How to Sell Your Auto Body Shop for the Best Price

When you are preparing to sell your auto body shop, making sure you get the best price for it should be a top priority. To help you make sure that you sell your shop for the best price, the experts at Sunbelt Business Brokers Knoxville have created this guide to help you through the process.

1. Gather the financial paperwork

Before you can do anything, you have to collect all of the financial paperwork associated with your auto body shop from at least the last three years. This includes income statements, profit sheets, balance sheets, cash flow statements, business assets, inventory breakdowns, bank statements, lease agreements, and employee contracts.

These are the documents that are going to help you determine how much your business is worth. All of the financial information from these documents needs to be analyzed and collated before your business can be listed for sale. With the help of a Knoxville Sunbelt Business Broker, all of your auto body shop’s financial documentation will be carefully looked over to determine a fair price for your business that will both attract buyers and help you get the best price.

2. Determine what your auto body shop is worth

After you have collected all of the financial paperwork, you will be able to determine how much your business is worth. Business valuation is a complicated process that is best executed with the assistance of a Knoxville Sunbelt Business Broker. Your broker will be able to determine your business’s valuation analyzing the financials and cash flow of the shop. The valuation is determined by taking the discretionary cash flow of the auto body shop and multiplying it by a number between 2 and 5. This number is determined by a variety of things including the shop’s lease agreement, a number of locations, employees staying on or leaving after the sale, management, how long the business has been established, and the reputation of the business among other things.

Due to the complicated nature of business valuations, it is best to get a Knoxville Sunbelt Business Broker to handle it. By using a professional broker, you can ensure that your business is given the proper valuation and your auto body shop is sold for the best price.

3. Find a Qualified Buyer

After the valuation has been determined by your business broker, you are ready to find a buyer for your auto body shop. While it is possible to list your business for sale yourself, a Knoxville Sunbelt Business Broker will be able to use their professional network and industry connections to find you, qualified buyers.

4. Negotiation matters

After you have successfully found a buyer willing to pay your asking price, negotiation begins. Negotiation is an important final step in making sure that your auto body shop sells for the best price. Make sure that you know everything you want out of the sale before you go into negotiations. Know if you want an asset-based sale or a seller-based financing sale. Know the payment schedule you want.

It is also important to make sure to keep the lease negotiations separate. Often, buyers will want to negotiate a lower lease rate during the price and payment negotiation. To make sure that you get the best price for your auto body shop, you’ll want to make sure that the lease negotiation happens separately.

During the negotiation process, your Knoxville Sunbelt Business Broker can be your best asset. Selling a business you worked hard on can be an emotional process, but emotional detachment is key in successful negotiations. Let your broker know what you want from the sale and let them do the work for you, this will help ensure you get the best sale price.

Selling an auto body shop can be a complicated process, but the result can be incredibly rewarding. If you are looking to sell your auto body business and want to make sure you sell it for the best price, contact Sunbelt Business Brokers Knoxville today!