Once you have commenced a business you need to develop a plan for exiting it.

The answer to this is different and depends on each person’s perspective. Some chose to simply put a business on the market at a time when retirement is near. Others build a management team around them which is a gradual process. This requires a need to identify high performers and also mitigate a competitor poaching a crucial member of the business.

Whichever path is chosen, and the above represent only two, there is a need to continually perform health checks on the business to ensure that all components are operating successfully.

Taxation plays a very important part in any business succession plan. The seller always looks to minimise tax on exit. In many cases business owners view the sale of the business as an adjunct to their superannuation. A number of capital gains tax concessions are available, but they need to be strictly followed.

Over the years AP Partners has been involved with a number of business succession plans. These include creating necessary dashboards, management reports and strategic reviews on an ongoing basis to ensure the business “stays prime”. AP Partners has successfully completed many buyouts from a sale point of view and also from an ongoing point of view where there may be a gradual sell down to key executives or members of a family.

We are aware that selling a business or passing it to the next generation is not an overnight process.

This process requires careful management and a well thought out plan.