Summary:
Ryan and Jim discuss Ryan’s very interesting M&A journey. Ryan started with internet businesses at 18 years old. He then went on to starting and selling products companies that are mostly based on the internet.
Main Questions Asked:
- How did you pick what you sold?
- Do you support your decision with data?
- Where did you find your products to sell?
- Did you view this as a business that you would get into and then get out of at some point?
- How long did the process take from the day they approached you to when you closed the deal?
- What advice do you give others about buying and selling?
- I tell people all the time to be open to opportunities.
Key Points made:
- The way I evaluated what to sell was evaluation of growing trends. (2:37)
- I knew when my Grandma knew what “yoga” was, it was a big enough trend. (3:30)
- I try not to base my decisions on the numbers. (4:00)
- I don’t want to go into a market that I won’t enjoy. (4:54)
- I stay away from keyword research because I feel it is a small lens on an overall market. (5:40)
- I went to AliBaba.com, where it is a wholesale marketer. (6:15)
- We customized for our market. (6:50)
- This business was built with an exit in mind. (7:57)
- We had no interest in selling but the numbers made sense, so we moved forward. (8:30)
- The buyer did put a number out and I didn’t like the number. We ended up with a flexible term deal. (9:30)
- There was a small piece of maintained interest in the company in the deal. (10:35)
- It took about 6 month’s total. (11:45)
- When you are looking at selling your business, you are selling a multiple. (12:40)
- The little things have a tremendous impactful measure. (13:00)
- We ran out of stock. This was at the beginning of our business. No problem. But the effects of that month was factored into the total valuation of the company. (13:10)
- I would be very clear on the holes in my business. (14:05)
- From an outsider’s perspective, would I want to buy my own business? (14:20)
- Don’t ignore the holes in your business, it will affect your valuation. (14:35)
- Your business is an asset, it isn’t just a piece of cash flow. (16:00)
- Even if you don’t sell the business, you will build a better business if you build with the thought that you want to sell it one day. (17:40)
- I started a podcast and revealed my “business secrets”. (19:00)
Resources Mentioned
https://tnvalleygroup.spotlightdev.us/category/podcast/
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Tennessee Valley Group
Jim Cumbee established Tennessee Valley Group to help business owners fulfill their dreams for life after business ownership.
It’s a mission that his 30+ year career history had prepared him well for—in addition to being an attorney, transition mediator and business broker, Jim has been a buyer, seller, and entrepreneur. His broad range of experience gives him unique insight into how business buyers and sellers can achieve their goals.
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