Ready to Sell Your Event? New Guide Helps Event Owners Navigate the Sales Process
September 25, 2024
Selling an events business is one of the most significant and complex decisions a trade show industry entrepreneur can face, particularly after investing years of passion, creativity, and hard work into building an event that deliver value to attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, and stakeholders.
Whether one is the founder of a trade show, conference series, or virtual events platform, the event sale process requires careful planning, strategic thinking, and a deep understanding of the industry’s unique challenges to maximize value and ensure continued success under new ownership.
To assist event owners in the next chapter of their entrepreneurial journeys, middle-market investment firm Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips published “Selling Your Events Business: A Strategy for Founders, Owners and Senior Executives,” a new digital guidebook covering the essential aspects of selling an events business––from high-level strategy to detailed tactics.
Why it matters: Designed for industry veterans and first-time sellers alike, this comprehensive guidebook serves as a practical resource for navigating the challenging process of selling your events business, said Ken Sonenclar, managing director of Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips and author of the guide.
What they are saying: “The robust return of live and in-person events following the pandemic––many companies will see revenue this year surpass pre-COVID levels––has energized M&A activity,” Sonenclar said. “It’s clear that even in an age of dependable, high-quality teleconferencing, nothing replaces in-person contact. Consequently, we thought it was a good time to encapsulate the firm’s expertise about events companies for owners who may now be thinking about finding a new home for their business.”
How it works: Based on the firm’s 25 years of experience selling events companies, the 52-page guide walks key stakeholders through the event sale process from start to finish. Key steps outlined in the guidebook include how to:
- Prepare a company for sale
- Evaluate financial performance, operational efficiency, and growth potential
- Create a marketing package that highlights a business’s strengths
- Negotiate sales terms while minimizing risk
- Craft a clear exit strategy
- Avert potential due-diligence issues
- Ensure a smooth transition of ownership
Deeper dive: The digital guidebook also investigates the impact of sustainability, how AI can enhance efficiency and attendee experience, and explores unique factors in the events industry, including success drivers for hosted-buyer events, regulatory considerations for healthcare life sciences events, and M&A opportunities for suppliers and support companies within the event sector. Lastly, the guide reveals in detail how buyers, both strategics and private equity firms, should approach acquiring an events company.
Download the complimentary Selling Your Events Business: A Strategy for Founders, Owners and Senior Executives guide here.
Don’t miss any event-related news: Sign up for our weekly e-newsletter HERE, listen to our latest podcast HERE and engage with us on LinkedIn!
Partner Voices
MGM Resorts is committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse culture, not just among employees and guests but also within its supply chain. The company prioritizes procuring goods and services from businesses owned by minorities, women, veterans, people with disabilities, LGBTQ individuals and those facing economic disadvantages. This commitment is integral to MGM Resorts' global procurement strategy.
Through its voluntary supplier diversity program, MGM Resorts actively identifies and connects certified diverse-owned suppliers to opportunities within its supply chain. The company is on track to spend at least 15% of its biddable procurement with diverse-owned businesses by 2025, demonstrating that supplier diversity is not only a social responsibility but also a strategic business imperative.
Supplier diversity isn’t just the right thing to do – it’s good for business. A diverse supply chain allows access to a broader range of perspectives and experience, helping to drive innovation, entrepreneurship and resilience, while strengthening communities. At MGM Resorts, engaging diverse suppliers ensures best-in-class experiences for guests and clients. Supplier diversity ensures a more resilient supply chain while supporting economic development in the communities in which it operates.
The impact of MGM Resorts' supplier diversity initiatives is significant. In 2023, these efforts supported over 3,500 jobs across more than 30 states, contributed over $214 million in income for diverse-owned businesses and generated more than $62 million in tax revenue. The story extends beyond the numbers – it reflects the tangible benefits brought to small and diverse-owned businesses, fostering economic empowerment in their communities.
MGM Resorts also supports the development and business skills of diverse-owned businesses through investment, mentorship and education. Through the MGM Resorts Supplier Diversity Mentorship Program, the company identifies, mentors and develops diverse-owned businesses to fill its future pipeline, while providing businesses with tools and resources to empower and uplift. Since 2017, the program has successfully graduated 105 diverse-owned businesses and is on track to achieve its goal of 150 graduates by 2025.
MGM Resorts’ commitment to supplier diversity not only enhances its business operations but also plays a crucial role in uplifting communities and fostering economic development. This approach reinforces the idea that diversity is a powerful driver of innovation and resilience, benefiting both the company and the wider community.
Add new comment