The next 10 to 15 years will pose some daunting and unique challenges for closely held business owners and their advisors, as it’s no secret that baby boomers will be retiring in large numbers.
With fewer and fewer children following their parents into the family business that may have been in the family for generations, a sale to either a strategic or financial (but in either case unrelated) buyer often seems to be the only viable alternative. With the demographic trend already well underway, sellers of family-owned firms may be surprised to discover that there may be relatively few and selective buyers interested in acquiring what have for decades been cash-generating and family-employing, although often niche or old-economy, businesses.
