Guides
Selling or buying a business in Canada, explained.
Plain-language answers to the questions owners and buyers ask. Written for Canadian small and medium businesses.
For sellers
How to sell a small business in Canada: a step-by-step guide
The steps to selling a small or medium business in Canada, from getting ready and setting a price to finding a buyer, due diligence and closing.
What is my business worth? How small businesses are valued in Canada
How buyers value Canadian small businesses: seller's discretionary earnings, EBITDA, industry multiples, add-backs, and what raises or lowers the price.
Do you need a business broker? Brokers vs selling yourself vs a marketplace
An honest comparison of three ways to sell a business in Canada: hiring a broker, selling it yourself, or using an online marketplace with your own advisors.
How to sell your business confidentially
How to sell a business without staff, customers, suppliers or competitors finding out too early: blind listings, NDAs, staged disclosure and timing.
Getting your business ready to sell: a 12-month checklist
A month-by-month checklist for Canadian owners preparing a business for sale: financial records, add-backs, contracts, key staff, and reducing owner dependence.
Asset sale vs share sale in Canada: what owners should know
The difference between selling your business's assets and selling its shares in Canada: tax, the lifetime capital gains exemption, liabilities and buyer protections.
Selling your business to an employee or family member
How Canadian owners pass a business to family, managers or employees: family transfers, management buyouts, employee ownership trusts and how they're financed.
What buyers look for: the documents to prepare for due diligence
A checklist of the financial, customer, lease, employee and legal documents buyers ask for during due diligence when buying a Canadian small business.
How long does it take to sell a business in Canada?
A typical timeline for selling a Canadian small business, stage by stage, from preparation and finding a buyer to due diligence, closing and handover.
Vendor take-back financing explained
How vendor take-back (seller) financing works in Canadian business sales: why buyers ask for it, the risks, the terms to negotiate and how to protect yourself.
Planning your retirement around selling your business
How Canadian owners can plan retirement and the sale of their business together: net proceeds, timing, tax planning, investing the proceeds and life after the sale.
For buyers
How to buy a business in Canada: a step-by-step guide
The steps to buying an established small or medium business in Canada: what to look for, financing, searching, NDAs, letters of intent, due diligence and taking over.
How to finance buying a business in Canada
How buyers fund a Canadian business purchase: your own equity, bank and BDC loans, the Canada Small Business Financing Program, vendor financing and earn-outs.
Red flags when buying a small business
Financial, customer, staff, legal and process warning signs to watch for when buying a Canadian small business, and what to do if you find one.
How to evaluate a business listing
How to read a business-for-sale listing: revenue, SDE, EBITDA and multiples, what's included in the price, and the questions to ask the seller first.
Research
New to the terms? See the glossary of business-sale terms.