Instead of working to come up with your own successful business ideas, consider taking a shortcut and buy an existing business. True businesses operate like machines and in the same way a machine can be bought and sold so to can a business. Here are just a few examples of businesses you might find available for sale in your area:
Automatic car wash
A laundromat
A real estate management company
A vending machine route
A convenience store
An apartment building
An auto body shop
A pizzeria
These are just a few examples. Open your Yellow Pages or Google local businesses to find out more about what's in your area. Once you have an idea of the kinds of businesses you might be interested in, start asking people in your network and call your state corporation commission and local chamber of commerce to find out what resources are available to find businesses that are up for sale.
Why would somebody sell their business?
There are a variety of reasons for selling a successful business. The owners may be advanced in years and are interested in passing along their business to a new owner with the energy to continue it. Someone may be looking to move and owns a business that relies on local clientele. In a situation like this it makes much more sense to sell the business even if that person intends to start the same business up again in a new location. Other times, you may find someone who is a great idea person but doesn't have the skills required to operate and maintain a successful business.
Before you ever agree to buy a business you need to do due diligence and check all of the parts of the machine to ensure it are healthy and functioning. Consider hiring a lawyer and a CPA to review contracts, the operating agreement, the balance sheet, accounts receivable, any outstanding debt or liabilities of which you need to be aware before making a purchase decision.
In many cases it is possible to buy an existing business without any money of your own. Sometimes the current owner will be willing to sell their business with no upfront money in exchange for residual income from the business. If you were going to get a loan and make payments on a business anyway, this sort of arrangement could be a great deal.
In other cases you may be able to demonstrate to a lender that you are buying a business that already has a steady cash flow which can support a business loan. Based solely on the financials of the business itself you could find yourself owning a business and receiving its cash flow more quickly than you ever thought possible.
Sometimes an existing business may contain hidden assets which the original owner didn't realize or wasn't willing or interested to exploit.
A friend of mine purchased a coin operated car wash from a relative using a business loan from the bank. Immediately she got to work making minor improvements to the business which resulted in an increase of car traffic and better cash flow. The car wash was built on a property which had over an acre of raw land not used by the car wash. While operating the car wash she developed a business plan and obtained a construction loan to build a self storage unit on the remaining land. Cars that came to get washed noticed the new storage facility and she quickly sold out all of the available lockers. What started as one business became two and her personal wealth exploded.
Not only can buying an existing business be a great way to shortcut the path to one of your successful business ideas, it can also yield additional assets and opportunities you may have never thought of otherwise. As you work to build a new business don't forget to look and see if one is already waiting for you.
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