The Travel Business Broker Blog

We have slogged through the end of 2008 and the first half of 2009 and where are we? Thankfully there is better news on the horizon. Our office has seen and heard a positive outlook from the current owners about the future of their business. Buyer activity has slowly increased compared to this time last year.

There is a great deal to be excited about. We can see the bottom which means the only place to go from here is up. We may not shoot up like a bottle rocket, but we can see a level market that could turn into some positive growth in 2010. It may not be a “V” recovery but steady and flat means no loss and no loss is a first since late 2008. Market recovery means money flowing, money from clients wanting to travel and banks willing to make business loans to support the small business owner all this means liquidity after several quarters in a cold freeze.

How can we make the best of this situation? Imagine the possibilities that you can reap as a business owner if you take the time now and setup your operation for the recovery of the market. Companies who make strategic moves now can look at a greater return when the market comes back full force.

Americans in general think it is there right to travel. They have the right to go and relax and take their two weeks off a year. Image when the spending public is ready to release the stress of not traveling in the last year and half. Americans are going to travel and travel they will in full force. It could be a explosive 2010-2011 time for our industry.

Throughout my brokering career both on Wall Street and running ITA the one constant is that my clients have been motivated by either fear or greed, never both. Depending on your personality you will fit into one category or the other. The sale of your business will trigger some emotions. The key is to limit the amount of emotion so that you can make clear headed business decisions.

Get your head out of your hearts and view the sale as a victory not a defeat. Too many business owners simply go out of business instead of selling what they have built. It is more honorable and fair to your clients and employees to plan an organized sale verses simply not trying to complete an acquisition. There is nothing more satisfying than engineering a win win merger of a travel or tour business and watching the synergies present themselves between serious buyers and sellers. Here are some of the reasons folks sell:

1. Age
2. Sickness/Health
3. Birth
4. Death
5. Spouse Transfer
6. Marriage
7. Divorce
8. Accident
9. Inheritance
10. Burnout
11. No Longer Competitive
12. Family Time
13. To take the business to the next level

The Key is to always keep an open mind when you are approached by a travel or tour business broker with an honest buyer wanting to acquire your business. A nice calm calculated approach is needed verses taking things personally during the negotiation. Never once have we experienced a client that regretted selling their business. We constantly hear ” I could of, I would of, I should of sold a couple of years ago to that buyer you presented.

-Bob-

Owners of travel agencies should prepare for the hangover from the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2008 to accelerate into the first half of 2009. Service industry multiples of EBITDA (Earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortization) have always ranged between 3 – 5 ½ times earnings regardless of what type of service the company provides. Buying a business without any hard assets is a challenge as buyers simply want to receive what they pay for. Mid size shops are commanding 3 times EBITDA while larger travel businesses are still receiving 4 times EBITDA. Small agencies are commanding 33% of annual gross profit. 2009 transactions will require more sellers financing the transaction as many banks do not want to lend on a business with no hard assets. This perfect storm will subside and the multiples will expand again around 2010. This is a very resilient industry that will not die. My firm expects to see lower down payments and more of the purchase prices determined by an earn out formula pegged to the performance of the agency in the 12 months following the closing. The forecast calls for pain in the 1st half of 2009 with gradual easing of tightness in the latter part of next year. Sellers must come to grips that buyers are not going to over pay for a travel business in this environment. The structure of the transaction should contain a performance clause allowing the buyer to look back at the end of the 1st year’s actual performance. A final purchase price is usually not determined until the 1st anniversary of the transaction. The terms of any transaction are equally important as the purchase price. As always “The risk of selling an agency too early pales in comparison to the risk of selling to late…” Sellers need to remove their heads from their hearts as there is no room for emotions during a business merger.
 
Transactions will continue to be completed however the market shifted in mid 2008 from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market. This should be the case until late 2009 – 2010. Look for leisure and corporate shops to pick up steam in the 3rd quarter of next year as we begin the recovery of this great travel industry.