Buy & Build: A Smarter Route to Grow, Protect and Exit Your Business

If you own a successful business, chances are you’ve poured years of your life into building it. But have you ever stopped to ask:

“What happens when I want out?”

Whether your end goal is retirement, handing the business to your children, or selling for the best possible price — the reality is, most owners don’t plan soon enough. And the result? A lot of hard work ends up wasted.

At Growing Your Numbers, we work with business owners to help them grow faster, build value, and exit on their terms. If you’re serious about your future, this is for you.

Why Timing Matters Now More Than Ever

Let’s cut to the facts:

• Around 1.5 million UK businesses will face an ownership transition in the next 10 years
• Up to 30% will close simply because they can’t find a buyer
• Business brokers list 60,000+ businesses each year, yet only 3,000 sell (that’s a 95% failure rate)

Many owners leave it too late. They assume their business will sell when they’re ready — but without the right planning and structure, that rarely happens.

The Real Cost of Doing Nothing

If you can’t sell your business, closing it down (even if it’s solvent) can cost upwards of £150,000–£600,000 in legal, redundancy, and administration fees.

It’s a painful way to go out — especially if you thought your business would fund your retirement, or secure your family’s future.

A Better Way: Buy & Build

If you’re looking to grow your business and make it more valuable — for sale or succession — the Buy & Build approach could be a game-changer.

Here’s how it works:

• A business with £200k profit might sell for around £400k
• Merge or acquire 5 more like it, improve efficiency, and lift total profit to £1.5m
• Now you’ve got a business worth £7.5 million
• Everyone involved gets a bigger exit, faster

It’s smart. It’s scalable. And it puts you in control.

Why Inheritance Tax (IHT) Changes Matter to You

From April 2026, rules around passing on your business are changing — and they could have a big financial impact on your family.

Right now, most of your business value can be passed down tax-free. From 2026, only the first £1 million per person will qualify. The rest could face a 20–40% tax bill.

Even if your business isn’t worth £1m today, it might be soon — and if your business relies heavily on you, it may be hard for your family to sell or run it without you.

That’s why planning now is crucial.

Here’s What You Can Do Next
Whether you’re thinking about growth, succession, or sale, this is your chance to take action while you still have options:
✅ Get a real-world valuation of your business — including what it’s worth with or without you
✅ Make a plan for how you’ll grow or exit — with a clear path to increase value
✅ Understand the impact of IHT and how to protect your family
✅ Speak to professionals who can help you take the right next steps

Need Help With That? That’s What We Do.
At Growing Your Numbers, we work with business owners like you through two structured programmes:

• FiMBO: How to grow, systemise, and make your business work without you
• Exit Planning 101: How to prepare for a successful sale, succession, or retirement

Both are delivered in weekly online sessions, backed by practical tools and a community of like-minded business owners. No fluff — just stuff that works.

Get Started;
If you’re ready to protect the value you’ve built and take control of what happens next, join one of our upcoming free sessions or book a discovery call to see how we can help.

Your future business — and your family — will thank you.