BreakThru Realty

Sell a Manufacturing Company in Florida

Manufacturers and fabricators sell to a different pool of buyers than most small businesses: operators and groups who understand the equipment, the customers and the margins, and who often finance larger deals. The price turns on normalised earnings, the customer base, the condition of the plant and the people who run production, and the real estate is frequently part of the deal.

Find Out What My Business Is Worth · (786) 914-1017

Your first step: Confidential Business Exit Review

Start With a Confidential Business Exit Review

Your business represents years of decisions, relationships and work. Before anyone hears it might be for sale, know what it would sell for, what a buyer's lender will accept, and what you would take home. A licensed business broker prepares it and walks you through it privately.

What you receive

  • A recast of your earnings into seller's discretionary earnings, with the add-backs documented
  • A price range from closed sales of comparable Florida businesses, with the reasoning
  • The lease, staffing and financing issues that would move the price, and what to fix first
  • What a buyer's SBA lender is likely to accept
  • An estimate of what you would take home after the fee and any payoff

What happens next

  1. Answer a few questions about the business. Revenue and what you take home are enough to start.
  2. A business broker prepares the review from comparable sales.
  3. We call within one business day to walk through it, privately.
  4. Nothing is listed, and nobody is contacted, unless you decide to sell.

Free and confidential. The details you give us are seen only by the broker preparing the review. We do not contact your landlord, staff or customers.

Find Out What My Business Is Worth · How a business sale works

Earnings, Normalised

Larger manufacturers are valued on EBITDA, smaller ones on seller's discretionary earnings, and in both cases the figure is normalised: owner compensation at a market rate, one-time costs removed, rent at market if you own the building, inventory and work in progress accounted for properly. Three years of financials with gross margin by product line and customer let a buyer see where the profit comes from.

Customers and Backlog

Recurring customers, purchase agreements and a backlog of orders are the revenue a buyer underwrites. One customer over a quarter of sales is the most common reason a manufacturing sale is discounted or falls through, so concentration is disclosed early and the relationship is documented. Where customers are introduced to the buyer before closing, it is planned and sequenced.

Equipment, Capacity and Condition

The equipment list with age, condition, capacity, maintenance history and any loans is prepared before listing; buyers and their lenders appraise it. Deferred maintenance comes off the price; well-documented capacity to grow without new capital adds to it. Specialised equipment is worth most to a buyer in the same line, which shapes who the business is marketed to.

Key Employees and Know-How

The plant manager, the engineers and the skilled operators are what a buyer needs to keep, and the knowledge in their heads is often what the price is for. Retention agreements, documented processes and a transition in which you stay through at least one full cycle of orders protect the value for both sides.

The Building

If you own the plant, it can be sold with the business, leased to the buyer on a long lease, or sold separately to an investor in a sale-leaseback. Each produces a different total and a different tax result. The commercial team values the real estate alongside the business so you can compare the three before deciding.

Who Buys Manufacturers

Owners of related manufacturers buying capacity, products or customers; operators and groups backed by private capital; individual buyers with industry experience using SBA and conventional financing; and international buyers entering the United States through a Florida plant. Marketing is confidential and targeted to the buyers who can run the plant.

Questions you may be asking

Will my employees, customers or landlord find out?
Not from us. The review itself involves nobody but you and the broker. If you later sell, the business is marketed without its name or address, buyers sign a non-disclosure agreement and prove their funds before they learn who you are, and the landlord is approached only once there is an accepted offer.
What does a business broker charge?
A success fee paid from the proceeds at closing, set out in writing in the listing agreement before you sign anything. The review costs nothing.
My books are not perfect.
Few are. The review shows which add-backs a lender will accept and which records to tidy before a buyer looks, so the price holds through due diligence.
I only know my revenue.
Tell us the revenue and what you take home, even roughly. We work out the rest with you and ask for tax returns later, only if you want a firm range.

Find Out What My Business Is Worth

Tell us the type of business, the city, how long it has operated, annual revenue, owner benefit or seller's discretionary earnings, EBITDA if you track it, monthly rent and lease expiry, number of employees, how involved you are, why you are selling, your timeline and whether you would consider seller financing. A licensed BreakThru business broker prepares a confidential valuation from comparable sales and replies within one business day. Everything you tell us is confidential, the valuation is free, and nothing is listed or announced unless you decide to sell. Prefer to talk now? Call (786) 914-1017.

Questions Owners Ask

How is a manufacturing company valued?
On normalised EBITDA or seller's discretionary earnings at a multiple that reflects the customer base, margins, equipment condition and management depth, plus the real estate if it is included. A confidential valuation gives you a range from comparable manufacturing sales.
Should I sell the building with the business?
It depends on what buyers in your line want and on your tax position. Some pay more for the business and the plant together; others prefer a long lease; an investor may pay more for the building alone. We value both and show you the combinations; your CPA advises on the tax.
How long does a manufacturing sale take?
Usually longer than a retail or service business: six to twelve months to find the buyer and sixty to one hundred and twenty days to close, because the diligence covers equipment, customers, environmental matters and often financing.
What does a business broker charge?
Brokers selling small businesses usually charge a success fee paid from the proceeds at closing, commonly quoted in the market at around ten percent of the price, often with a minimum fee; larger sales are usually priced on a sliding scale. BreakThru's fee is set out in writing in the listing agreement before you sign anything, and the valuation costs nothing.

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