Kent & Tamarack is a Colorado business broker for people who own a small business and want to sell it. A family restaurant, a retail shop, an accounting or insurance practice, a small manufacturer or distributor, a cleaning company, a plumbing or HVAC shop. Companies with steady customers, a few good people and an owner who has carried the load for a long time.
Most of the owners we talk to have never sold a business before. They will do it once. They want to know what it is worth, who might buy it, how to keep it quiet and what happens to the people who work for them. We answer those questions in plain English, and you set the terms from the first call to the last signature.
The first call is free and private, and it does not commit you to anything. Call (983) 900-6537 when it suits you.
The owners we work with
We work with owner-run companies where the owner still knows the customers by name. A typical owner has run the company for many years, has a staff of a few people or a few dozen, and is thinking about retirement, a health change, or simply wanting the weekends back.
That covers a lot of ground: service companies, shops and retail stores, restaurants and food businesses, professional practices such as accounting, dental, insurance or medical billing offices, small manufacturers, distributors and the trades. The owners have one thing in common. They are ready for what comes next, and they want the company to land in good hands.
Some owners have a son or daughter who does not want the business. Some have a key employee who might buy it but has no idea how to pay for it. Some get a call from a competitor or an out-of-state group and want to know if the offer is fair. All of those are good reasons to talk to a business broker before you say yes to anyone.
We also have guides for a few trades:
- Selling an HVAC business, where service agreements and the age of your techs carry a lot of weight.
- Selling a plumbing business, where the master license and the service-call mix matter.
- Selling a construction company, where the backlog and the bonding history come up early.
- Selling a landscaping business, where maintenance contracts and equipment drive the price.
If your kind of business is not on that list, call anyway. The way a sale works is much the same for a dental practice, a print shop or a garage door company.
Confidential from the first call
In a small business, word travels fast. Your employees know people at other companies in the same line of work. Your customers hear things from their neighbors. A competitor who learns you are selling may tell your best customers you are on the way out.
So privacy comes first. Nobody hears your name until they sign a confidentiality agreement. We do not call your business line unless you ask us to. Buyers do not walk through your store, office or shop during working hours unless you set that up. You decide when your employees and your customers hear the news, and we help you plan what to say to them.
Business valuation, in plain terms
A business valuation for a small company comes down to a few plain questions. Buyers pay for earnings they can count on.
How much does the company earn for an owner in a normal year? We start with your tax returns and your profit and loss statement, then add back the costs that will not carry over to a new owner, like your own vehicle or a family member on payroll who does not work in the business.
How much of the work comes back? Service contracts, regular clients or patients, and repeat commercial customers are worth more than one-time sales, because the buyer can see the money coming.
How well does it run without you? If every big customer, every key decision and every license runs through you, a buyer sees risk. A company with a manager and an office person who can run the day is worth more.
How clean are the books? Records that match the tax returns make a buyer, and the buyer's bank, much more comfortable.
We will not promise you a number on the first call. Anyone who quotes a price before seeing the books is guessing, or selling you something. What we promise is an honest range and the reasons for it, so you can decide what to do next.
Succession planning before you need it
Business succession planning sounds like something for big companies. For the owner of a small business it means one thing: deciding who takes over and getting the company ready for that day.
The best time to start is one to three years before you want to step back. That gives you time to move key relationships onto a manager, get the books clean, sort out the licenses and leases, and look at more than one kind of buyer. A sale to a larger competitor, to a private buyer who wants to own and run a company, or to your own employees can each work. The state of Colorado runs an employee ownership office that helps owners look at a sale to their workers, and we can talk you through how that path compares with an outside buyer.
Owners who wait until they are worn out or sick often take the first offer that shows up. Starting early keeps the choice in your hands.
A business broker near you, anywhere in Colorado
We are a Colorado firm and we work statewide. The first conversation is a phone call. When it is time to look at the business, we come to you. Each region has its own buyers and its own pace, so we have written about each one:
- Denver business broker, for the city and the metro suburbs from Brighton to Castle Rock.
- Colorado Springs business broker, for the Pikes Peak region and Pueblo.
- Northern Colorado business broker, for Fort Collins, Loveland, Greeley and the towns around them.
- Boulder County business broker, for Boulder, Longmont, Louisville, Lafayette and nearby towns.
- Western Slope business broker, for Grand Junction, Durango and the mountain and valley towns west of the Divide.
If you searched "sell my business Colorado" and landed here, the next step is easy. Call (983) 900-6537 or email hello@kentandtamarack.com. Tell us a little about the company. We will tell you honestly whether now is a good time to sell, and what it would take to get the result you want.