You want to sell your sports business? Then it's good to know what the acquisition market in the field of sports business looks like. Exercise is healthy, but despite this knowledge, the number of people playing sports in the Netherlands is decreasing every year. And that means bad nothing for the sports business. How do you still maintain good revenue? By capitalizing on trends. Aging and on demand sports are two important trends for the future of the sports store.
The number of sports business mergers and acquisitions has been stable for years.
There are many ways to value a business. A common method of expressing the value of a business is "a factor x gross annual profit." This factor is also called multiple and another designation for gross annual profit is EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest Taxes Depreciation and Amortization).
In retail, the sector to which sports stores belong, an indicative range of EBITDA multiple of 1.9 to 3.0 is currently used, according to the Brookz Takeover Barometer. The average EBITDA multiple across all SME sectors is 4.90.
The valuation of a business is often the starting point for negotiations between buyer and seller. The outcome of these negotiations is the final sales price. So valuation and price are two different quantities. Besides valuation, the price is also determined by possible scarcity in the market, bargaining power of the parties, the strategic value of the business for the buyer and possible synergy effects for the buyer (cost savings, purchasing advantages).
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Want to buy a business or sell a business in the retail sector? With this Brookz Sector Monitor we want to present buyers and sellers with facts, figures and an outlook that provide insight into the number of transactions, the value development of businesses and the latest trends and developments in the retail sector. Because in any buying or selling process, thorough preparation provides peace of mind, overview and structure.
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The number of physical sports stores has been declining for years. Many larger organizations are visible in this industry and, as a result, the number of businesses with two or more employees is relatively high.
In figures, the number of sports stores in 2024 looked as follows(CBS):
With this online training from Brookz you are optimally prepared to largely sell your business yourself: 25 Powerpoint videos, a comprehensive valuation report, legal model contracts, handy templates, checklists and expert support. Plus 50% discount on listing your business on Brookz!
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A number of trends and developments will inevitably cause changes in the coming years, but also offer sports stores many growth and acquisition opportunities:
The Netherlands is aging and more and more older people in our society are playing sports regularly. And that means good news for the sports business. Because these generations are still used to purchasing their gear in a physical store. The elderly play sports differently than the young. And that offers sports store owners opportunities for developing a niche.
On demand sports: exercising where, when and how you want. More and more people are demanding flexibility in their sports choices and subscriptions. Last year, almost all indoor sports associations lost members due to this trend, according to the research report "Zo sport Nederland. And this is also one that, with our busy lives, uncertainties like corona and the desire for variety will only gain more footing.
