Andrew Melville
If you have been fortunate enough to build a successful business, chances are that is the result of equal parts blood, sweat and tears. This makes the decision about what to do next with that business just a little bit harder, no one knows your business as well as you do. If you do start thinking about selling, how can you ensure you are getting the best return? Do you sell and get out completely? Hopefully getting rewarded for years of hard work, or do you carry on building the business and try and do everything yourself? Actually it does not need to be so black and white – you can have the best of both options.
Finding the right partner can, and often does, make all the difference. Business owners deserve to be rewarded for their hard work. Pemba is a first name often used amongst Sherpa communities in Nepal. The Sherpa is both a companion on the journey as well as a climbing partner who brings technical strength to the team and prepares the way to make the ascent as quick and safe as possible. We feel there are many similarities between the role Sherpa’s play and the role we play assisting business owners to their journey’s summit. We strongly believe this Sherpa mentality and our partnership model gives the business owner the best chance of success.
What makes a good partner? The answer will be unique to every owner, however one that has the right mix of experience, knowledge and strategic alignment is a good starting point. As a partner Pemba draws on the experience of completing over 120 transactions, knowledge that comes with a deep sector focus and the alignment of knowing that your success is our success.
Our partnership model gives owners two opportunities for a payday. Selling part of your stake in the business upfront gives you an initial windfall, an avenue to unlock some of that value you have worked so hard to create. Taking some money off the table on day one provides well-earned certainty and security for business owners and their families.
The core of the partnership model is alignment, incentivising senior management and key stakeholders so they have ‘skin in the game’ is one way to get everyone pulling in the same direction. Alignment between all stakeholders gives the business the best chance to maximise its value when that second payday occurs.
This second payday comes at a point when you and your partner/s decide that the time is right to sell. If the partnership has been a success the business will be in a much better position than could be achieved trying to do it all yourself. This doesn’t have to be the end either, Pemba has been involved in a number of successful partnerships where the other stakeholders have been reaping the rewards and believed there was more value to be unlocked so they decided to stay on and reinvest with the new owners of the business.
Whilst reward is a big consideration, risk, is equally important. Too often we hear about owners who have invested everything they have in their business. Without meaning to or perhaps even realising, they have exposed themselves and their family to unnecessary risk. By taking some money off the table, owners’ de-risk themselves. Risk isn’t solely financial either, think about the wealth of experience and knowledge most vendors have, after all, no one knows your business better than you do. What would happen to the business and its value if you were to leave? The right partner would mitigate this risk by helping to upskill the existing talent within the business and if needed, supplementing this talent with external board and senior management support.
Another key aspect of Pemba’s partnership model centres around what we call the buy and build strategy. Assisting our partners growth by making targeted acquisitions based on the medium-term strategy outlined by the board and senior management. Our dedicated origination team acts as the corporate development function for your business, identifying and engaging businesses that operate within attractive, adjacent industries. Another pillar of our buy and build strategy is our accelerate team who work closely with the senior leadership team to execute on their organic growth objectives and ensuring the right people are in the right roles to achieve success. Pemba is experienced, we have helped businesses grow for over 20 years! We are well placed to assist in fulfilling your growth potential through our buy and build strategy, as well as our dedicated origination and accelerate teams.
If you would like to learn more about Pemba, our partnership model and how we help business owners succeed, please do not hesitate to give me a call or get in touch with any one of my colleagues. We would be happy to introduce you to partners such a Phillip Simone who we currently work with or others we have worked with in the past who can give you an idea of what to expect from working with Pemba.
Pemba has been true to its word – the team have delivered everything that they said they would deliver when they invested. We have a great working relationship. Phillip Simone – Managing Director, Open Office
Photo by Cytonn Photography on Unsplash
