Dynamic Business Sales
Business sales in South Africa: sold quietly, to buyers anywhere.
Dynamic Business Sales is the Dynamic Auctioneers division that sells trading businesses as going concerns, confidentially and to qualified buyers, and catalogues and sells the assets of businesses that have closed. The businesses are South African; the buyers can be anywhere, because our auction room takes bids online. A business is sold twice: once to the buyer, and once to everyone who finds out it is for sale.
Buying from outside South Africa? How it works for international buyers
Key takeaways
- Trading businesses sold as a going concern: the name, the customers, the stock, the lease and the staff, handed over as one working whole.
- Confidential by design: every buyer signs a non-disclosure agreement before receiving the information pack, and in a private sale before learning the business’s name. Buyers show they can fund the purchase before they see the books.
- By auction with a reserve, or by private treaty, whichever suits the business. We recommend one and explain why; the choice is yours.
- Buyers can be in South Africa or abroad: our auction room takes bids online, and its sign-up takes a passport number from buyers who are not South African citizens.
- What selling costs, and who pays it, is set out in writing before you sign anything.
Who it is for
Sellers here. Buyers anywhere.
Dynamic Business Sales is built for four kinds of seller and buyer. The process is built around what each of them needs from the sale.
Owners selling
Retiring, emigrating, or moving on with nobody to hand over to. One confidential call, an honest view of what a buyer is likely to pay and why, and a sale run so your staff, customers and suppliers hear it from you.
Start a confidential enquiry SellersExecutors, liquidators and business rescue practitioners
A going concern sold on the record, by a public, competitive process where that protects the person selling for someone else. Where trading has stopped, the assets are catalogued and sold instead.
Estates and insolvencies BuyersBuyers in South Africa
See what is on the market and register as a buyer. Then the same gates as everyone: the non-disclosure agreement, proof of funds, then the books.
Businesses for sale Buyers abroadBuyers outside South Africa
The same process from wherever you are: email or WhatsApp to reach us, online bidding on auctions, and a passport to open an account. What changes for a non-resident is exchange control, company registration and tax.
For international buyersWhat we sell
Going concerns, and what is left when one closes.
Trading businesses
Sold as a going concern: the name, the customers, the stock, the lease and the staff, handed over as one working whole.
Groups and shareholdings
A group of companies sold through a sale of all its shares, or its businesses sold separately, or both offered at once so the better result wins.
Franchises and branches
A single outlet or a group, sold with the franchisor’s consent process handled as part of the sale.
Business with premises
Where the property comes with it, both are sold together or separately, whichever fetches more. Property auctions →
Closed businesses
When trading has stopped, the assets still have value: fit-out, equipment, vehicles and stock, catalogued and sold. Movable assets →
Distressed and rescue sales
Businesses in business rescue or liquidation, sold quickly and on the record for the practitioner. Estates →
Guides by kind of business: selling a franchise, a manufacturing business, a guest house or lodge, or a farm.
How a confidential sale works
Nobody hears about it from us.
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01
A confidential first call
What the business is, roughly what it turns over, and why you are selling. No documents yet, and nothing is written down that identifies the business until you say so.
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02
Appraisal and an information pack
We look at the financials, the lease, the asset register and the staff complement, and tell you what a buyer is likely to pay and why. The pack is built for buyers who have signed a non-disclosure agreement, and for nobody else.
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03
Mandate
A signed mandate confirming who is entitled to sell. For a company that means the directors; for a trust, the trustees. Sorting this out first is what stops a sale falling over later.
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04
Qualified buyers only
Buyers sign the non-disclosure agreement before they see the information pack (in a private sale, before they see a name), and show they can fund the purchase before they see the books. Your competitors do not get a free look.
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05
Sale and handover
By auction with a reserve, or by private treaty, whichever suits the business. Then the agreement, the conditions, and a handover that keeps the business trading through the change.
How buyers price a business: valuing a business in South Africa. Step by step: selling a business confidentially. Selling to a buyer abroad: what changes for the seller.
Auction or private sale
Two ways to sell a business. We say which, and why.
Both work, and the right choice depends on the business. We recommend one on the first call and explain the reasoning; the choice stays yours.
A firm date and open bidding
Competing buyers on a set day, with your reserve as the floor. Bidders do their due diligence before they bid.
- Sellers who need a firm date: retirement, emigration, a deceased estate, business rescue or liquidation
- Businesses with a strong asset base or premises, where the floor value is easy for bidders to see
- Sales where a public, competitive process protects the person selling, such as an executor or a practitioner
One qualified buyer, negotiated
The business marketed without its name, to buyers who have signed the non-disclosure agreement, and a negotiated agreement.
- Businesses that need a long due diligence or franchisor approval
- Deals with staged payments or a handover period with the owner
- Businesses where even anonymous public marketing carries a risk
Selling a business as a going concern: VAT, staff, leases and price, and how an auction of a business is prepared.
For buyers
Buying a South African business, from here or abroad.
Every buyer goes through the same gates: a non-disclosure agreement, proof of funds, then the books. A buyer abroad adds exchange control, company registration and tax to the list; the rest can be done by email, WhatsApp and online bidding.
