Business Owner Strategies

From evolution to exit

Every entrepreneur’s journey follows a distinct path, and when it comes time to sell, no two transactions are alike.

Whether you’re selling your first business or have built and sold several, your story is as unique as your ambitions. No matter your motivation for exiting, we assist you in facilitating a seamless sale that preserves your wealth and supports your individual needs over time.

We’ve worked with a vast array of founders to position themselves pre-, during and post-transaction, because an exit is so much more than a reward for what you’ve achieved. It’s a blueprint for whatever you decide to build next.

Your journey, our resources

We help founders and their families through each step of their exit, drawing on decades of experience to make sure that every decision reflects their values and ambitions.

So you can determine which phase best fits your current position, we outline the process in three distinct stages.

The exit window

Many entrepreneurs spend years, decades, even entire lifetimes building businesses. But when is the right time to take your company to market, if at all? And what sort of deal best aligns with your culture and values?

We work closely with you and your advisors to design a framework that proactively addresses all your needs.
Defining your intent

Now that you’ve decided to exit, it’s time to figure out what success means. By segmenting your goals into clear-cut allocations — liquidity, lifestyle, legacy and growth — you can structure your wealth so that it always works for you.

Using advanced proprietary tools, we develop a strategy tailored to your risk tolerance, personal values and broader aims.
Beyond the sale

A liquidity event gives you the freedom and flexibility to create a world defined by your terms.

To meet those objectives, we equip you with our full capabilities so that you can make assured, informed choices — both now and into the future. Our teams stand ready to create the life you envision.

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The exit window

Many entrepreneurs spend years, decades, even entire lifetimes building businesses. But when is the right time to take your company to market, if at all? And what sort of deal best aligns with your culture and values?

We work closely with you and your advisors to design a framework that proactively addresses all your needs.

02 / 03

Defining your intent

Now that you’ve decided to exit, it’s time to figure out what success means. By segmenting your goals into clear-cut allocations — liquidity, lifestyle, legacy and growth — you can structure your wealth so that it always works for you.

Using advanced proprietary tools, we develop a strategy tailored to your risk tolerance, personal values and broader aims.

03 / 03

Beyond the sale

A liquidity event gives you the freedom and flexibility to create a world defined by your terms.

To meet those objectives, we equip you with our full capabilities so that you can make assured, informed choices — both now and into the future. Our teams stand ready to create the life you envision.

Discover tailored financial strategies that support you throughout every stage of your entrepreneurial journey.

Contact us

U.K. spotlight

Throughout the United Kingdom, businesses are being created, scaled and sold across a wide variety of sectors.

In this exclusive video series, we hear directly from U.K. Private Bank leaders as they unpack key stages of the exit process.

Descriptive audio

Maricé Brown: We’re doing a lot for entrepreneurs right now at the J.P. Morgan level — not only at the Private Bank, but I think the fact that we are present here in the U.K. from an Investment Banking perspective, a Commercial Banking perspective… we’re in a unique position to help those entrepreneurs, especially when they’re just starting, in thinking about raising money, exiting, but also planning for the future.

And so, I think that combo we provide to our clients, in terms of the types of advice on different fronts of their lives, is highly valuable for them in a place like the U.K., where a lot is happening right now. The promise here of growth, development and potential exits is really high, and we’re here to serve them along the way.

James Chilvers: We’ve had a presence in the U.K. for over 170 years, working with business, families and entrepreneurs from across the country. Our presence in Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Bournemouth — and the number of people we employ in the U.K. — demonstrates our commitment as an organisation to the U.K.

We are there on the whole journey for our U.K. entrepreneurial clients and families as they think through the meaning and purpose of their business and wealth is, and how they’re going to build a strategy around succession to that business, or indeed, potentially an exit from that business in the medium to long term.

MB: There’s another thing that comes up in a lot of these conversations with families, especially when it’s first-time entrepreneurs selling their businesses and going thorough exit, which is: how much is enough?

JC: I think it’s really interesting. As we speak to entrepreneurs from around the country, so few people know what their number is. So what is the amount that our family needs as a safety net or an iron reserve to continue to meet our lifestyle needs for the rest of our days? And that’s a piece of work that we regularly help and support our clients in identifying.

MB: And that’s the power of a global firm at the end of the day. When we think about bringing global resources to a local market, I think that’s one of the benefits of working with a bank like us.

JC: We are very keen to ensure that our entrepreneurial clients are surrounded by the right kinds of advisors, and often we will be asked to help them discover who those might be. We have a fantastic network of third-party intermediaries — lawyers, accountants, and others — who can be introduced to our entrepreneurial clients and support them on that journey. To ensure that they’re taking the sort of, right independent tax advice as they approach a potential business exit is absolutely crucial, and we can really help them surround themselves with the right team there.

We live in an age where things are changing fast, and not every next generation wants to take over the family business. One of the things that many business owners will think about is what legacy are they going to leave behind. What are the values that underpin the business that we founded and have grown? And what is our vision and purpose for that business, and maybe the wealth that could be generated from it?