Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How much is your commission?

A: That depends on the size of your business. The higher the listing price, the lower the commission. Our company offers two commission structures. The first option is you can choose to pay a straight success fee. This means, you only pay us a commission if your business is sold. The second option is you pay an upfront retainer fee and then a smaller success fee if your business is sold. After we conduct a valuation of your business, we give you the breakdown. Our Equity Division charges a flat 5% fee on the profit of the sale of the equity.

Q: If I buy Off-Market equity how is it registered?

A: The equity division acquire Off-Market positions in various ways but the registration process is quite simple. A trade Confirmation is signed by the buyer for the agreed position and price, settlement details are then issued for the intermediary or holding company that are facilitating the transfer of equity. Upon the position being settled the buyer is issued with an Off-Market Equity Transfer Form signed by both the buyer and the seller, upon all the paperwork being filed with the intermediary, Electronic Certification is issued usually within 5-7 days to GBB and then forwarded to the buyer.

Q: How long does it take to sell a business?

A: On average it takes 6-8 months to sell a business. A lot depends on the price, location and type of business in question, we evaluate the market and advise you accordingly.

Q: How do you protect my identity?

A: All of our listings are done on a blind basis, meaning your company’s name & address is never divulged. Before any detailed information about your company is divulged to an accredited buyer they have to sign a Confidentiality Agreement, which binds them to non-disclosure. For anyone that is in the area we insist they come to see us face-to-face to initiate proceedings and register with us.

Q: What is a non-disclosure agreement?

A: A non-disclosure agreement (NDA), also known as a confidentiality agreement (CA), is simply a legal contract or agreement between the seller and potential buyer of a business that outlines the confidential material a seller wishes to disclose to a potential buyer, but wishes to restrict to third parties. An NDA creates a confidential relationship between the parties to protect any type of confidential and proprietary information or trade secrets. As such, an NDA protects non-public business information such as the fact that your business may be for sale.

Q: What does the NDA cover?

A: A non-disclosure agreement can protect any type of information that is not generally known. However, non-disclosure agreements may also contain clauses that will protect the person receiving the information so that if they lawfully obtained the information through other sources, they would not be obligated to keep the information secret. In other words, the non-disclosure agreement typically only requires the receiving party to maintain information in confidence where the information has been directly supplied by the disclosing party.

Q: Do you only advertise locally?

A: No. We advertise your business through our networks all over the world. Many of our buyers and sellers are from out of state and other countries. People from other countries can acquire an E2 Visa by purchasing a business in the USA. There are also other positive implications for business buyers in other countries.

Q: Why shouldn’t I just hire a Realtor to sell my business?

A: Realtors sell houses not businesses. There is a big difference between selling a house and a business. It takes a different skill-set and evaluation team.