Services
The purpose of an acquisition or sale of a business is to create additional value through a change in the ownership structure. A successful transaction results in higher sales and/or profitability, through better use of fixed assets, human resources and/or capital.
Bridgehead is primarily concerned with the value a company has with the best strategic buyer. Our sales methodology is therefore different than that of our competitors. A well-planned and active marketing program, based on thorough understanding of the strategic position and value drivers of business will create the best result for the seller.
Critical Success Factors
Erroneous assumptions and hasty decisions in connection with a business acquisition is often the reason for failure. Taking into account the following four elements greatly increases the odds for a successful solution for the seller:
Know your strategic value: If you were to ask your accountant or other financial advisors to assess the value of your company, they would, as a general rule, base the value on historical financial statements and the business operation as it appears today. The buyer would make an assessment as to what the business would look like in two to three years under their ownership, when fixed assets, human resources and capital are merged in a way that leads to higher sales and/or improved profitability. We believe that these assessments have far greater impact on what a buyer is willing to pay than what the business has managed to gain in the past.
We have extensive experience with evaluating strategic aspects of operations in various stages of the life cycle and in most industries, and in our approach, we place great emphasis on the importance of the strategic rationale for any transaction.
Reflect Future Potential: In most memorandums and sales documents, the focus on the future potential of the business is limited. When selling a business, you should not market what your business is today, under your ownership, you should market what your business may be, two to three years into a new ownership.
We strive towards good strategic solutions, and we often create a "synergy-adjusted business plan" for our clients. This plan focuses on how a business can be additionally developed under a new ownership. At the stage where there are only a handful of qualified potential acquirers left, it may be appropriate to create a tailored plan for each individual potential acquirer, to fully expose what the remaining buyers would be willing to pay, and to highlight particular potential for these buyers.
Avoid being the passive party: In our experience, the best buyer is rarely actively looking for acquisition opportunities. It is only when they realize the value that a particular business can bring to them that they become interested. The best way to bring these buyers on the field is to use a pro-active and strategic search and approach method.
We have an extensive network and long experience in finding good strategic solutions. Our international network, M & A International, gives us additional global reach.
Create Competition: The most important factor for a successful sale is the ability to create competition among potential buyers. To achieve this, you have to contact many potential acquirers with different strategic motives, in different regions - also abroad. A potential buyer who knows that there are several interested parties will try to offer the best bid he can defend.
With multiple bidders, the seller has a clear advantage when negotiating terms & conditions of the sale and purchase agreement.
We have extensive experience in structuring a sales process in a way that maintains a structured progress, confidentiality, and discipline among the bidders. In this way, we secure our clients the best possible negotiating position at all times.