Sell your business for what it is actually worth.
A buyer pays for what they can see and verify, not for what you know is there. The gap between the two is usually years of tidy figures you have not built yet. Annabel spent sixteen years inside growing businesses, including as a Finance Director, so the work is grounded in what buyers actually look at. AAT Licensed, with a reply within one working day.
- Clean, defensible books a buyer can trust at due diligence
- Normalised earnings that show the true profit of the business
- Three years of credible management accounts, not last-minute figures
- Tax planned around the sale, well before it happens
No long-term contract. If it is not working after three months, you leave with clean books and nothing owed.
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Fees scoped to your situation. Reply within one working day, from Annabel.
What our clients say
★★★★★
Advice That Grows the Business
“I now see her as a vital part of my business and its continued growth.”
★★★★★
Meticulously Thorough With the Numbers
“She has fixed so many lazy, unprofessional mistakes by my old accountant by being so meticulously thorough.”
★★★★★
Saved Me Thousands
“offering amazing business advice & has saved me thousands!”
★★★★★
Quick to Respond to Queries
“Friendly, supportive and very quick to respond to any queries or sort advice.”
Thinking about selling, but the numbers would not survive a buyer looking closely?
Most owners start thinking about an exit a few months before they want out. By then the figures are what they are, and a buyer discounts anything they cannot verify. Personal costs run through the company, one-off items sit in the wrong year, and the profit on paper does not match the profit you know is there. That gap comes straight off the price.
- Personal and one-off costs mixed into the profit figure
- No credible track record a buyer can rely on at due diligence
- A tax bill on the sale nobody has planned for
What a sale-ready business looks like
Exit planning works best two to three years out, not two months. That is enough time to clean the books, separate what is really the business from what is really you, and build a track record a buyer trusts. The result is a stronger price and far fewer surprises when the offer arrives.
- Owner and one-off costs stripped out, so profit is stated fairly
- Three years of consistent, credible management accounts to show a buyer
- The tax on your exit planned around, well before completion
- Fees scoped to your situation and fixed, agreed on a free call
What owners say about the advice
Exit planning is a longer relationship than a tax return. These are owners who value the commercial thinking as much as the compliance.
Her support and knowledge have been superb, and I now see her as a vital part of my business and its continued growth. Thank you, Annabel, for all your help; you truly live up to your company name!
She has fixed so many lazy, unprofessional mistakes by my old accountant by being so meticulously thorough, offering amazing business advice & has saved me thousands!
What exit planning covers
The aim is a business a buyer can trust and pay a fair price for. That means clean books, honest earnings and tax handled before completion, not after.
Clean, Defensible Books
Your records are brought into a state that stands up to due diligence, so a buyer’s advisers find what they expect and nothing they do not. Bookkeeping is kept current in Xero throughout, which means the track record builds as you go rather than in a scramble at the end.
The foundationNormalised Earnings
Owner salary, one-off costs and anything that leaves with you are stripped out, so the profit figure reflects what the business genuinely earns. This is the number a buyer values the business on, and getting it right is often worth more than anything else you do.
Where the value sitsTax Planned Around the Sale
The way the deal is structured and timed affects the tax you pay on it, sometimes considerably. Planned two to three years ahead, there is room to make choices that leave more of the proceeds with you. Left to the last minute, most of those choices are gone.
Plan earlyOwners who wanted more than tidy books
The work spans start-up founders, established owners and businesses switching after being let down. The common thread is advice they can act on.
Fixed Old Accountant’s Mistakes, Saved Thousands
“I switched accountants to work with Annabel because I felt she truly cared about helping businesses to take control of their finances. She opened my eyes to how an accountant actually should work with you!”
A Vital Part of Continued Growth
“Annabel’s energy, passion, and genuine desire to help people understand their business finances really shine through in everything she does.”
Support That Set My Mind at Ease
“the support and advice I have had has been extremely helpful and has set my mind at ease knowing that any problems or queries I have will be handled or answered.”
Advice from someone who has sat on your side of the table
Exit planning is a commercial exercise before it is an accounting one. That is where sixteen years inside businesses earns its keep.
Finance Director Experience
Annabel spent sixteen years inside growing businesses, including as a Finance Director, contributing to the decisions that grew them. She has seen what buyers look for and what puts them off, which is a different perspective from processing numbers at year-end.
Planned Years Ahead, Not Weeks
The best exit outcomes are built two to three years out. Starting early gives room to clean the books, build a track record and structure the tax properly. Come to it two months before a sale and most of the value-adding moves have already passed.
Plain English, No Jargon
You get the numbers that matter explained in a way that helps you decide, not a report that makes the accountant look clever. When an offer arrives, you will understand exactly what it means for you before you respond.
How it starts, in three steps
The first conversation is free and takes twenty to thirty minutes. No pitch deck, no obligation, just an honest read on where you are and how far off sale-ready you might be.
Free Discovery Call
A free, no-obligation call about the business, your timeline for exiting and the state of your figures today. You get honest advice on whether now is the time to start, whether you become a client or not.
A Plan and a Fixed Fee
A proposal scoped to your situation, not a template tier. It sets out what needs doing to get sale-ready, the order to do it in, and a fixed fee agreed up front so there are no surprises.
We Do the Groundwork
The books are cleaned and moved into Xero, earnings are normalised and the track record starts building. Most of the heavy lifting sits with us, handled remotely, so it does not pull you off running the business.
Ready When the Offer Comes
When a buyer looks closely, the figures hold up and the profit is stated fairly. You go into negotiations knowing what the business is worth and what the tax will be, which is more than most owners know going in.
“She has made the whole process of changing accountants so smooth and stress-free. Her step-by-step guidance and clear communication made everything easy to follow, even for someone who does not naturally “speak accounts.””
Exit planning, answered plainly
How far ahead should I start exit planning?
Two to three years is the sweet spot, not two months. That gives enough time to clean the books, normalise earnings and build a credible track record a buyer can rely on. It also opens up tax and structuring choices that disappear once a sale is close. Starting late still helps, but the earlier you begin, the more room there is to add value.
What does this cost?
There is no published price list, because the work depends on the state of your figures and how far off sale-ready you are. Fees are scoped to your situation on the free discovery call and then fixed, so you know the number up front. You will get an honest view of the scope before you commit to anything.
My books are a mess. Can you still get me sale-ready?
Yes, and it is common. A lot of exit work starts with catching up and cleaning up records that would not survive a buyer looking closely. There may be a one-off cost to clear a backlog, and that will be quoted separately and clearly, so you can decide with the full picture in front of you.
Am I locked into a long contract?
No. There is an initial three-month settling-in period, after which either side can walk away with clean books and nothing outstanding. The relationship continues because it is working, not because you are tied in.
What are normalised earnings and why do they matter?
Normalising means stripping out costs that belong to you rather than the business, such as owner salary above market rate and one-off items, so the profit figure reflects what the business genuinely earns. It matters because a buyer usually values the business on that number. Getting it stated fairly and defensibly is often the single biggest lever on the price.
Will you plan the tax on the sale itself?
Tax planning around the sale is part of the work, and it is one of the reasons to start early. How the deal is structured and timed affects what you pay on the proceeds. Planned ahead, there is room to make choices that leave more with you. For anything requiring specialist input on a specific deal, we will flag it and work alongside the right adviser.
Sell for the right price, not the discounted one.
Start the conversation now, even if the sale is years away. A free discovery call gives you an honest read on how far off sale-ready you are and what it would take to close the gap.