FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
+ How long does it take to sell a pharmacy?
There are no hard and fast timelines in the sale of any small business. We have closed deals in as short a time as 60 days after taking a listing, as long as five years after taking a listing. The average time today from listing to closing is in the range of ten to twelve months.
+ Is there a rule of thumb to easily value my pharmacy?
From our perspective, potential sellers, or those developing an exit strategy plan, do themselves a big disservice by using any formulas or rules of thumb to develop the value of a pharmacy. The valuation process of pharmacies today is complex, takes into account many factors and should be done by a professional who is actively engaged in the buying and selling of pharmacies.
+ Are chains the only buyers who pay all cash?
Absolutely not, there are many well capitalized independent operators, some of them multi-store owners, who have the capital and the borrowing power to pay all cash for the right opportunity. Additionally, there are a number of banks who understand the pharmacy business and are providing loans to buyers who have the expertise and some equity of their own to invest in an acquisition.
+ Why can't I just sell my pharmacy myself?
Four important reasons to use our firm are:
- The ability to maintain the utmost confidentiality.
- The ability to expose your business to the broadest base of buyers, not just local buyers or customers of your current wholesaler.
- The ability to get an objective and realistic fair market valuation of your business based on current comparable sales as well as financial and operational information you provide.
- The ability to have a motivated and experienced third party involved in every step of the transaction including finding the buyer, negotiating the deal and shepherding it to a successful conclusion.
+ Should I give my business information to chain pharmacy acquisition representatives?
Under no circumstances should you give anyone any confidential information about your business, sales, costs, Rx counts, etc. without first having a signed confidentiality agreement in place, something we execute with all sellers and buyers at the start of every proposed transaction.