Tried to sell before? · United Kingdom
Didn't sell? Sell off-market.
Your previous sale did not complete. That does not automatically mean your business was unsaleable. Before simply appointing another broker or putting the business back on the market, establish why the first process failed.
£0 upfront · Off-market · Confidential · Experienced advisers
Your business didn't sell
That doesn't mean it couldn't.
Was it the business — or the sale process?
A previous unsuccessful sale does not necessarily mean the business was unsaleable. The cause may have been value expectations, timing, positioning, buyer coverage, the sale approach or a transaction that subsequently collapsed.
In our experience, many businesses that fail to sell are not inherently unsaleable. The outcome can be affected by value expectations, timing, positioning, buyer coverage and the sale process itself.
Preparation matters, but so do realistic value expectations, buyer identification, positioning, execution and patience. A good business can still fail to sell through the wrong sale process.
- Six questions we examine
- 01
Saleability
Was there a credible market of potential acquirers?
- 02
Value expectations
Was the expected value realistic enough for serious buyers to engage?
- 03
Timing
Did trading performance, sector conditions or personal circumstances work against the process?
- 04
Positioning
Was the acquisition opportunity communicated effectively?
- 05
Buyer coverage
Were enough genuinely relevant strategic acquirers identified and approached directly?
- 06
Transaction outcome
Did the process fail to find a buyer, or did a genuine transaction later collapse?
A different route
Maybe the business wasn't the problem.
A business can be saleable and still fail to sell if the value is wrong, the buyer universe is too narrow, the opportunity is poorly positioned, the process relies too heavily on passive advertising or momentum is lost.
Don't simply list it again.
We don't list businesses. We find buyers.
Offsell researches potential acquirers and approaches selected buyers directly and confidentially — rather than publicly listing the business and waiting for enquiries.
- Off-market
- Confidential
- Targeted
- Controlled
A fair question
Did the business fail to sell — or did the process fail to find the buyer?
A broker cannot manufacture a market where none exists. But an inadequate buyer search, unrealistic valuation, weak positioning, passive marketing or insufficient persistence can prevent a sale even where a credible buyer market exists.
Offsell Fresh Sale Review
Before you simply try again, find out what stopped the previous sale.
One question at a time, around two minutes. You'll see an indicative read across the six areas before we ask for any contact details.
Not a valuation or a legal view — a structured first look.
Offsell Fresh Sale Review
1 / 12
Already paid a broker once?
£0
upfront.
If you have already paid an upfront broker or adviser fee without completing a transaction, it is understandable that you may not want to make another substantial payment simply to try again.
Offsell does not charge an upfront fee to begin the process. Our first fee becomes payable only when you choose to sign Heads of Terms with a buyer.
We're prepared to put our money where our mouth is.
Our experience is that realistic value expectations, the right buyer search, proper positioning and patient execution can make a material difference to the outcome. Our commercial model reflects that belief.
Progressive success fee on Total Deal Value
- 5%
- on the first £1m
- 4%
- on the next £1.5m
- 3%
- on any amount above £2.5m
- Rates are progressive — each applies only to its band, never to the whole deal.
- Minimum completion fee £15,000 + VAT.
- At signed Heads of Terms, 20% of the anticipated success fee becomes payable and is credited against the final completion fee.
- If a transaction collapses after Heads of Terms and Offsell continues the same mandate, no second Heads of Terms payment is charged for a later buyer. The final Terms of Business set out the exact position.
Your previous agreement
We respect what came before.
Where a previous broker or adviser was involved, we ask enough to avoid conflict. Any buyer that may still be protected is excluded from our search until the position is clear.
We don't give legal advice. Anything that needs checking is flagged for review, and your solicitor can confirm the position on your previous agreement.
- 01Whether the previous mandate has ended
- 02Its expiry date, if known
- 03Buyers previously approached
- 04Buyers that may still be protected
- 05Any tail or protection period
- 06Any unresolved fee issues
An honest answer
Not every business is ready to restart.
Offsell does not accept every business. If a restart now would not work, we will say so — and what would need to change.
- Expectations need resetting
- Trading needs to improve
- Owner dependence needs reducing
- Financial information needs strengthening
- The previous process ended too recently
- Buyer conflicts need resolving
Answers, not adverts
Questions owners ask after a business doesn't sell
Finding buyers is not enough. You need to understand why they would buy. These answers look at the previous process, the buyers approached and what to do differently.
01 · Why didn't it sell?
02 · Was it the broker or the process?
03 · Were the wrong buyers targeted?
04 · Fees and retainers
05 · Trying again
Your business didn't sell. Find out why before you simply try again.
Take a fresh view of the business, the value and the buyer market.
Get a fresh view£0 upfront · Off-market · Confidential