Businesses for sale
What we have listed, our record of business auctions, and the form to register as a buyer.
See businesses for saleBuying from abroad
The six steps, what changes for a non-resident (each with its official source), and how to reach us from another time zone.
For international buyersBidding online
Our auctions take bids online, so a buyer can take part from anywhere. Every bidder registers and completes FICA verification before bidding opens.
How buying on auction worksBefore you make an offer: the due diligence checklist. Buying from a company in business rescue: who can sell, and what to check. Buying from abroad: what the law asks of a foreign buyer. Lodges and guest houses: land, licences, staff and the books.
Common questions
Selling a business, answered.
Do I have to sell the business on auction?
No. Some businesses do best on a set date with open bidding and a reserve; others are better sold privately to one qualified buyer. We recommend one on the call and explain why, and the choice is yours.
Who will find out the business is for sale?
In a private sale, only buyers who have signed a non-disclosure agreement learn which business it is, and marketing does not name it. On a public auction the business may be named in the catalogue, so the agreement protects the information pack and the books instead. Either way, nothing that identifies the business leaves our hands without your say-so, and your staff, customers and suppliers hear it from you, when you choose.
Can a buyer outside South Africa buy a business through you?
Yes. The businesses we sell are South African, and the buyers can be anywhere. A buyer abroad goes through the same steps as a local one: a non-disclosure agreement, proof of funds, then the books. On an auction, bidding is online, and the sign-up for our online auction room takes a passport number from buyers who are not South African citizens. What changes for a non-resident is exchange control, company registration, tax and, in a few sectors such as broadcasting and mining, ownership rules, which our page for international buyers sets out with the official sources.
What if the business has already closed?
Then there is no going concern to sell, but there is usually still value in the fit-out, the equipment, the vehicles and the stock. Those are catalogued and sold as movable assets, and we tell you honestly whether it is worth doing.
What do I need ready before the call?
Nothing formal. It helps to know roughly what is included (premises, stock, equipment, staff) and whether the last two years of financials exist. What selling costs, and who pays it, is set out in writing before you sign anything.
What currency are prices in?
Auctions on our bidding platform run in South African rand: bids, deposits and fees. A listing sold by private treaty states its own price and terms on its page.
Business sales guides
For sellers, and for buyers anywhere.
Selling a business as a going concern: VAT, staff, leases and price
Selling a business as a going concern in South Africa: VAT zero-rating under section 11(1)(e), staff and section 197, leases, franchises, valuation and auction.
Read the guide Business sales · 15 minSelling a business confidentially: the process, step by step
How to sell a business in South Africa confidentially, step by step: teaser, NDA, information memorandum, data room, offers or auction, due diligence, handover.
Read the guide Business sales · 18 minHow to value a business in South Africa: methods, risk and the real price
How a business is valued for sale in South Africa: earnings multiples, net assets, DCF and sector rules, what moves the price, and why the market sets it.
Read the guide Business sales · 13 minSelling a franchise business: consent, the buyer and the price
Selling a franchise in South Africa: the transfer clause, franchisor consent and buyer approval, transfer costs, staff, VAT, price, confidentiality and auction.
Read the guide Business sales · 16 minSelling a manufacturing business: plant, premises, permits and people
Selling a factory business in South Africa: going concern or plant auction, valuing equipment, the premises, emission and waste licences, staff, VAT and B-BBEE.
Read the guide Business sales · 15 minSelling a guest house or lodge: the books, the land, the licences and the staff
Selling a guest house, B&B or lodge in South Africa: going concern or property, the books, liquor licence, staff under section 197, land tenure and VAT.
Read the guide Business sales · 14 minSelling your business to a foreign buyer: price, payment and paperwork
Selling a South African business to a buyer abroad: how payment must arrive, exchange control, your CGT, Competition Act thresholds and keeping it confidential.
Read the guide Business sales · 20 minBuying a business in South Africa as a foreigner: what the law asks of you
Can a foreigner buy a South African business? Usually, yes. Share or asset deal, exchange control, B-BBEE, competition, tax, staff, visas and the steps.
Read the guide Business sales · 20 minBuying a business in South Africa: the due diligence checklist
A due diligence checklist for buying a business in South Africa: CIPC, SARS tax compliance, staff and section 197, leases, licences, B-BBEE and red flags.
Read the guide Business sales · 14 minBuying from a company in business rescue: who can sell, and what to check
Buying assets or a business from a company in business rescue: the practitioner's approval, section 134 consents, the plan vote, your deposit, and liquidation.
Read the guide Business sales · 14 minExchange control for foreign investors: money in, money out
South African exchange control for a foreign buyer of a business: your bank, the SARB, the non-resident endorsement, dividends, sale proceeds and loans.
Read the guide Business sales · 16 minThe South African business visa: for investors who will live here
South African business visa for investors: the R5 million rule, 60% local staff, the documents, who issues each one, and the published timings.
Read the guideSelling, or buying?
Sellers: one confidential call, and we tell you what the business is likely to fetch and how we would sell it. Buyers: register, and we add you to our alert list for matching sales.
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