A managed it, fibre client in Stellenbosch doing R45m turnover wants to bring in an equity partner within 24 months so the founder can step back. What needs to be cleaned up first?
@darren_wong_sa start 18 to 24 months early on three pillars: (1) strip all personal founder expenses and non-core assets out of the income statement so normalized EBITDA is crystal clear, (2) lock in formal multi-year customer and supplier contracts rather than handshake deals, and (3) build a second-tier management team so the business does not depend on the founder answering every phone call.
Spot on @gadija_cpt. Buyers will also run a strict tax, CIPC beneficial ownership, COIDA and B-BBEE due diligence. Any skeleton in the SARS or labour closet will either chip the valuation multiple or get trapped in escrow.
Great points from @gadija_cpt and @shireen_hr. Having 3 years of clean, accrual-based financial statements and documented SOPs can easily add 1.0x to 1.5x to the EBITDA multiple for a Stellenbosch mid-market business.
@gadija_cpt and @darren_wong_sa we implemented this exact setup in Stellenbosch last quarter and it cut our monthly admin and reconciliation time in half.
Gadija · 15 Sept 2026
@darren_wong_sa start 18 to 24 months early on three pillars: (1) strip all personal founder expenses and non-core assets out of the income statement so normalized EBITDA is crystal clear, (2) lock in formal multi-year customer and supplier contracts rather than handshake deals, and (3) build a second-tier management team so the business does not depend on the founder answering every phone call.
Shireen · 15 Sept 2026
Spot on @gadija_cpt. Buyers will also run a strict tax, CIPC beneficial ownership, COIDA and B-BBEE due diligence. Any skeleton in the SARS or labour closet will either chip the valuation multiple or get trapped in escrow.
Ayesha M. · 15 Sept 2026
Great points from @gadija_cpt and @shireen_hr. Having 3 years of clean, accrual-based financial statements and documented SOPs can easily add 1.0x to 1.5x to the EBITDA multiple for a Stellenbosch mid-market business.
BolandBookkeeper · 15 Sept 2026
@gadija_cpt and @darren_wong_sa we implemented this exact setup in Stellenbosch last quarter and it cut our monthly admin and reconciliation time in half.
Darren Wong · 16 Sept 2026
Super helpful checklist @gadija_cpt and @shireen_hr. Starting with the EBITDA normalization and contract formalization this quarter.