How I Found a Buyer for My Business

How I Found a Buyer for My Business

You ever stare at your business—the one you built from scratch, with calloused hands and sleep-deprived eyes—and think, “Alright… now what?” That was me, pacing the floor of my office barefoot, reggae hummin’ in the background, trying to decide if I was crazy for even thinking about selling.

But here’s the thing. After years of grinding, after weathering the storms of economic weirdness, burnout, and my own stubbornness, I knew it was time. Not time to “retire” in the white-picket-fence way. Nah, I just wanted freedom. Time. A fat exhale. Maybe a little beach shack in Belize, who knows?

So the question became: How do you actually find a buyer for your business? Not just a buyer, but the right one. Someone who won’t bulldoze everything you built. Someone who sees what you saw when you started out.

Let me walk you through how I did it—and how I almost screwed it all up, too.

The Day I Realized I Needed to Sell My Business

I wish I could say I woke up one morning full of clarity, but nah. What actually happened was a panic attack. In the cereal aisle. Over almond milk.

Seriously. I had just left a client meeting, my phone was blowing up, and suddenly the idea of being on 24/7 made my chest feel like it had a cinderblock on it. I’m standing there, frozen between Unsweetened and Vanilla, and I whisper to myself, “I think I’m done.”

So I went home, rolled a little something calming (don’t judge—Bob Marley said, “Herb is the healing of a nation”), and finally admitted it to myself. I wanted out. I just didn’t want to wreck everything on the way out.

Step 1: Get Real With Your Business Accounting

First off, I had to make my business make sense to someone other than me. That meant untangling the mess of receipts in my glove box, hunting down old P&Ls, and asking my accountant questions that started with, “Hey, so if I hypothetically sold this thing…”

Spoiler alert: if your books are a mess, you’re already making it harder to find a serious buyer. Real talk.

I had to clean house. I pulled together a full-on “buyer kit”—revenue reports, tax returns, growth forecasts, and even client testimonials. It was like dressing your business up for prom, minus the corsage.

Step 2: Don’t Just List It on Craigslist, Bro

At first, I was like, “I got this. I’ll just throw it on a few marketplaces, write a spicy headline, and watch the offers roll in.”

Wrong.

I posted it on a couple of business-for-sale sites and got nothing but tire-kickers. You know the type—dreamers with no money or dudes who wanted to turn it into a crypto co-op. 🙄

That’s when I realized something: selling a business isn’t like selling a used car. You don’t want everyone to see it. You want the right people to see it.

Step 3: The Business Broker Dilemma

Now, I’d always thought hiring a broker was like giving your kid away through a middleman. Felt weird. But after a few weeks of no action and one guy offering me payment in “equity in a podcast,” I decided to talk to a couple of brokers I found on the website Business Broker News.

And dang. One of them really knew their stuff. She came from the same industry, asked killer questions, and even made me realize my business was worth more than I thought. (Bless up.)

She put together a deal book that made my operation look like the Taj Mahal of niche service businesses. Professional photos. Clean valuation. Solid pitch.

Having her in my corner took a load off. I still kept my hand in the game, but she brought the finesse I didn’t know I needed.

Step 4: Vetting Buyers Without Losing Your Zen

Once buyers started coming in, it felt a little like dating again. Everyone’s on their best behavior, trying to look cool, but you know most of them won’t call you back.

I met some real characters—one guy wore sunglasses during our Zoom call and referred to himself in the third person. (“The Wolf doesn’t work weekends.”)

But then there was this one dude, mid-40s, ex-operator, talked about team culture before numbers. I asked him how he’d treat the staff. His answer? “Like they built this place. ‘Cause they did.”

That hit me.

We had three more conversations, then looped in my broker and accountant. The negotiation was clean, respectful, and—get this—we actually liked each other by the end of it.

Step 5: The Business Exit

Signing that final document was… weird. I expected a movie moment. Fireworks. An ocean breeze.

But really, it was me at my kitchen table, barefoot again, reggae playing in the background. Same as before. Only this time, no cinderblock on my chest.

The next day, I went surfing for the first time in 8 months.

What I Wish I Knew Sooner

If you’re trying to find a buyer for your business, let me pass along a little backyard wisdom:

Clean up your books early. Nobody’s buying your chaos, no matter how much charm you throw at it.

Protect your energy. The wrong buyers will drain you. Don’t give them free rent in your head.

The best deals are human. A buyer with heart > a buyer with just a fat wallet.

It’s okay to walk away. If something doesn’t feel right, trust your gut. Your gut built this thing, didn’t it?

Get help. You don’t have to carry the whole process on your back like a rucksack through the Himalayas. A good broker or advisor is worth their weight in ganja.

Final Vibes

So yeah—selling a business is no joke. But it doesn’t have to be soul-sucking either. For me, it was a messy, emotional, surprisingly beautiful process.

I let go. I moved on. And I didn’t sell my soul doing it.

Now? I’m writing this from a hammock, coconut water in hand, plotting my next little adventure.

If you’re thinking about selling, don’t rush it. But don’t fear it either. When the time comes, trust that you’ll know. And trust that the right buyer—like the right song at sunset—will hit just right. 🌅

Catch you on the flip side.