Before you begin an acquisition, you need to understand the risks involved. Failure to recognize these risks can cause a good business deal to go bad overnight and leave you in a financial whirlwind. The risks associated with an acquisition can be mitigated when you have a clear vision for what you want to achieve and when you adopt a clear and concise strategy for making the acquisition happen successfully.
As you consider acquiring an automotive business, you may want to ask yourself a few clarifying questions:
● Where are you headed?
● What is your underlying objective?
● Can an acquisition help you achieve your objective?
● What are the long-term benefits?
● What are your values? Does the target company share the same values?
These baseline questions will help you identify the risks associated with an acquisition.
Identifying Risks in an Acquisition
If you can identify potential risks are in an acquisition, you can put together a game plan for minimizing them. Some of the more common risks include:
Building Business Trust
While some relationships build trust over time, you don’t have that luxury in an acquisition. Trust must be present from the start or developed quickly. The best way to garner trust is through transparency. Everyone must lay their cards on the table and express their desires and concerns. All fundamental differences must also be addressed.
Developing the Right Strategy
The strategy starts out as a broad vision you have for the acquisition, and then narrowing it down to an actionable blueprint filled with benchmarks along the way. The strategy must be visited and revisited with the utmost scrutiny. You may even want to bring in an objective third-party to assess your plan.
Funding
Having the capital to successfully launch an acquisition is core to its success. Therefore, set an agreed-upon budget and make sure you account for unforeseen expenses or financial pitfalls. Draw in the necessary funding and allocate it accordingly.
Opposition
Not everyone is going to be on board with the acquisition. So, start from the top down. Meet with the higher level management team, and then work your way down to the entry-level employees. Answer questions, calmly address fears, and cast a vision that everyone can get on board with. All team members must see that the leadership is united and that the acquisition creates a win-win for everybody.
Incompatible Systems.
You could be hindered by the This is how we do it mentality. Integrating processes and systems during the buying an automotive business process is vital to the success of the acquisition. Otherwise, you could find processes colliding instead of merging.
Are You Ready to Buy an Automotive Business?
If you’re ready to discuss buying an automotive business or car wash, contact AutoCenter Sales for a free, no-obligation consultation. And if you would like access to immediate auto centers on the market or car washes for sale, fill out our Priority Buyer form today! We look forward to assisting you in the purchase of your business!