Not all businesses are built the same!

With thousands, if not millions, of businesses for sale, why is it that so many remain unsold?

The Multiple Myth Book sets out to answer this question.

The Multiple Myth has been written to help both buyers and sellers understand what drives value in a business. And recognising that by having these key drivers in place, or not, will ultimately increase the transfer value of the business, or destroy it.

Meet The Author

John Evans

Business Owner, Investor, and Author

John grew up in Liverpool. As a sixties baby of course the Beatles were big in his household. When he left School in 1982, he decided engineering was a career path he would follow, so he enrolled on a government program called a “Youth Training Scheme”, which led to an apprenticeship. He trained in motor engineering before moving to London in 1987. From here John moved out of the motor trade and joined Triton Business Finance, a leasing business owned by Rank Xerox. This business was then acquired by Leaseplan UK an up and coming leasing business on the acquisition trail. This was John’s first exposure to the world of Mergers and Acquisitions. Over the next 30 years he was involved in many more during his time at GE Capital and then HSBC Bank. In 2020 he left corporate life and began his own business buying journey. The Multiple Myth is a book that focuses on John’s experiences, including case study meetings with sellers. Ultimately the book is there to help buyers and sellers understand what drives value in a business that ultimately creates or destroys value.
P.S. John loves writing, in particular songs. Maybe all those years of listening to Beatle songs rubbed off on him!

In November 2023, John appeared on the cover of industry specialist magazine, Acquisition Aficionado.  His article inside discussed the topic of how to put your business into the best shape to maximise the transfer value upon sale.   While John touched on four optimization areas, in the book he expands on this giving ten areas to focus on to achieve the best multiple upon sale.

Chapter 1 The ‘Multiple’ Myth

Let’s tackle the subject matter head on. I can waffle but I’m going to get straight to the point.

Myth

Example

#1

There is a myth that says if you run your business for 10-20 years your business will be worth 7 figures or more. This is simply not true.

#2

There is a myth that goes, if you do decide to sell your business and you put it in the hands of a consolidator or business broker, they are going to get you top pound/dollar for it. Simply not true.

#3

There is a myth that small and medium businesses (SMB) can get the same exit valuations as corporations and giant organisations. Simply not true.

#4

There is a myth that says the SMB marketplace is achieving higher multiples of profit than ever before because there is more data around to prove others are selling for higher prices. Simply not true.

#5

There is a myth that says businesses are selling faster than ever and if you place your business for sale, it will be sold within 1 month. Simply not true.

So straight off the bat I’ve listed five myths that sellers are being fed every day. So what is the reality? Well, the reality is very different to the myths listed above.
During this book I am going to share with you some very stark statistics and show you the reality of what is happening in the marketplace. I’m going to share some very real case studies of seller/buyer meetings that I have been involved in over the past 4 years.
The names have been changed and I’ve not disclosed the true location or name of the company, but for every Bob, Faisal and Jenny I’ve met, there are literally thousands more who are going through this process every day their business is for sale.
Psychologically what do you think this does to a seller? A person, man or women, who has run their business for a number of years and has made the emotional leap to sell their business has now begun to formulate new plans in their head.
Perhaps it’s the husband who for 40 years has slaved to his business, and now grandchildren have arrived, and the wife wants him to retire and enjoy more family time, more time bouncing the grand children on their laps, and games in the garden.
Perhaps it’s a businesswoman who started from scratch and has devoted more time to making her business a success, because she has had to work ten times harder to make it a success.
I’m going to get into those seller meetings first off, as a way of framing what is happening in the market right now.
Below are just a few case study examples as I show you what the reality looks like…….

Multiple Myth Book

Creating value in your business

John Evans is a businessman, entrepreneur, investor, a songwriter, a screenwriter, and an author. The Multiple Myth is his first business book.
© Multiple Myth Book . 2023

Contact Us

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.