ironshield financial
How to Jack Up the Value of a Commoditized Business
If you sell something the market sees as interchangeable, your business may be worth less. Acquirers often argue that without a competitive moat, commoditized companies are sitting ducks for a price war. Margins get squeezed. Valuations drop. After completing the Value Builder Score Report, more than 80,000 owners have received an estimate of their company’s…
The Leadership Style That Builds Loyalty—and Destroys Company Value
Some leaders take pride in leading from the front. They’re in the trenches with their team. They never delegate a task they wouldn’t do themselves. It earns respect, builds morale, and inspires loyalty. But it can also destroy the value of their business. According to data from The Value Builder System™, companies where the owner…
Sell the Potential…or Realize It Yourself?
Brent Beshore never set out to be a private equity investor. He didn’t come from Wall Street, never took a finance class, and once had to google the term “due diligence.” (He typed “do diligence.”) He was an operator building a marketing firm from scratch—until one day a founder offered to sell him their business.…
A Strong Business but a Modest Multiple
When Sean McAuliffe sold his company, he had a lot going for him. His distribution business was generating nearly $19 million in revenue. Margins were healthy. Growth was solid. And yet, when it came time to sell, his company was valued at around four times EBITDA, a relatively modest value for a $19 million company.…
How to Double Your Chances of a Premium Acquisition Offer
Value Builder Analytics, drawing on proprietary data from over 80,000 business owners, found that companies that can run without the owner for at least three months are twice as likely to receive an acquisition offer above 6x EBITDA. The concept is simple. The execution? Not so much. Take Kristie Shifflette for example. She was an…
Why Imperfections in Your Business Don’t Make It Unsellable
For business owners considering their endgame, learning what makes a company valuable can feel overwhelming. Buyers prioritize factors like recurring revenue, a differentiated product or service, and a leadership team that operates independently from the owner. If a business doesn’t check every box, it can seem as though selling is perpetually just out of reach.…
Is Your Industry Next for a Roll-Up? Here’s How to Tell—and What to Do
The garage door industry isn’t the most obvious place for a business empire. Yet in just a few years, Guild has emerged as a dominant force, consolidating a fragmented market into a scalable platform worth millions. If you’re a business owner in a fragmented industry, Guild’s story raises two pressing questions: Could my industry be…
Supplier Dependence: The Silent Killer of Business Valuations
Supplier risk can erode the value of your company. When a potential acquirer examines your business, they look for red flags. A major one: relying too heavily on a single supplier—whether that’s a sole raw material provider or a platform like Amazon that controls your primary sales channel. If that key supplier vanishes or changes…