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Exit Planning for Business Owners

Without an exit plan, you risk stress, lost value, and fewer options. With one, you gain freedom, security, and a well-earned payoff. That’s where UKBM can help. We’ll help you build value, attract buyers, and secure your future.

What is Exit Planning?

Most business owners spend years building their business but very little time planning how they’ll one day leave it. That’s normally a costly mistake because the sale of your business should be the biggest paycheck you ever get! Exit planning (sometimes called business exit planning, succession planning, or business exit strategy consulting) isn’t just about selling up: It’s about making sure your exit maximises your return and gives you choices when the time comes.

At UK Business Mentoring (UKBM), we’ve helped hundreds of owners prepare for the future. Whether that means a trade sale, a management buy-out (MBO), a management buy-in (MBI), setting up an employee ownership trust (EOT), or family succession, the right strategy means you protect your hard work and get the right outcome for you and your business.

Arrange an Exit Planning Consultation
Arrange an Exit Planning Consultation

When to Start Planning Your Exit Strategy

The short answer: now.

Exit planning for business owners is one of those things that feels a long way off, until suddenly it isn’t. Leaving it too late can mean fewer options, lower value, more stress and sometimes means you can’t sell at all. Many owners who do this end up becoming ‘prisoners in their own business’; they can’t sell but can’t afford to leave.

A proper exit planning strategy should ideally start when you set up the business, but in reality, very few of us think that far ahead. The real risk comes from spending years building a business that may be very profitable but, for a multitude of reasons, won’t ever sell. That’s why looking critically at your business now and ensuring you are building something that others will want to buy is essential.

Therefore, unless you have a clearly defined exit strategy that you are working towards (not one built on hope!), now is the time to take action. Even if you don’t intend to exit, life sometimes forces the issue. According to the Exit Planning Institute, nearly half of all business exits are involuntary — triggered by the “5 D’s”: Death, Disability, Divorce, Disagreement, or Distress.

We would add to the 5 D’s an E. That E is energy, frequently owners, who enjoy what they do believe that they will carry on for as long as they are mentally and physically able to. That’s a nice thought, but the reality is that age creeps up on us, we struggle to do all the things we used to, we start to think of our own mortality and other things we would like to do while we are still fit enough.

It’s never too early, but it can definitely be too late.

Types of Business Exit Strategies

There’s no one “right” way to exit a business — it depends on your goals, your people, and your financial situation. Here are the main options:

  • Trade Sale: Selling to another company, often in the same industry. Can achieve the highest value if your business is attractive.

  • Management Buy-Out (MBO): Your existing management team takes over. Keeps continuity for staff and clients.

  • Management Buy-In (MBI): An outside management team purchases the business. Useful if there are no internal successors available.

  • Employee Ownership Trust (EOT): A popular route where ownership passes to your employees via a Trust, giving them a long-term stake (very popular at present, given the considerable capital tax savings it attracts)

  • Family Succession: Passing the business to children or relatives. Straightforward in theory, but it often comes with tricky personal dynamics.

  • Solvent Exit Planning: Closing a business in a controlled and tax-efficient way if a sale isn’t possible or desired.

Each route requires a different business exit strategy planning approach — and the earlier you prepare, the more options you’ll have. See more on the different types of exit strategies here.

Who We Work With

We mentor and support owners across all sectors — from professional services and retail to manufacturing, technology, and trades. Whether your business is turning over £500k or £50m, the principles of business owner exit planning are the same: build value, reduce reliance on you, and plan for the future exit with a date and value in mind.

How We Can Help Your Exit Planning Strategy

At UKBM, our exit strategy consulting is practical and tailored to you.
  • Clarify your personal and financial goals
  • Explore the right type of exit for you
  • Review your business to assess its ‘readiness’ for a sale
  • Build business value so you get the best result
  • Strengthen management teams and reduce reliance on you
  • Create a clear, step-by-step exit planning strategy
Start Planning Your Exit Strategy
Start Planning Your Exit Strategy

Case Studies: Successful Exit Planning

  • Clothing Company - Employee Ownership Trust

    We worked with a clothing company involved in the manufacturing and distribution of quality clothing across the UK and three continents. When we were first engaged, the company was very focused on the owner. Over a relatively short period of time, we restructured the business, brought in new talent and began to scale. The exit strategy involved scaling to a £1m EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation) figure and then exiting via a trade sale or an EOT.

    When the growth figures were achieved, the business was marketed and attracted offers from businesses in Asia. The owner, however, did not feel comfortable that the potential purchaser’s values and culture were aligned with those of his own business. He therefore decided to proceed with an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT), achieving a sale price of £6M, slightly less than the other offer, but due to the tax savings, the net proceeds were greater.

  • Manufacturing Company - Trade Sale

    A small manufacturing company that had actually already put its business on the market via a broker, with an anticipated sale price of around £400k. They came to us frustrated that they were receiving no interest and were beginning to feel that the business would never be sold. It was clear to us that the business, which was only being marketed in the UK, was due to the nature of its very niche market far more likely to be of interest to an international buyer.

    Some structural and other small changes were made, and we introduced the client to one of our panel of sale agents. The business was sold within twelve months to an international company for £900k, far more than the owner expected.

  • Serviced Apartments - Trade Sale

    This client had been operating successfully for over ten years, leasing apartment blocks and letting them out largely to corporates as serviced apartments. Our review of the business highlighted that the owner had lost his passion for the business and, due to a bereavement, was spending all his time in the business to ‘fill the gap’ in his life.

    There was much discussion around what his future goals were and how they could be facilitated. His driving passion was to live a more ‘rural simpler’ life, and the business was marketed to help him achieve this. The business was sold for £4.5M to a competitor with a 12-month ‘earn out’, after which the client walked happily away to realise his dream.

    We are still in touch with him, and he is remarried and very happy.

    Why Work With UK Business Mentors

    • Rated No. 1 in the UK for Business Mentoring and Business Coaching firms
    • 208 Client five-star reviews (96% five-star and 4% four-star)
    • Experienced across multiple industries and business sizes
    • Local mentors across the UK who understand regional markets
    • Straight-talking advice — no long contracts, no jargon, no fluff
    • A money-back pledge – if you don’t think we have added value, you don’t pay.
    • Proven track record in business exit strategy planning

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    Exit Planning FAQs

    What is exit planning?

    Exit planning is the process of preparing a business for the owner’s eventual departure, whether that’s selling, passing it on, or closing it in a solvent and tax-efficient way.

    Why is exit strategy planning important for your business?

    Because without it, you risk limiting your options and leaving value on the table. Planning ensures you exit on your terms.

    What are the 5 D’s of Exit or Succession Planning?

    Death, Disability, Divorce, Disagreement, and Distress. These are the most common unplanned triggers for a business exit.

    How do I draft an exit plan?
    • Define your personal and financial goals
    • Identify the right type of exit for your situation
    • Strengthen your management team
    • Get your finances in order
    • Work with an experienced mentor or adviser
    What’s the difference between succession planning and exit planning?

    Succession planning focuses on who takes over leadership and management. Exit planning looks at the bigger picture - ownership, value, timing, and how you, as the owne,r achieve your goals.

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