9:05 am today

Half of small businesses fail to sell, sales worse now than lockdown

From Nine To Noon, 9:05 am today
sign in window saying business for sale

Photo: RNNZ /Maja Burry

One of the country's largest business sales firms says up to half of small businesses that go up for sale, fail to find a buyer, and many business owners simply shut the doors and walk away with nothing to show for a lifetime of labour.

Bruce Cattell is Chief Executive of Link Business Brokers, which connects owners with buyers globally - it has 23 offices across New Zealand, Australia, and the USA. He says in many cases, business owners are so caught up in the daily grind, that they cannot prepare for sale, and some are so exhausted and burnt out, they just want out.

This follows data from accounting firm Xero showing that small and medium sized businesses are facing the biggest fall in sales since the Covid lockdown four years ago.

Kathryn speaks with Bruce Cattell from Link Business Brokers and Paul Churchman, Xero NZ's head of sales.