What do I need to get in order before I even think about selling?
The short answer
Clean financials on one accounting platform with a proper chart of accounts, diversified traffic and revenue channels (single-channel dependency above 40-50% of revenue actively hurts your multiple), documented supply chain and vendor relationships, and a team that can run the brand without you in the room. Most sale processes take 6-12 months from decision to close, so start this cleanup a year before you actually want to talk to buyers - a rushed, undocumented business gets a lower multiple even if the underlying numbers are good.
A quick summary to orient you. The real value is below: the resources worth your time, from people who've actually done it, not us.
Here are the resources
Hand-picked from around the web, each with a note on why it earns your time. India-specific ones carry a badge.
3 resources1 India-specific3 link-checked
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Why we picked it
A financial-planning platform's operator-focused view of exit preparation - clean books, reduced channel dependency, a team that can run without the founder - the unglamorous groundwork that actually moves your multiple.
Why we picked it
A comprehensive single playbook covering valuation, pre-sale preparation and the sale process end to end - the closest thing to a full exit manual in this pool.
Why we picked it
One of the most complete India-specific M&A playbooks available - covers the full arc from a scrappy bootstrapped brand to a structured strategic exit, naming the actual Indian acquirers active in the market.
