Buyer's guides

Buyer's guides to buying a business.

Everything worth knowing before you buy.

Sector by sector, the way a business is valued, financed and checked — written plainly, by people who arrange these deals for a living.

01The lease

Buying a Leasehold Business

Goodwill, fixtures and the right to trade — but the lease rules everything. How to read it, fund the deal and avoid the traps.

8 min readRead

02Ownership

Buying a Freehold Business

Buy the business and the building it trades from. How freehold purchases are valued, financed and checked before you commit.

9 min readRead

03Healthcare

Buying a Pharmacy

Contracted NHS income beneath a retail counter — one of the most dependable small-business purchases in Britain.

8 min readRead

04Healthcare

Buying a Dental Practice

A patient list, a contract, and chair time that sells itself — if the UDA history is clean.

8 min readRead

05Care Home

Buying a Care Home

Occupancy, fee income and CQC ratings — one of the most substantial specialist acquisitions, and one lenders actively favour.

8 min readRead

06Automotive

Buying a Garage or MOT Centre

The MOT is the closest thing to annuity income on the high street. Bays, ramps and a book of customers who must return.

8 min readRead

07Professional practice

Buying an Accountancy Practice

The fee bank is the business. How to value it, verify it, and fund the acquisition.

8 min readRead

08Legal practice

Buying a Solicitor Firm

Fee income, work in progress, and SRA approval — the three things that define every solicitor firm acquisition.

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09Professional staffing

Buying a Recruitment Agency

Clients, candidates, and the debtor book — what drives value in a recruitment agency acquisition.

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10Professional practice

Buying an IFA Practice

Recurring adviser charges, assets under advice, and the client retention that makes the funding work.

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11Contracted services

Buying a Commercial Cleaning Business

The contract book is the business. How to assess it, verify it, and fund the acquisition.

7 min readRead

12High turnover

Buying a Fast Food Takeaway

The most financeable purchase on the high street — if the takings are real. How to verify the numbers and structure the deal.

8 min readRead

13Daily trade

Buying a Convenience Store

Predictable daily trade and half a dozen income lines under one roof. Stock at valuation, licences and the freehold question.

9 min readRead

14Hospitality

Buying a Café

Strong margins on every cup and a customer base that returns daily — if the location, lease and books all tell the same story.

7 min readRead

15Hospitality

Buying a Restaurant

Covers, spend per head and a kitchen that holds its value. How to price a restaurant — and how to fund it.

8 min readRead

16Retail

Buying an Off Licence

The licence is the value. Everything else — stock, chillers, regulars — follows from that single document.

7 min readRead

17Retail

Buying a Retail Shop

Independent retail survives on niche and loyalty. How to judge a shop's real position — and pay the right price for it.

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18Hospitality

Buying a Pub or Bar

Freehouse, tenancy or lease — three very different purchases wearing the same coat. Know which one you are being offered.

9 min readRead

19Services

Buying a Hair or Beauty Salon

The diary is the asset. Rebooking rates, chair rental income and the stylists who must stay for the goodwill to transfer.

7 min readRead

20Food production

Buying a Bakery

A production business disguised as a shop. Waste ratios, wholesale accounts and equipment that can finance itself.

7 min readRead

21Hospitality

Buying a Fish and Chip Shop

Britain's original takeaway. A weekly ritual, a short menu and one piece of equipment that matters more than all the rest.

8 min readRead

22Community

Buying a Post Office

A contractual income floor beneath a retail business — and a community role that protects the location itself.

8 min readRead

23Hospitality

Buying a Hotel or B&B

Property-backed hospitality: the building secures the loan while the bookings prove the income.

9 min readRead

24Education & care

Buying a Day Nursery

Funded hours, private fees and a waiting list — childcare revenue is booked by the term, not by the day.

8 min readRead

25Commercial Property

Buying Commercial Property

Two buyers walk into every commercial property deal: the investor chasing rent, and the owner-occupier chasing equity. Each gets a different mortgage.

9 min readRead

26High Street

Buying a Launderette

Washers turning from seven in the morning — a simple, countable business where the utility bills tell the truth about turnover.

7 min readRead

27Franchise

Buying a Franchise Resale

A proven model, an established customer base, and a lender panel built for it.

8 min readRead

28Property services

Buying an Estate Agency

Local market position, vendor relationships, and the lettings book that makes the funding work.

8 min readRead

29Health and fitness

Buying a Gym or Fitness Studio

Membership income, equipment condition, and lease length — the three things that define every gym acquisition.

8 min readRead

30Property services

Buying a Letting Agency

The managed portfolio is the business. How to value it, verify it, and fund the acquisition.

8 min readRead

31Community retail

Buying a Newsagent

Community retail that runs on habit. How to assess the footfall, verify the income, and fund the acquisition.

7 min readRead

32Logistics

Buying a Courier & Delivery Business

The contract book and the fleet — the two things that decide whether a courier acquisition works.

7 min readRead

33Short stay

Buying a Holiday Let or Short Stay Property

Two very different acquisitions, two very different funding structures — and we arrange both.

8 min readRead

34Commercial property

Buying a Car Park

Location, income mix, and planning status — the three things that define every car park acquisition.

7 min readRead

35Flexible workspace

Buying a Serviced Office Centre

Licence income, occupancy rates, and the freehold that underpins it all.

7 min readRead

36Industrial

Buying an Industrial or Warehouse Property

Tenant covenant, lease terms, and structural condition — what drives value in industrial property.

7 min readRead