Ask The Expert: What are the Benefits of Hiring a Broker to Sell My Funeral Home?

Jeff Boutwell, President, Dwight Glover, Director – Advisory Services, and Tony Kumming, Senior Advisor, Midwest Region for NewBridge Group

This is an ongoing series provided by NewBridge Group Mergers & Acquisition Consultants. Have a question about business and finance? Email it to us at Carolyn (at) NewBridgeGroup (dot) com.

What are the benefits of hiring a broker or consultant like NewBridge Group? Wouldn’t I get more out of my sale without hiring someone else?

With over 20 years in this business, we have heard quite a number of concerns from clients and potential clients about selling their business—from worrying about when to sell to  hiring someone to help them sell. So, here are some answers to the top concerns we’ve experienced.

I don’t want anyone to know I’m thinking about selling. This is an important reason for having a broker involved. At NewBridge, we focus intensely on making sure to keep everything confidential. We require all potential buyers to sign confidentiality agreements before we tell them any information about the firm, and we get full authorization from you before having any discussions with potential buyer. Otherwise, we keep all the information in our Atlanta office and NewBridge personnel are the only ones who see or hear about the sale. We can also sign a confidentiality agreement between NewBridge and the buying firm.

I’m concerned about how my family business will be operated by someone else. Funeral home owners know the communities they serve very well. They think of the families that use them as “my families.” How will these loyal families be treated afterward? Part of our process is helping sellers understand how the buying company operates. We will set up meetings with prospective buyers so owners have a chance to understand how the companies would operate the business after the sale. We will be there to guide them through the conversations. The goal is to find a buyer who the seller likes the best. Then, try to make that company also be the highest bidder.

How much of my sale price am I going to have to pay you? We receive a percentage of the sale price, but only at the point that you actually decide to accept an offer and the transaction is closed. Our incentives are entirely aligned with our clients’ because the higher the sale price you receive, the more we are paid. Keep in mind we typically help our clients receive at least 25% more than they could obtain on their own.  In fact, we recently helped a seller get a sale price that was 75% higher than offers they had received before we got involved.So, there’s actually a higher cost to try to sell on your own just to avoid a small fee.  We base our value on historical revenues, as well as future projections for the area, ability to re-negotiate vendor rates, cross-utilization of human resources, etc.  Anyone can provide value based on historical data, but it takes someone with industry experience to create value on accurate future projections.

For more information on buying or selling a funeral home, visit NewBridgeGroup.com or call Jeff at 404-249-9582. If you have a question you’d like answered here, email it to Carolyn (at) NewBridgeGroup (dot) com.