FAQ’s
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Grow
Build the value (and effectiveness) of your marine dealership
INTEGRATE
Successfully add additional locations to your organization
EXIT
Prepare your dealership (and yourself) for a well-planned, life-changing exit
FAQ’s
Frequently Asked Questions
WRS Consultants is NOT a business broker. Our mission is to help you maximize the value and effectiveness of your business so that if and when the time comes to exit, it sells quickly and easily for top dollar. We work with and accept referrals from the leading business brokers in the marine, RV, and powersports spaces to prepare your business for a successful sale.
The initial consultation is always free! After that, we work with you to develop a consulting fee arrangement that makes sense for your budget and situation. We typically bill our services by an hourly, daily, or monthly rate depending on the engagement. Our goal is to provide a life-changing outcome and increase in the value of your business. As such, the ROI of our services can be extraordinary in most circumstances.
Preparing your business for a successful exit can be a multi-year project. We will work with you from day one to set expectations and develop a prioritized action plan with milestones to achieve the desired results. If at any time you feel we are not progressing towards those results, you are under no obligation to continue working with us. We are not in business to lock you into a long-term contract and not deliver consistent results!
While the bulk of our background and experience is in the boat business, we will consider working with other types of businesses if we feel we can add value. We are always happy to refer you to other consultants if we do not feel we are the best fit for your situation.
Absolutely! Having been in the industry for over 20 years, we know a lot of dealerships around the country. Making connections and finding great fits is our passion. We can help target and research specific markets to find a great dealership(s) and ensure a successful acquisition.
The honest answer is it always takes longer than you think. Most dealerships will take a minimum of six months to a year to sell once going to market simply because of the due diligence and approval process of buyers, manufacturers, and floorplan lenders.
The value of any small, privately held business is comprised of many components. Most are fairly easy to determine (equipment, inventory equity, real estate), however the highly variable component is the goodwill of your business. Goodwill is often determined by multiplying the business’s adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) by a multiple. The RANGE of multiples for any given industry is determined by the capital markets. Where your business falls within that range is determined by many factors including its size, riskiness, attractiveness, and ease of transfer. WRS Consultants works with you to boost your EBITDA and the multiple to produce an extraordinary boost in business value.
There are some great companies out there helping marine dealers improve the operations and profitability of their businesses, and we routinely refer our clients to those excellent resources. WRS Consultants is unique in that we focus on improving the VALUE of your business and advising you on grow or exit decisions. Growth and Exit planning is good business planning as it prepares you and your business to transition at any time for maximum value.
As a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®), we focus on preparing you and your business for what’s next. The reality is over 75% of business owners regret selling their business one year after exit. The key to ensuring long-term happiness for you and your family is to properly prepare and plan for what’s next. Having a plan for what your life looks like after the sale of your baby and connecting you with the resources that can help ensure you are ready financially is a big part of what we do. Let’s make your next chapter the best chapter yet!
The Value Acceleration Methodology™ is a strategic framework for executing exit planning. Through the three-gate framework, WRS Consultants works with the business owner to navigate a comprehensive process of discovery, preparation, and decision-making. Value Acceleration is exit planning in action, focused on building transferable value today. It begins with assessing the business’s current worth, implementing proven strategies in focused 90-day sprints, and asking a critical question: Is it time to grow or exit? This approach emphasizes what can be done now to increase business value and drive income. By building a company around the factors that create value and aligning the owner’s personal and financial goals in the process, owners gain the flexibility to exit on their own timeline and terms.