What does 'Under-Management' mean, and why is it so attractive when selling your business?

If you have been monitoring the business sales market, you will have come across listings with ‘under-management’ in the description.  

Under-management implies that your business operates with a general/operational manager in place, and that you (and other associated owners) are working minimal to no regular hours in the business. The one caveat to this is that your business must still be profitable with your manager in place – potential buyers’ confidence might also reduce if your manager is a family member, spouse or close personal associate.  

“Under-management” is one of the most attractive selling features for a business regardless of your industry or size. What this feature communicates to buyers: 

   ✓ Business systems are reliable, efficient & transferrable.
   ✓ Not solely reliant on your skills & knowledge.
   ✓ Profitable enough to outsource your labour.
   ✓ Lower-risk investment.
   ✓ Attractive lifestyle/Financial benefits: low working hours + high income = a winning formula.  

Our FY2022 – FY2024 sales data shows that businesses under-management sold within 62 days on average – 334% faster than businesses where owners worked fulltime. Additionally, under-management businesses received more offers, 30% greater than non-under-management businesses. It changes your business from ‘buying a job’ to ‘buying an attractive investment’.

If your business is “under-management” as described above, you might be in an optimal sale position.  

Want to know what your under-management business is worth in the current market?