Should You Buy That Business?

‘I’ve found this great business. It’s perfect. It’s for sale. I’ll need to be fast.’

Not every client brings us such exciting news, but it is common for our corporate team to be asked to help make a deal happen quickly. Our one, firm message at the outset: you have to be sure that it’s the right one for you.

Commercial instinct and agility are a huge advantage in business. They enable people to seize opportunities, beat the competition. We’re with clients all the way on that. But we are also big on covering the bases that will make yours an acquisition that is set up to succeed. That begins with helping you really understand what’s on offer - what you could be buying (the risks and liabilities as well as the potential) and what that could mean for you in the long-term.

Because anyone thinking about buying a business must have both eyes open to the potential pitfalls. A going concern may seem popular, profitable, attractive, but it’s only once you get into the nuts and bolts of its operation that you can really see its commercial viability and its prospects.

Every corporate lawyer has a story about a client who dodged a bullet by pulling out of a bad purchase. Equally, plenty of stories of clients who got a better deal thanks to strong negotiations based on information acquired through due diligence. The point is that it pays to be in the know; to see the full picture. 

The good news for someone keen to buy a business is that lawyers like us are geared up to get moving quickly.  The background work can often be completed within short timescales and, where it’s right to go ahead, transactions driven through on solid foundations. It means that you can be confident in your decisions and ready to take on the future.

To talk to us about a corporate sale or acquisition, contact our conveyancing department on 01264 353411 and ask to speak to a member of the commercial team or email commercial@bsandi.co.uk