How do I sell my trading or distribution business without my principals finding out?
Off-market and NDA-gated. Nothing is publicly listed and nothing carries your name. Early materials use a reference code instead of your company name, buyers see identifying details only after signing an NDA you have approved by name, and you decide when your principals, key customers and staff are told. Timing the conversation with each principal is part of the plan, because some agreements need their consent and an unplanned leak can prompt them to look elsewhere.
What is my distribution business worth?
It is priced off normalised earnings, adjusted for owner-specific costs and one-off items, on the basis that a normal level of stock and receivables is delivered with the business. Net tangible assets are a strong anchor. What moves the number most is how secure your principal agreements are, whether any can be ended on a change of control, and whether you hold exclusive agencies or own brands. Owner-operated distributors in Singapore typically change hands at roughly 2.5 to 3.5 times normalised EBITDA, with up to about 4.5 times only for stronger businesses with competing buyers. We give you a written valuation under NDA, for a fixed fee credited against our success fee if you sell with us.
Who buys trading and distribution businesses in Singapore?
Regional distribution groups adding product lines or markets, listed Singapore groups building scale, Japanese and other overseas trading groups wanting a local channel, and competitors buying agencies and customers. Sometimes a principal takes its own distribution in-house, and management buyouts happen too. Each values the business differently. A principal may pay for control of its channel and a competitor only for the customer book, which is why approaching several quietly usually protects the price.
Can my principals end their agreements if I sell?
Some can, and it is the first thing a serious buyer checks. Many distribution agreements let the principal terminate on a change of control, or require its consent to an assignment, and some are informal or short-dated. The position can also differ between a sale of shares and a sale of the business and assets. Have every agreement read by your lawyer before going to market, and plan when and how each principal is approached. Agencies secured early protect the price far better than consents chased at the end.
What does Clearmere charge to sell a distribution business?
Our sale fee is success-based and paid on completion: no sale, no fee. A written valuation is a separate fixed fee, agreed and paid before we start, and credited in full against our success fee if you sign with us within 6 months and the sale completes. The first conversation, a short questionnaire and our written recommendation on which valuation fits are free and carry no obligation.
How are stock and working capital handled in the price?
The headline price usually assumes the business comes with a normal level of working capital, meaning stock, receivables and payables at their usual levels for your trade. If there is less at completion, the price is adjusted down, and if there is more, it is usually adjusted up. Slow-moving or obsolete stock and old receivables are normally written down rather than paid for. Agreeing the normal level and how it is counted early avoids one of the most common late disputes in distribution deals.
