9 minutes read The following is a practical guide to the opportunities, trade-offs and questions every founder should ask before selling to private equity. For many founders, private equity (“PE”) still carries a mixed reputation: sophisticated money, demanding due diligence, leverage, targets and a boardroom full of spreadsheets. That reputation is not entirely wrong, but it…
10 minutes read Selling your business and planning lifetime wealth For many entrepreneurs, selling a business is the ultimate reward: years of risk converted into wealth, freedom and choice. But the key question is not simply, “What is my business worth?” It is, “How much is enough, and how should that wealth support me for the…
7 minutes read Trade sales explained A strategic buyer is an established company in the same or adjacent sector, acquiring a business to accelerate growth. Unlike financial buyers who are focused on returns, the strategic buyer seeks long-term value through integration and synergy. They are not buying your business for what it is today, but for…
9 minutes read Why the real question is about time wealth, not tax panic For decades, owners of private trading companies operated under a widely accepted assumption, if you die holding a qualifying business, inheritance tax would largely be irrelevant because Business Property Relief (“BPR”) ensured that outcome. However, that assumption no longer holds true. From…
10 minutes read Why now? Since the 2014 legislation, UK employee ownership has accelerated from 80 to now nearly 3,000 employee-owned companies with hundreds more converting each year. Performance uplifts and cultural gains are consistently reported when transitions are well-executed. They are a tax effective exit option for many sellers at just 12% Capital Gains Tax…
8 minutes read Why sale readiness matters more than ever Maximising value in a business sale rarely comes down to timing or luck. It comes from readiness. The strongest outcomes are achieved by businesses that prepare well in advance and shape themselves into assets, buyers genuinely want to own. In today’s market, buyers are not just…
8 minutes read Flux is the new normal. Markets are shifting faster than strategies can keep up, organic growth is increasingly elusive, and many sectors feel fragmented, over competitive, and difficult to navigate. For many, consolidation: acquiring competitors, buying scale and chasing efficiency through M&A, with buyers still very active. For others, a business sale is…
10 minutes read For years, Employee Ownership Trusts (“EOTs”) were sold on a single headline: 0% Capital Gains Tax but that headline has now changed. Since November 2025, EOT sales are now taxed at 12% but despite this tax hike many business owners are still choosing the route as their preferred exit strategy. This demonstrates…
7 minutes read The M&A landscape in 2025 has been neither boom, nor bust, instead it appears more strategic and selective with quality at its centre. Even the US$72 billion Netflix/Warner merger that has just been announced, has strategy at its core – if it can get through the competition authorities. For SMEs who have had…
8 minutes read The Autumn 2024 budget delivered an unwelcome, though not entirely unexpected, increase in Capital Gains Tax (“CGT”). This policy change has had immediate and expensive ramifications for Britain’s small and medium-sized enterprise (“SME”) owners, particularly those planning to sell their businesses. If that’s you, then it’s crucial to understand the implications and review…