Confidential Buyer Demand

Access a curated pool of corporate and private equity acquirers actively seeking UK businesses like yours. Discreet, structured, and qualification led.

The Problem With Traditional Business Sales

The UK SME sale market still works much as it did twenty years ago.

A business owner considers selling.
They speak to a broker.
They sign terms.
The business is valued.
It is taken to market.

Only then does the owner discover whether real buyers exist.

This approach has three structural flaws:

The seller commits before understanding demand
The business is exposed to the market prematurely
Withdrawal becomes difficult without reputational damage

As a result, many sales fail, stall, or never complete. Not because the business was unsaleable, but because the process began too early and without evidence.

A Buyer First Market Has Arrived

The SME acquisition market has evolved.

Trade buyers, private equity backed groups, family offices, and strategic acquirers now plan acquisitions years in advance. They define sector focus, size parameters, geographic reach, and funding capability long before any approach is made.

Historically, this intent has been invisible to business owners.

BusinessWanted.com makes buyer intent visible in a controlled, confidential way.

What BusinessWanted.com Does for Business Owners

BusinessWanted.com is not a broker and does not sell businesses.

Instead, it operates as a buyer intent and access platform.

We collect, qualify, and structure acquisition intent from serious buyers. Business owners can then assess whether there is relevant demand for a business like theirs without listing, marketing, or committing to a sale.

This allows sellers to move from speculation to insight.

Business Wanted Access

'Business Wanted Access' is the service designed specifically for business owners.

It allows you to confidentially explore whether there are active buyers seeking a business matching your profile, based on live acquisition intent registrations.

You remain anonymous.
Your business is not listed.
No approaches are made without your consent.

What You Gain

Insight into live buyer demand
Visibility of buyer type and motivation
Early awareness of off market interest
Control over if and when discussions begin

Many business owners use Business Wanted Access purely as market intelligence. Others use it as the first step towards a structured exit.

Confidential by Design

Confidentiality is not optional in business sales. It is essential.

Your business name, identity, and operational details are never published. Buyers do not see your business. They see that a business meeting their acquisition criteria exists and has expressed conditional interest in exploring discussions.

Introductions only occur when:

Both parties agree
Alignment exists
Appropriate confidentiality protections are in place

This protects value, stability, staff confidence, and commercial relationships.

Who the Buyers Are

All buyers on BusinessWanted.com are qualified.

This is not an open marketplace and not a directory of speculative interest.

Buyer profiles typically include:

UK and international trade buyers
Private equity backed buy and build groups
Family offices with committed capital
Corporate acquirers executing strategic growth plans

Each buyer declares:

Sector and sub sector focus
Turnover and deal size range
Geographic interest
Acquisition rationale
Funding position

This ensures that seller insight is based on structured intent, not noise.

Why This Matters for Business Owners

Selling a business is not a transaction. It is a strategic decision.

Understanding buyer demand early allows you to:

Decide whether now is the right time to sell
Prepare the business on your own timetable
Focus on what buyers actually value
Avoid unnecessary exposure or aborted processes

Many owners who engage with BusinessWanted.com do not sell immediately. Some never sell at all. Others proceed later with stronger leverage, better preparation, and greater certainty.

Off Market Does Not Mean Opportunistic

Off market is often misunderstood.

It does not mean distressed.
It does not mean discounted.
It does not mean informal.

In reality, many of the strongest transactions occur quietly between aligned parties. Strategic buyers often prefer discretion and certainty over competitive auctions.

BusinessWanted.com enables those conversations to begin without publicity or pressure.

Adviser Choice, Engagement Structure and Fees

Business owners are free to choose how they proceed once buyer alignment has been identified through BusinessWanted.com.

Where a seller requests formal introductions to buyers, the following engagement options apply.

Appointment of One of Our Partner Brokerages

If the seller appoints our brokerage to act as sell side adviser, the engagement will be:

Exclusive
Supported by structured sale preparation
Backed by enhanced marketing and buyer outreach
Actively managed through to completion

In this scenario, a retainer fee applies, reflecting the preparatory, marketing, and advisory work undertaken prior to completion.

A success based completion fee also applies and is payable only on successful completion.

Appointment of a Third Party Adviser or Proceeding Independently

If the seller chooses to appoint another adviser or proceed independently:

BusinessWanted.com provides a non exclusive buyer introduction only
No sale preparation, marketing, or process management is provided
Responsibility for execution rests with the seller and their appointed adviser

In this scenario, no retainer fee is payable to BusinessWanted.com.

A success based introduction fee applies and is payable only on successful sale completion.

When Business Wanted Is Most Useful

Business Wanted Access is particularly valuable if:

You are considering an exit within one to five years
You want to understand buyer appetite before committing
You have received unsolicited approaches and want context
You are planning succession or a partial exit
You operate in a consolidating sector

It is not a replacement for professional advice. It is a starting point based on evidence rather than opinion.

What Business Wanted Is Not

Clarity matters.

BusinessWanted.com is not:

A public business for sale website
A valuation tool
A broker directory
A lead generation marketplace

It is a controlled platform designed to surface acquisition intent and give business owners informed optionality.

The Market Is Moving This Way

Buyer led models already dominate parts of the US and European SME M&A markets.

Sellers increasingly expect visibility of demand before committing to a sale process.

The UK is moving in the same direction.

From 2026 onwards, business owners who understand buyer intent early will hold a clear advantage.

BusinessWanted.com has been built for that future.

Next Steps For Business Owners

If you own a UK business and want to understand whether there is real acquisition demand for what you have built, Business Wanted Access is the logical first step.

No obligation.
No pressure.
No exposure.
Just insight.

Introduce Your Business Confidentially