It might be trying times when you are deciding about the future of your business, but having a sound exit strategy will make it a lot smoother. To do this, you develop strategies to deal with situations like reduced cash flows, lawsuits or even life events like retirement. Some questions to answer include: ‘What parts and how much of the business should I sell?’ and ‘Who should I sell to?’
For example…
Martha is an experienced corporate sector caterer. She recently diversified to cater for the business class passengers of a large airline. She decided to include an exit strategy in her business plan to handle situations where she might have to relinquish control. She was taken seriously ill recently and her advisers suggested she enact her exit strategy. The plan was to approach strategic buyers like the airline’s other caterers. Having successfully sold her airline catering arm of her business to one such caterer, she was released of her obligations to maintain her contracts to the airline and focus on recovery.
