Selling a business is an exciting milestone, but it requires careful planning if you want to maximise the value of the transaction. When selling your company, you may receive offers from three types of business buyers: financial, strategic, and individual.

These buyers have different needs, characteristics and goals. You must consider the type of buyers interested in acquiring your company and their motivations.

This blog will give you an overview of these different business buyers and help you find the right buyer for your business.

Considering Selling A Business In The Coming Month Or Within 36 Months From Now? Let Foundy Maximise Your Business Value

Are you ready to sell your business and unlock its full potential? Foundy’s sell-side services offer two powerful options: long-term transaction planning to increase your business value over time, and deal execution for business owners ready to sell now. Our AI-driven platform, expert advisers, and tailored process deliver faster, higher-value sales. Attend our events to connect with potential acquirers and exited founders. Discover the best approach for your exit strategy at

Ready to Unlock Substantial Value Through Acquisitions? Do So With Foundy’s Support

Looking to acquire high-value businesses with significant growth potential? Foundy’s buy-side services, powered by advanced AI and a dedicated team of experts, will help you find off-market opportunities, minimise risk, and maximise your returns. Join our thriving community of buyers and attend exclusive events to connect with industry leaders and key deals. Ready to unlock your next acquisition? Learn more at Foundy Buy-Side.

Ready to Unlock Substantial Value Through Acquisitions? Do So With Foundy’s Support

Looking to acquire high-value businesses with significant growth potential? Foundy’s buy-side services, powered by advanced AI and a dedicated team of experts, will help you find off-market opportunities, minimise risk, and maximise your returns. Join our thriving community of buyers and attend exclusive events to connect with industry leaders and key deals. Ready to unlock your next acquisition? Learn more at Foundy Buy-Side.

Considering Selling A Business In The Coming Month Or Within 36 Months From Now? Let Foundy Maximise Your Business Value

Are you ready to sell your business and unlock its full potential? Foundy’s sell-side services offer two powerful options: long-term transaction planning to increase your business value over time, and deal execution for business owners ready to sell now. Our AI-driven platform, expert advisers, and tailored process deliver faster, higher-value sales. Attend our events to connect with potential acquirers and exited founders. Discover the best approach for your exit strategy at Foundy Sell-Side.

1. Strategic buyers

Strategic buyers are usually small or medium-sized businesses looking to acquire other companies within a similar industry to achieve synergies.

These business buyers may have various goals and objectives such as:

• Increasing their market share

• Expanding their customer base

• Acquiring experienced employees

• Diversifying their product base

Strategic business buyers are often willing to pay more for businesses that they want to acquire. This is because they tend to have ambitious objectives and see long-term value in the deal.

How to attract strategic buyers

Strategic business buyers are looking for companies that will provide long-term value and positive returns. You can attract these buyers by:

• Maintaining a strong company reputation

• Providing consistent financial forecasts

• Building a talented and loyal team

• Highlighting your technology and the quality of your products or services

• Demonstrating all possible cost savings to reduce business overheads

2. Financial buyers

Financial buyers tend to be private equity firms that value a company based solely on revenue and return on investment. These business buyers have two main goals: (1) to generate a high return for investors and (2) to develop an exit plan.

In most cases, financial buyers plan to use capital to scale a company over a shorter investment period (usually three to seven years) before exiting. Financial business buyers are less likely to get involved with daily operations and the seller may maintain partial control of the business.

How to attract financial buyers

Financial business buyers are looking for companies that are stable and have strong growth potential. You can attract these buyers by:

• Building a strong management team

• Increasing your EBITDA margin

• Displaying consistent historical financial performance

• Implementing clear business processes that can easily be replicated

3. Individual buyers

Individual business buyers are typically high-net-worth individuals who are looking for an opportunity to have more freedom, build wealth, or improve their professional reputation.

They typically target smaller companies and will maintain significant involvement in the business’s operations after the deal.

How to attract individual buyers

Individual business buyers are looking for low-risk companies with a proven track record. You can attract these buyers by:

• Providing consistent financial records and forecasts

• Highlighting the unique selling points (USPs) of your products, services and industry

• Emphasising the aspects of your business that align with the buyer's interests and experience

TIP: Many individuals are nervous about buying their own business and they may find the process daunting. Avoid overwhelming them with too much information.

Choosing the right buyer for my business

Every buyer has different needs, goals, and motivations - you must consider these carefully and choose the right buyer.

Here are 5 things to consider when choosing the best buyer for your business:

1. Industry

2. Company size

3. Timing of the sale

4. Nature of operations

5. Motivations to sell

How Does Foundy Deliver Value To Our Buy-Side Clients From End To End?

Looking to acquire businesses that can generate six to eight figures? Foundy’s buy-side services provide comprehensive support from start to finish. Your dedicated buy-side team uses advanced AI, trained on over 1.1 million transactions, alongside advisers selected from key industries matching your search criteria. We guide you through every step, from sourcing deals and conducting due diligence to structuring offers and post-acquisition growth. Avoid joining the significant percentage of acquisitions that fail to meet ROI expectations. Foundy equips buy-side clients with the tools, expert guidance, and deal flow needed to unlock substantial value. When you're ready to exit, our sell-side advisory services ensure your businesses are sold for maximum value. Learn more at Foundy Buy-Side.

How Does Foundy Deliver Value To Our Sell-Side Clients From End To End?

Selling your business is a significant decision, and Foundy ensures you're fully prepared to maximise its value. Our transaction planning service assesses your business’s true value and creates a tailored growth roadmap. When you’re ready, our highly regarded deal execution service prepares your business for sale, crafting presentation materials for your data room, building a long list of relevant acquirers, conducting methodical outreach and negotiations, and supporting you through to completion. Foundy’s Triangular Model combines advanced AI, trained on historical acquisitions and funding rounds in your market, with expert advisers—handpicked from your industry niche—and a collaborative deal management platform. The result? Our AI-enabled advisers consistently secure higher valuations and better terms for clients while completing deals significantly faster than traditional advisory firms. Plus, you’ll save considerably on advisory fees. Foundy’s average deal timeline is just over four months, compared to the nine-month industry median for M&A transactions. Learn more and enquire about long-term transaction planning or near-term deal execution via Foundy Sell-Side.

If you are interested in raising capital through debt, equity or grant funding, check out Foundy.com/fundraising. We currently have over 1000 lenders inside the platform and 450 equity investors across the UK and USA. With one quick 4-minute application, you will enter a personalised dashboard to see various funding options suitable for your use case. Then, register your interest in funding options of your choice. Your dedicated fundraising team will contact you to help you prepare for debt or equity investment, connect with relevant investors and secure funding. We specialise in seed to series B funding.