Exit Planning
You built a real company, not a hobby. Now you’re thinking about selling, and everyone keeps whispering the same cryptic phrase: middle market. It sounds like a club with rules nobody explains. Here’s the clear, unvarnished answer to what the middle market is, and why it decides how
Exit Planning
You built something from nothing. Then a buyer names a price that makes your stomach flip. It sounds big, until a week later you hear a similar company sold for more. Same revenue. Similar customers. Different outcome. The difference wasn’t luck. They earned a stronger multiple. Here’s the
Exit Planning
You built this company the hard way. You chased the first customers, carried payroll in the lean months, reinvested when others took cash, and shouldered every hard call. Now you’re ready to take chips off the table, and one quiet label will shape how buyers see you. Why the
Exit Planning
You built the hard part already. The product works. Customers come back. Your name gets spoken in rooms you’ve never entered. Yet a slice of your margin keeps disappearing into other people’s pockets. Here’s the truth that moves valuations fast: buyers pay premium prices for companies that
Exit Planning
What’s my business worth? Deep down you know this isn’t a math problem. It’s a truth problem. Buyers pay for what they can believe and discount what makes them nervous. Your number is a story priced in cash. Why this matters right now If you get this
Exit Planning
Buyers love to talk in “multiples.” You nod, but inside you’re thinking, What is an EBITDA multiple and why should I care? If you misread this simple number, you can give away a life-changing sum without even noticing. Here’s the bold truth: a multiple isn’t a
Exit Planning
You built this the hard way. Late nights, creative panic, payroll roulette. Now a buyer is smiling, asking for numbers, and quietly sharpening their pencil. Here’s the truth you should have heard sooner: they won’t buy your story; they’ll buy your EBITDA. If that word makes your
Exit Planning
You built this with your own hands and kept going when others tapped out. Now the finish line is in sight, and one choice can swing your valuation by millions. Vertical integration can make your exit brilliant or messy. The work is knowing which one you’re building. Why this
Exit Planning
You built a machine that prints cash. Then one supplier sneezed, and your quarter caught a cold. I’ve seen that movie. The credits roll with you taking the blame for something you never controlled. Here’s the uncomfortable fix, and the move that makes your exit worth more. Buy
Exit Planning
You built something from nothing. You wore a dozen hats at once. Now a buyer slides a term sheet across the table and you’re asking what all those years are really worth. Here’s the simple truth most founders learn late: buyers don’t buy your grind, they buy
Exit Planning
You are not selling the past—you’re selling the next three years of believable profit. That’s what the buyer is buying, and the cleanest way to show it is adjusted EBITDA. Not the number your accounting software spits out—the number that survives a buyer’s flashlight and
Exit Planning
You built something hard. Now you’re thinking about selling. Everywhere you look, people say, “Take EBITDA, slap on a multiple, and boom—there’s your number.” Here’s the truth: that shortcut hides the one force that decides your payday—perceived risk. Buyers don’t pay for past profit.