Should You Buy One of the Boomer Generation’s Businesses?

There has been some talk about the best businesses to buy are those of the boomer generation. Matt reacts to this sentiment and discusses what actually makes a good business to purchase.

There are tons of people out on social media giving business advice. Some of it is good advice, but most of it isn’t good. In this series watch CapForge’s owner react to different advice videos. He’s an expert in all things business and has 20+ years of experience under his belt. Some of the things he reacts to might even surprise you!

Video Transcript: 

Business Advice Video: 

A lot of people buy businesses that are already established. How do you buy business that’s already established? You have to look for businesses that are ran by people that are 60 and over. Believe it or not, a lot of these people’s kids don’t wanna take over the businesses.

Matt’s Review:

Okay, I would less so say look for businesses with old owners, as to look for solid businesses. Sometimes that’s the same thing. It could be a business somebody’s been running for 30 years, they’re ready to retire, hand it off to somebody, and that somebody could be you. It also could be a business that’s only been around for 10 years, and the person is thirty and just ready to move on, do something else. It’s more important that it’s a good business, that is profitable, that you can verify the numbers, and that you have a plan to grow it. If those things are in place then no matter how old the owner is you definitely can make a good acquisition and keep it running. I think it’s true that a lot of people don’t – maybe they thought their kids would take over their business and the kids just aren’t interested. That part’s true. But maybe the kids aren’t interested cause it’s not a great business. And they saw their parents work 60 hours a week on it for the last 20 years of their lives. And they want nothing to do with that. That could be a problem too. So first, make sure the business is a good business no matter how old the owner is. Second, make sure you have a plan to grow the business. And then, third, do your due diligence and make sure everything you think you know about the business is accurate. If it passes all those tests and it makes sense for you to buy it and you can afford to make that work then, by all means, buying into an existing cash flowing positive business that you can grow is a much easier path than just starting from scratch. With something that you have, you know, to build literally from the ground up. So buying a business can be a great way to go. Just make sure it’s the right business.