Buying a business

[lady R]

hi all

I need advice, my head is spinning right now so please tell me what you think.

I currently rent a room in a sunbed shop, I do nails, waxing, piercing, make up etc. I really only work part time mainly in the evenings due to having a 3 yr old.

Now the woman who owns the shop has offered to sell it to me as she wants out. Business is going well, she just feels shes lived there for 6 years an wants a change.

There are 2 sunbeds, a sunshower, 8 toning tables and a spraytan room (and my beauty room too.)

I am going to look at her books and feel I could really do a lot to this business it has a great turnover and could be so much more.

So my worry is, is it worth buying right now what with the current market and all?

Any advice would be sooo welcome please!!!

 

[loubylou]

You would have to look at her books before you could decide if it is worth it, and try to look at them for the 6 years that she has had it so you can see when she started to make a profit and then if it has gone down hill any where,
because of the current climate she will find it harder to sell so you could get a good bargain if you play your cards right,
the most important thing to do is use a great solicitor with lots of experience in commercial sales who will get you the best deal,

the only thing is you would have to spend a great deal more time there than you do now so you need to work out if this possible,
your overheads go up immensely when you start to employ staff, hth :hug:

 

[sknight]

ooh I agree, make sure you have a look at her books as you said or get someone to evaluate it for you if you're not sure. It could be a very good opportunity but as Louise say's it will be a huge commitment for you and you need to think about time away from home in the beginning.

Best of luck for you though

P.S no more Forest stories????? but we love 'em so much LOL x

 

[Jessica Rabbit]

hi doll check her books from day one and it should give you an idea on how well her business has been over the years. you should also offer a bid lower than what she is asking for as the way the market is at the moment... tht xx & good luck xx

 

[smartbookings]

hi all

I need advice, my head is spinning right now so please tell me what you think.

I currently rent a room in a sunbed shop, I do nails, waxing, piercing, make up etc. I really only work part time mainly in the evenings due to having a 3 yr old.

Now the woman who owns the shop has offered to sell it to me as she wants out. Business is going well, she just feels shes lived there for 6 years an wants a change.

There are 2 sunbeds, a sunshower, 8 toning tables and a spraytan room (and my beauty room too.)

I am going to look at her books and feel I could really do a lot to this business it has a great turnover and could be so much more.

So my worry is, is it worth buying right now what with the current market and all?

Any advice would be sooo welcome please!!!

I think a recession is one of the best times to buy a business as you can usually drive the buying price right down as no body has the money to buy, just ask yourself if you can sustainably run the business if the recession lasts for another 12 months.

 

[seedee]

i think you should take the chance , i watched a programme recently and they said the only industry that isnt suffering due to recesion is the hair and beauty industry as it makes people feel good about themselves.

your lucky you know what the salon is capable of and at the right price it could be the best thing you ever did!

 

[RedAdmiral]

Put a beady eye over the books, even get a professional to do this. Also check warrantees and service histories of the beds and check her client lists, other than that if you feel you can manage a bigger salon without comprimising your at home time with your child then go for it as a tanning salon will require you to be open for much longer than a beauty salon and you will have to employ reliable staff. ** another thing to check is what they are like and how much the current staff get**

 

[carlyfaye24]

check how long she has left on the lease
and if it isnt long you might want to have a word with the landlord to check if a) he will let you renew the lease and b) if he is going to put the rent up! hope that helps

 

[siteforsoreeyes]

Can I just add that in your post you said that the salon has great turnover, turnover isnt profit, you could have a turnover of £1million but a net profit of £1. Never go off turnover figures when making a decision on buying a business.

I noticed that someone else said check the lease, if there is a short amount of time left on the lease don't buy the business until this has been extended.
You shouldn't have to be getting involved in the extension of the lease.
It is very expensive for solicitors to go over a lease think the going rate is approx £800 to £3000 depending on the amount of paper work and man hours the solicitors have to put in to make sure you don't get stitched up.

Apart from that just step carefully and good luck

 

[kelbel]

I was in your shoes over a year ago. I bought a smaller tanning salon that you are talking about but i do it on my own. As not to really repeat the others but the lease is a major thing. Also is the equiptment bought outright? What i will say is its the best thing that ive ever done but because im moulding a current business to what i like, its like a new business so make sure you can afford to in the long run. I never switch off! and the hours are long with no breaks, which can be hard and i have noticed ive had to work even harder to get people through the door than before the recession but things are on the way up. Im in a good area that hasnt been too hit by recession but it HAS had an affect on my business.

But I love my job and wish you all the best xxx

 

[lady R]

thank you all guys, you have given me some excellent advice, with a lot of things I hadn't even considered!

You are all wonderful - Thank you!!!!

 

[junejuno]

Great advice so far. Don't do anything until you know what she her asking price is and have had an accountant look over and evaluate the books. He can then tell you if it is viable. If it is and you want to do more due diligence, then get an independant valuation done.

 

[YSL]

Good luck! This recession is indeed a perfect time to buy the right business It was a Deloittes report from last year that said hair and beauty is the most recession proof industry in the UK.

Build a team of advisers and use the posts here to help you make the initial pitch. A solicitor worth his salt wont charge you for checking basic stuff like lease terms because they will want your salon as a client long term. The same should apply to accountants.

 

[Poshfloss]

Hi Hun,
Remember the saying
"Turnover is vanity, Profit is sanity".
Check the books out.
Best of luck.
Lotsa luv x :hug: x