Selling Your Agribusiness: What to Expect

What will the buyer look at?

As you engage with a potential buyer through the sale process, they will have many questions about your business its finances and operations.

At Market Maker Agriculture, we aim to be as comprehensive as we can be, seeing the business from every possible angle. Because we manage our portfolio on behalf of our investors, we have a fiduciary responsibility to go deep and validate everything.

Below you’ll find an overview of the types of things we’ll want to know.

Purpose

Why does your business exist? What is its mission — and why is that mission important?

Focus

What are your core business activities? What industry segment and economic sector do you operate in?

Customers

How many do you have, how loyal are they — and how do they contribute to profitability? Where are relationships strongest? Where are they weakest — and why?

Opportunity

What is your current share of the market(s) you serve? Who are your competitors? Where are your best opportunities for future growth?

Suppliers

How strong are your supplier relationships? How dependent are you on any one supplier? Do you have redundancy for times when the supply chain gets tight?

Performance

What are your ‘business vital signs’ — profitability, cash flow, working capital, annual sustaining capital, etc? What risks does the business face, and what keeps you up at night?

Workplace

How do employees experience your business? How committed are they? What are your company values? What’s your management style? How do you handle matters such as health and safety?

Organization

How is your business structured? What are your key systems and processes? What technologies do you use? What assets are necessary to keep your business running?

Vision

What do you want for the business in the future?

Ask Yourself

Here are some prompts to help you prepare to answer a prospective buyer’s questions.

Download checklist