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Alexei Orlov and MTM's Philosophy on Business Acquisition

If you have been working for hours, sacrificing time with family and friends to build your business. Then making profits by selling the venture is a top priority.

Alexei Orlov, Founder and CEO of MTM (Moments that Matter) has often argued that selling a business for profit isn’t the only reason entrepreneurs choose to sell their companies. Other associated benefits include:

The sale is a retirement plan after countless sleepless nights and hard work.

The seller decides to sell the business to get peace of mind or spend more quality time doing other things.

Getting freedom from running day-to-day operations which can be emotionally draining at times (depending on how much control was given up when starting).

Alexei Orlov believes that when making the transaction, the buyers and sellers share the same ideals. The buyer in the future would want to recoup their investment and make a substantial profit if they ever decide to sell the business. However, finding this convergence of ideals is a rarity.

The Winner Takes All Approach Should be Discouraged

The reality is that nearly half the time, these deals end with one party feeling dissatisfied. The aggrieved party suffers heavily from what is described as buyer’s remorse. I realized that this happens as most people have reduced this into business competition. However, such simplistic rationalization should be left to the pitch and should never find itself on a negotiating table.

Acquisitions don’t need to be ruthless. The seller doesn’t need to hoodwink the buyer into buying a dead company. Equally, when buying the company, the buyer shouldn’t be quick to impose their ethos after the acquisition of the company. For example, it is inevitable for some employees to be declared redundant due to the acquisition. However, the buyer shouldn’t do this aggressively to whittle down the culture of the company.