Failed acquisition
April 05, 2024
by a searcher from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne VIC, Australia
Has anyone acquired a business but it did not work out as you planned?
I am curious to know what went wrong, what mistakes were made and what you would do differently if you had your time again?
from McGill University in San Diego, CA, USA
Here's the reality... If you read the Stanford primer, there is a breakdown on exits/outcomes. Of those that acquire (2/3), more than half end up with either no economic outcome or a very modest one. Only 1/6 that start down this path end up with life changing sums of wealth on exit. And keep in mind this data reflects purchases that were made a decade ago (and further back) when rates were low, credit conditions were easier, there was less competition, business owners hadn't been spammed thousands of times, and valuations were lower. Those are the statistics for traditional searchers (who have access to professional investors, structure their deals far more conservatively, have tighter strike zones and buy bigger and more established businesses than the self funded cohort). My gut is that they are no better for the self funded community (likely worse).
This is a tough journey. So what do searchers get wrong? As ^redacted points out, many searchers cut corners during diligence (and the propensity to cut corners only grows over time, especially if a searcher already has dead deal costs). If I were to fly over a simmering volcano in a helicopter, I would sign up for the most expensive tour with a state of the art helicopter, not the least expensive one with a 50 year old helicopter. Diligence (Legal+QofE+tax+Insurance+Tech+HR diligence) costs $$$$$$ and takes time (this is a PSA to not cut corners!). As the saying goes - you either make the investment upfront or pay for it on the back end.
Second, and this is an important one, it's critical to have the right advisers in your corner throughout the ENTIRE journey, not just at the start of the journey. Managing a business for the first time is hard - but made easier when you step into a business with an experienced team, have a thoughtful transition plan for the seller and critically, a board of directors with relevant experience that can guide you through the holding period.
from University of North Texas in San Antonio, TX, USA