (and for the first time) is risky, so hiring an experienced broker will save you time, money, and headaches tackling each step in the transaction process
- A business broker will give you a fair market value for your business, instead of a gut feel on what the business is worth
- All business is personal at the end of the day, and a broker can help you obtain the best possible terms for a sale, which will help you plan the next phase in your life (retirement, sabbatical, starting another business, etc..)
How to Know if You Have Found the Right Fit Broker In Portland
Selling a business typically takes 9 to 12 months, but can take up to 2 years. You want to hire a business broker with a sense of urgency that works on your timeline. You will work with this person on a biweekly basis, so trust and communication is key, along with plain old just enjoying working with a new face for what could be on a daily basis. The broker needs to earn the client’s trust, but just the same the client needs to be able trust the advice, expertise, and guidance of the broker.
Key attributes of a high quality broker (or M&A Advisor) in Portland:
- A licensed and credentialed business brokerage firm. This could include real estate licensing, a Certified Business Intermediary (CBI), or Certified Valuation Analyst Credentials
- Personality and cultural fit
- Team approach (i.e. the firm is not single threaded and has additional resources to support the transaction)
- Trusted advisory approach (i.e. external resources to help with tax, estate, financing, and legal challenges as the arise)
What to Avoid When Hiring a Business Broker in Portland
When interviewing a business broker in Portland, watch out for key red flags:
- A broker lacks the technology and skills to find as many buyers as possible and relies entirely upon their own personal network
- A broker relies entirely on 3rd party tools to automate the valuation process (all businesses are different!)
- Business listings can be seen as a reflection of the client’s business, review the broker’s listing marketing materials, sales approach, and buyer offer review process that meets and exceeds your expectations.
- Avoid a one man show brokerage shop because you do not want to be last in line among the broker’s clients or be left holding the bag if the broker is more interested in golf or going on holiday than meeting your timeline
What types of businesses sell in Portland?
Examples of businesses we have sold in Portland include:
- Mechanical/electrical distribution
- Machine Shops
- Specialized metal coatings
- Transportation and logistics specialists
- Home renovation/services (gutters for new construction and remodels)
- Grocery and pharmacies
- Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC)
- Marine services (w/federal contracts)
- Boat Brokerage
- Building struss manufacturer
- Logging, Lumber grading
- Agricultural component manufacturing and servicing
- Hay Co-op
- Travel equipment
- Aluminum product manufacturer
- Professional B2B services
- Invoice/billing/payroll processing
To get started on Exit Planning, please visit our Playbook on how to sell a business in Portland, Oregon. If you are moving to the Rip City, interested in buying a business, or to talk with a member of our team, reach out to us anytime.
What other cities does Exit Equity serve?
- Business Broker in Oregon
- Business Broker in Portland
- Business Broker in Salem
- Business Broker in Washington
- Business Broker in Seattle
- Business Broker in Bellevue
- Business Broker in Bellingham
- Business Broker in Edmonds
