OWNER MEETING TOMORROW - IDEAS ON SOLICITING INFORMATION

December 04, 2022

by a searcher from Carnegie Mellon University - Tepper School of Business in Pittsburgh, PA, USA

I am meeting with the owner of a company that I have interest in. This is the 2nd time meeting him and now I want to ask him if he is interested in selling his business. He does not have a succession plan but has not really put a lot of thought into selling. I am confident in the way I communicate but was curious if anyone has had success with doing this a particular way.

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Reply by a searcher
from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA, USA

I appreciate all of the feedback and perspective. I was pretty straight forward but I worked towards asking about buying. I mentioned I always had interest in Entrepreneurship, how I started my own company for residential work on the side but it was challenging trying to work full time and pick up work, and why I wanted to go to grad school, so I could learn about acquisitions. From there, I leaned into my interest in his business and why. He did not think we were going to talk about that, but was not close minded and mentioned we can keep the conversation going. The straight forward approach worked, but building to the point and laying the foundation as to why I was interested helped a lot I believe.

Reply by a searcher
from Harvard University in Salt Lake City, UT, USA

Agree with straightforward approach. I would perhaps suggest asking: what motivates you most? Is it: (a) money on day of closing; (b) legacy for him and his business; (c) taking care of employees; or something else? Often it's a mix of all of the above. Also, what role would the seller like to have if there is to be a deal? Always let them explain what their particular drivers are, work around them, and then do your best to come up with a structure that fulfills the most important and aligns incentives.

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