Baton

When it comes to valuing small businesses, a business's past performance history is weighted far more than its future growth potential.

Owners, here's what you need to know 👇

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Happy Independence Day from Baton!

Remember when you dreamed of "being your own boss"? It's never as easy as we first imagine (we're small business owners too). But, we believe that chasing those original dreams —greater independence and sharing your gifts with your community — are still worth it. In fact, we're here because of it 💪

Cheers to you!

While great resources are out there, sometimes it can be tough to find them, or even know where to start.

It's why we want to shine a light on these resources to celebrate Pride, and help our community build a more inclusive and empowering business landscape!

https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/grow-your-business/lgbtq-owned-businesses

This Juneteenth, we're shining a spotlight on John Merrick, who was enslaved at birth in North Carolina in 1859, and went on to launch thriving business ventures across different industries, including North Carolina Mutual. He and his business partner, Charles Spaulding, founded Black Wall Street.

Fast forward to today: Black business ownership is growing at a rate of 4.72% per year. To reach equal representation based on the current population of Black people in the U.S. within 15 years would take a 74.4% growth rate.

Let's do what it takes to share the knowledge and opportunity needed to accelerate.
Stat source: https://buff.ly/2VMrU5I

For Baton’s Lead Front-End Engineer, Jon Wagoner, there’s a little magic in getting to set up a new code base from scratch. As part of his time here, him and the team have had one main focus: to build a more maintainable front-end ecosystem.

Find out how they thought through the stack and architecture to set us up for a codebase that will help us move faster, build more confidently, and keep an ever-improving user experience.

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

98% of small business owners don’t really know how much their business is worth so most likely you’re in good company…

Unless you’ve worked with the team at Baton to get a valuation! Then you’re in the top 2% of business owners who know how much their business is worth 🔥

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Baton was created to support small business owners who’ve hustled for years, and we built it to inspire a new generation to take their place—building sustainable businesses that support the customers, the employees, and the communities that rely on them.

Swing by our website to learn what we’re all about: https://buff.ly/3WW8MkP

From the beginning, Baton’s mission has been to make small business ownership accessible to everyone. By “everyone” we meant — and will always mean — EVERYONE.

All business owners form the backbone of our economy, and our communities. We celebrate every one of you, every day. But as we celebrate Pride this year, we feel a sense of urgency to uplift, celebrate, and stand with our LGBTQIA business owners, friends, family, and neighbors. We stand with you against threats to your safety, and for the ability to live authentically and openly – basic freedoms all of us deserve. It is only then that EVERYONE can get back to business.

Throughout the month of June we’ll share resources, stories, and opportunities dedicated to you. Happy Pride.

In solidarity and celebration,
The Baton Team.

When folks are on the hunt for a business to buy, they often kick things off by thinking about how much they can spend. You also have others who have their hearts set on specific industries. Both are logical, and they both make sense.

At the end of the day, setting some crystal-clear parameters about the kind of business you're after will make your search a heck of a lot smoother. With hundreds of thousands of businesses up for grabs across the United States at any given time, narrowing down your options is key, and we have some tips that might make your quest a little easier:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Acquiring a small business is totally within your reach, and here's the best part: you don't have to limit yourself to just one method that’s mentioned in our article.

Take a peak for yourself:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Getting a valuation from us can start with 3 simple steps:

1. Sign up and claim your business: Don’t worry, we secure your account information from start to finish.

2. Take a quiz: Fill in the story behind the numbers so we can give you personalized results.

3. Connect your accounting software: This is the foundation of your business value – based on real data.

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Baton had a very strong, early foundation on which to build something more sophisticated. From the start, we were sharing real owners in their element through authentic photography.

And now, we want to hold onto this aesthetic and marry it with a visual language that aligns with that same authenticity.

A closer look at our brand principles, creative decisions, and brand approach:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Giving your small business some extra TLC can boost your valuation (and we’re happy to show you some of the high leverage things you can focus on, wherever you’re at in your journey) https://buff.ly/45J4L7p

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

How buying with us works:

1. Find your match: Our database of on- and off-market leads can help find your ideal business.

2. Breeze through the due diligence: We’ll provide verified financial data to make due diligence faster and easier (our two favorite things)

3. Close the deal: We work closely with you to qualify you for financing and partner you with experts to set you up for success.

More on how we work:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

When co-founders Jamie, Dylan, and Chat founded Baton, there were a lot of unknowns..except one thing. That one thing, was, and still is, their fundamental belief that every small business owner deserves to know the value of their business, without spending a single penny.

The story of of why (and how) they made Baton's valuations free:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Nuvely’s owner George Vallone got a wild offer from a national brand. Sounds awesome, but before he could make any big moves, he wanted to know how much his cleaning business was really worth since the acquisition — so he teamed up with us to really understand the value he had created, and now, we’re sharing his story with you:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

There’s nothing more rewarding than having clean financials. In the long run, it ends up helping buyers:

- better understand the potential risks associated with the purchase itself

- get a clear understanding of your business’s financial condition

- make a more informed decision on whether they should pass..or go for it.

More on why it’s pretty important to keep them organized:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Creating opportunities for small business owners every day >

So, what exactly does an M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions) Advisor do?

In a nutshell, they help navigating the transaction process a lot smoother.

Think about all the owners that have sold without using one. While many were successful, owners like Taylor Wallace later learned that working with one helps to quickly identify prospects, and even work through the legal process, saving times, and $$$.

Here’s a guide that sheds a little more light on how exactly they can help, and what to look for if you’re thinking of working with one.

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

To all the out there, our advice: keeping certain aspects of your business organized (and maintaining that) can make it more attractive to buyers if you’re planning to sell…and the best part is, it’s something you can control.

Aspects like staffing your business tightly as you could, or being heavily reliant on your suppliers are things you can visit and diversify if needed.

And that’s when you can then start the 3 step process for selling your business from start to finish:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Story time.

We worked with Lily Peachin, owner of two boutique wine stores in NY, to get her a business valuation at no cost — and turns out, the results ended up changing the way she thinks about her business.

She was actually a little surprised by what was shared, but her biggest takeaway? She wanted to do everything she could to increase her valuation.

Catch all the behind the scenes of the process, and what all Lily learned through it all:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

Let’s get real for a second- many potential have thought about trying to start their own business, but in fact, they’re now seeing the benefits of buying an existing one instead, which can be broken down into 4 steps:

1. Searching
2. LOI
3. Due diligence & acquisition
4. Close and transition

Check out our guide for a closer look at this process:

Baton Baton makes it easy for small business owners and buyers to prepare for whatever's next.

This week’s term from the Small Business Dictionary is cash flow multiple.

Cash flow multiple may also be known as seller’s discretionary earnings (SDE) multiple. It’s essentially how much money the owner takes home.