Exit Plan: Selling Your Lawn Care Business in 5 Steps

Some people establish their own lawn care businesses to pass the time before retirement. Others start them so they can break away from the 9-to-5 grind. Just as the reasons for starting a lawn care business can vary, so too can the reasons for deciding to sell them.

When you’ve made the hard decision to list your lawn care business for sale in NZ, you’re likely feeling a little overwhelmed about the best steps to take to ensure a successful sale. While all businesses are different, you might enjoy a straightforward sales process by taking some of the steps in this article below.

Step 1: Contact Your Franchise Head Office

This step won’t apply if you have established your own business from the ground up. However, if your business is part of a franchise, you might be surprised by the support you have at your disposal if you contact them about your intentions to sell.

They can provide a wealth of information on the sales process and often even give you advertising space on their website. If you list your lawn mowing business for sale on a well-established lawn care website, you might improve your chances of it being noticed by people actively looking for lawn care businesses to buy.

Step 2: Take Stock – What Are You Selling?

With the right know-how and the best lawn mowing equipment, anyone can be in a good position to start their own lawn mowing business. Why should they buy yours? Give prospective purchasers a reason to purchase your business by evaluating its worth.

This can involve calculating the revenue, your take-home pay, and the value of equipment you’ll include as part of the sale. You might also put a price tag on your lengthy client list so new owners can immediately start reaping the rewards.

Don’t be put off by the price range of other lawn care businesses for sale. Many factors can affect business value, such as:

  • The type of clients you have

  • The size of your client list

  • The business size and years in business

  • How many employees you have, and their level of experience

  • The sales figures

  • Assets

  • Marketing presence  

Step 3: Sell At the Right Time

It can sometimes seem like there’s never a right time to sell. The warmer months of the year are when you’re at your busiest, with no spare time to dedicate to preparing your business for sale. Selling in the colder months may also make you think that no one will be looking to get into lawn mowing when the grass isn’t growing.

Rather than focusing on the time of the year, focus on when you need to sell for the reasons that made you decide to consider selling in the first place. You might decide that now is the right time so that you can:

  • Chase other opportunities

  • Move to another location

  • Retire

  • Change jobs 

You might also decide to sell because you know you’ve grown your business to a point where it would be desirable for someone else to take over.

Step 4: Tidy Up Your Business

There are probably a few things you’ve been wanting to do to make your business run smoother. But with a busy schedule, those tasks might have fallen by the wayside. The more polished your business is, the more it might appeal to prospective purchasers. With that in mind, now might be the right time to tidy up those tasks that have been on the back burner.

These might include investing in an invoicing system for smoother client transactions, reviewing your books to ensure all your ducks are in a row, and trimming your client list to focus on your most profitable and consistent clients.

Many lawn mowing business owners also use an upcoming sale as a chance to maintain, repair, and upgrade equipment. If your gear is part of the sale, high-quality lawn mowing equipment can be a major drawcard.

Step 5: List Your Business for Sale

With your business running like a well-oiled machine with all the kinks ironed out, now might be the right time to hit the ‘go’ button. You can list your business for sale in many places, such as your franchise’s website, social media, your local noticeboard, and even auction websites.

Sometimes, selling a lawn care business is also as easy as talking to friends, family, and associates about your intention to sell. Word of mouth is a powerful form of advertising.

Buy a Lawn Mowing Business Today

Sure, some people are selling their lawn care businesses, but are you considering buying one instead? You’re in the right place.

Crewcut is an established nationwide franchise with many opportunities to get into the business. Contact the Crewcut Franchise Group today if you’d like to find out more about breaking free from the 9-5 grind and spending more time outdoors. We can’t wait for you to learn more about our unique business opportunities.

Karan Kikani