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For many business owners, your business isn’t just what you do – it’s who you are. It has been your passion, your livelihood, and your legacy. So, when it comes to planning your exit, one of the hurdles we see, along with organising the financials or the logistics of wrapping up your involvement in the business, it is also figuring out what life looks like after you step away.

Beginning your exit strategy early is one of the most important steps you can take to ensure your future success post-business ownership and secure the legacy you’ve worked so hard to build. Whether you’re considering introducing shareholders, selling outright, transitioning to family members, or exploring other exit options, it is crucial to have a well-thought-out plan in place.

Where Do I Start?

In the case of exit planning, start at the end – what do you want life post-business to look like for you? Only then can you make a plan for how to get there.

Having a clear vision of your post-business life will help you to shape and make clear decisions on your preferred exit strategy, even if it is still 3-5 years or further down the road.

Here are some common ways business owners spend their time after exiting:

• 🌍 Experiences & Travel
• 🎨 Hobbies & Personal Projects
• 💼 Consulting or Mentoring
• 📊 Managing Other Business Interests
• 🧭 Board Positions
• 🧑‍💼 Reduced Role in the Business
• 🏘️ Reinvesting in Community & Future Generations
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Spending Time with Family
• 🏖️ Full Retirement.

Building the Plan

Once you’ve envisioned what life after business looks like, the next step is to decide when you want that transition to be complete. From there, you can work backwards to build a timeline and action plan.

A critical step in the planning process is to understand your financial requirements once you exit your business.

Key questions to ask yourself:

• What will my desired lifestyle cost?
• What savings and income streams do I currently have?
• What is my financial gap – and how can I bridge it?

This might include evaluating your business’s value, personal investments, New Zealand Superannuation, and any other income sources like rental properties or dividends.

For further information to support you in exploring, and potentially answering these questions – consider the following resources:

• How much do I need to retire in NZ? https://www.opespartners.co.nz/retirement/costs
• How much is NZ superannuation? https://sorted.org.nz/guides/retirement/this-years-nz-super-rates/

Exploring Your Exit Options

When business owners think about exiting, they often assume the only option is to sell the whole business outright. But there are a range of different exit options to consider, such as:

• 🔁 Full Business Sale
• 🧩 Partial Sale (e.g., introducing shareholders)
• 🔗 Acquisition or Merger
• 👥 Developing a CEO/GM or Management Team to take over day to day management
• 📃 Licensing or Leasing the Business
• 🚪 Full Closure and Walk Away.

Even if your plan involves transitioning ownership to family, it’s important to use one of these formal methods to ensure a smooth transition and a sustainable future for the business.

From Planning to Execution

Once you have decided on best approaches for you, it is time to build the framework to get the ball rolling and achieve your desired outcome that will set you up to pursue your chosen “post-business” lifestyle.

Whether it is creating a transition plan to hand over ownership, increasing your business’s value by focusing on key areas, or reshaping your role to focus on governance, it all comes down to having a plan that supports you in:

• 📊  Solving the potential value expectation gap: growing the sale value of your business
• ⏳  Preparing for time taken to achieve sale/exit: very rarely do businesses sell quickly
• 🧑‍💼  Removing dependency on you as the business owner: empowering team members or streamlining processes
• 🧭  Providing certainty and remove stress for yourself through having a plan
• 🗂️  Informing day-to-day decision making (e.g., employment decisions, lease renewals, capital expenditure planning)
• 👥  Providing clarity for Management Team, key people and other stakeholders.

Talk to us today about how we can work with you to get your business exit planning underway and help you to achieve your desired future beyond your business!