Journal

Succession insights

Practical perspectives on preparing and executing a business succession worldwide, with Swiss expertise.

  1. Price escrow: what it actually protects in a Swiss sale

    An escrow protects the buyer, but also the seller from a poorly negotiated dispute. The mechanism, usual thresholds, and costly mistakes.

    Read article
    Metal vault door inside a bank strongroom

  2. What a poorly drafted shareholders' agreement costs you when you sell

    Reviewing a shareholders' agreement costs a few thousand francs. Not doing it, before a sale, can cost far more. The cost breakdown, item by item.

    Read article

  3. Financial buyer, strategic buyer, family office: what each one actually negotiates

    A fund, a competitor and a family office do not negotiate the same points when buying a Swiss SME. What each profile checks first, and why it matters.

    Read article
    Three chairs spaced around a minimalist meeting table, seen from above

  4. The Vacation Test Doesn't Prove What Most Owners Think It Does

    A business that ran fine during your three weeks off isn't necessarily ready to be sold. What that test never actually measures.

    Read article
    Empty striped folding beach chair facing the sea in evening light

  5. One Child Takes Over, the Others Don't: Structuring Fairness Without Breaking the Family

    Ten concrete points for splitting company value between the child who takes over and the siblings who don't, without shortchanging anyone.

    Read article
    Close-up of wood grain on a family table, morning light

  6. Indirect Partial Liquidation: The Swiss Tax Trap That Can Cost the Seller Dearly

    A little-known Swiss tax rule can turn a tax-free capital gain into taxable income years after closing. How it triggers, and how to guard against it.

    Read article
    Close-up of Swiss franc coins, metallic texture

  7. Valuation Multiples: What a Single Number Does Not Tell You

    A press-quoted EBITDA multiple hides wide swings. The criteria that push your Swiss SME's multiple up or down before you negotiate.

    Read article
    Abstract close up of numeric columns, digital pattern texture

  8. Management Buy-Ins: Four Myths That Get in the Way of a Good Option

    A management buy-in is not a buy-out with a different face. Four common assumptions about bringing in an outside manager, checked against what actually happens.

    Read article
    Brass door handle, close-up on the texture of the metal

  9. What Waiting to Sell Actually Costs in an Aging Swiss Market

    Switzerland's pool of SMEs for sale is growing faster than its pool of buyers. What that imbalance costs, line by line, for owners who wait.

    Read article
    Aerial view of a Swiss valley, a mosaic of cultivated fields

  10. A Year After Selling: What Owners Actually Become

    Week 1, month 3, month 6, year 1: what selling owners really go through after closing, and the four paths that tend to follow.

    Read article
    A straight countryside road stretching toward an open horizon