With Warren Buffett announcing his retirement as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway there have been numerous articles on his fantastic run of success. One that caught my eye was in the WSJ on his big hits and misses.
His hits include Coca-Cola, American Express, Apple, and BYD. Misses include Salomon, US Air, and Berkshire (ironic he kept the name). Something I noticed with his misses was how he admitted to ignoring common sense. In the small business market, we call it buyer fever.
I’ve heard a few times recently, on podcasts and presentations, the statistic that 90% of businesses never sell. I brought this up recently as a guest on a podcast saying it’s all about context. It may be true 90% never sell but 90% of good businesses do sell (for the ones that don’t it’s usually for personal issues).
All one must do is look at the online advertising sites for businesses for sale. There’s a reason they don’t sell – they’re not really profitable. A lot of business owners really have a job of owning a not-so-good business.
It’s why as a guest on podcasts I emphasize the seven key factors to making a business more valuable and salable.
“I became the dog that caught the car (on buying Berkshire).” Warren Buffett
