Whether you’ve decided to retire, pursue another dream, or implement your exit strategy, you can always sell your company in Utah.
Even better, you need not ask, “How do I buy or sell a business?” anymore. The Beehive State already has a lot of teams who can help you in this area. They can connect you with hundreds of people who might be looking for a company like yours.
If you’re feeling apprehensive, then perhaps these stories will inspire you to decide:
1. Whole Foods and Amazon
When you think of Amazon, you consider books, home décor, kitchen appliances, and whatnots. Perhaps you’ll also associate with groceries but probably not Whole Foods.
However, in 2017, the e-commerce giant bought the store for a whopping $13 billion and more since the brand’s shares in the stock market soared.
Whole Foods, though, didn’t start as Walmart or other popular supermarkets. It has a specific niche: people looking for healthy food.
If you can learn one lesson here, it’s that your business doesn’t have to be like the others. Pay attention to the trending market, offer what they need, and focus on it.
2. Myspace and Newscorp
Before Facebook, the Internet had MySpace, one of the booming social networking sites during the early 2000s. It was also one of the first websites to diversify its portfolio, such as launching MySpace Music. The likes of Lily Allen and Calvin Harris debuted their songs here. So did Adele, whose friend posted the songstress’s demo on the site.
Its history began with eUniverse employees, most notably Tom Anderson, who became the company’s president and “the face” of the site. By 2005, News Corporation acquired it for over $500 million.
MySpace doesn’t look anywhere close to when it started, but that’s all right. The ones who started it might be living the time of their lives today. Just ask Tom Anderson.
3. Careem and Uber
Perhaps you’ve never heard of Careem, but it’s an extensive business in the Middle East and South Asia. Its market value is so huge to the tune of over a billion in 2018. It isn’t surprising, therefore, it caught the attention of Uber.
You see, big businesses are also in the lookout for emerging competitors, and Careem was one of them. Purchasing it for a mammoth amount of $3.1 billion will allow them to penetrate the less-tapped market, not to mention easily diversify their offerings, such as corporate vehicles.
4. Ben & Jerry’s and Unilever
Do you know that one of the founders of Ben & Jerry’s cannot taste and smell? It’s one reason their ice creams come with mouth-watering add-ons! That’s not all. Ben Cohen couldn’t get into medical school, and so he dropped out and enrolled in an ice-cream-making course instead.
The rest, they say, is history. Both of them funded the business and grew it from the grassroots. After many years, their brand was popular enough to attract potential buyers.
One of these was Unilever, which later bought it for $326 million. However, the company also had to abide by the terms of the sale, including committing over 7% of the profits to the ice cream business’s foundation, keep the recipes, and avoid layoffs. Unilever also set aside $5 million to fund projects for minority-owned companies.
Hopefully, these stories will tell you that this exit strategy doesn’t favor any industry. You might just need the right people to help you.
