How to Approach a Business Owner About Buying Their Business in Australia

Most small businesses in Australia are never listed for sale. They change hands through conversations — someone approaches an owner, the owner says "funny you should mention that", and a deal happens before any broker gets involved. Approaching a business owner directly means contacting them before they've decided to sell, with the intention of starting a conversation about buying. Done right, it gives you access to deals that simply aren't available on Seek Business or Bsale — roughly 30–40% of small business transactions in Australia happen without a broker listing.

This is Module 3 of the Playbook — Deal Sourcing. The direct approach is one of the most powerful sourcing channels most first-time buyers never try.

Why approach owners directly instead of through a broker

Brokers are useful — they've pre-qualified the seller's intent and done basic financial disclosure work — but they're representing someone else's interests. Every deal they control comes with a price premium: their fee gets baked into the asking price, one way or another.

A direct approach gets you in before the price is set. The seller hasn't engaged a broker, hasn't had a formal valuation, and often hasn't even decided they want to sell. They're thinking about it, or they'll think about it when you frame the question correctly. You're not competing with other buyers. You're having a conversation.

There's also the negotiation dynamic. An owner who receives a cold approach from someone they like tends to behave differently in price discussions than an owner who has received competing bids through a broker process. Less adversarial. More "let's work something out." That matters — especially when you get to the harder conversations about how to negotiate when buying a business.

For more on working with a business broker when you do go through one — the two approaches are complementary, not mutually exclusive.

How to find the right business owners to approach in Australia

You need a target. That means a specific industry, a specific geography, and a rough idea of the size you're after. Once you know what you want, finding the owners is mostly just time.

Industry association directories. Most trades industries have peak bodies with member lists. Master Plumbers Australia, Master Electricians Australia, the Painting Contractors Association, AEPMA (for pest control) — they all publish member directories. A plumber who joined the association in 2002 and now runs a team of six is probably in his late 50s with no obvious succession plan. That's your target.

LinkedIn. Search by industry and location. A director of a cleaning company in Adelaide, registered on LinkedIn in 2011, three employees listed, last posted two years ago — that's an owner who's heads-down running the business and not building a brand. Exactly the profile you're looking for. They're probably not thinking about selling yet, which is precisely when you want to start the conversation.

Trade supplier referrals. A plumbing merchant who has been selling to the same ten sole traders for twenty years knows who's winding down. Ask. Suppliers are underused as a deal-sourcing channel because buyers don't think to approach them.

Local accountants. BAS agents and accountants who work with small trades businesses see the full picture — tired owners, declining health, no kids who want to take it over. I've had accountants refer me to clients who were quietly thinking about their exit. Worth building a relationship with two or three practitioners in the industries you're targeting.

Competitor listings as a signal. When a business in your target sector lists for sale publicly, it often means others in the same market are considering it. Approach three or four of their competitors within six weeks of seeing the listing — the mood is contagious.

Read more on finding off-market businesses in Australia — the direct approach sits within a broader sourcing system.

What to say in your first approach

Most people overthink this. The goal of first contact is not to buy a business. The goal is to have a conversation. Short, honest, no pressure.

A broker told me about a buyer who sent a two-page email to a painting contractor in Wollongong — full acquisition thesis, ten-year vision, planned headcount by year. The owner didn't reply. The buyer followed up twice with revised versions. Still nothing. (The owner later told the broker he found it "a bit full on.")

Here's what actually works.

Email or LinkedIn message:

Hi [Name], I'm looking to buy a small [industry] business in [region] over the next 12 months. Yours has been on my radar — you've clearly built something solid. I know you might not be thinking about selling at all, but if you ever are — or just want to chat about what it might look like — I'd love to shout you a coffee. No pressure, no obligation, no broker involved.

That's it. No valuation talk, no mention of LOIs, no acquisition thesis. You're a real person who noticed their business and wants a coffee. Most owners are quietly flattered. Some are in the middle of thinking about exactly this.

Want the full script toolkit — email, LinkedIn, and phone versions adapted for different trades industries? Grab it free:

Direct Outreach Email Templates — free download Scripts for plumbing, electrical, cleaning, landscaping, and other trades.

How to handle the conversation when they're interested

You get a reply. They're open to talking. Now what?

Slow down. This is not the moment to ask for financials. This is the moment to understand the owner's situation — why they might consider selling, what they'd need to feel good about an exit, and whether they're genuinely serious or mildly curious.

The questions that matter early:

"What would your ideal outcome look like?" — Not "what's your asking price." What does a good result look like for them personally?
"Is there someone in the business who could run it without you, or does it pretty much depend on you being there?"
"Have you talked to your accountant or a lawyer about this?" — If yes, they're serious. If no, you're in early — which is fine, but expect a longer timeline.

Keep the setting low-stakes. A coffee works better than a formal office meeting. Outside business hours is less disruptive to their day and signals you're treating this as a human conversation rather than a business transaction. Listen more than you talk. Most owners have never had a real conversation with a potential buyer before — they've just been carrying the thought around by themselves.

Once both parties are genuinely interested, start moving toward the practical: some basic financial information to validate the rough size of the business, agreed parameters on what a deal might look like, and — when things are far enough along — a letter of intent to formalise the intent before either of you engages advisers.

When the owner says no

Most will. That's expected and fine.

There are two kinds of no: a hard no ("not interested, never will be, please don't contact me again") and a soft no ("not now" or "hadn't really thought about it" or "maybe in a couple of years").

The soft no is worth tracking, mate. Put them on a list with the date and a short note on what they said. Set a reminder to follow up in six months — not to ask again, but just to stay in contact. A brief email: "Checking in — hope business is good. Let me know if you ever want to catch up for that coffee."

The owner who said "not now, maybe in three years" in mid-2026 might say "actually, let's talk" in early 2028 when his knee gives out and he's sick of climbing roofs. You want to be the person he calls.

I know a buyer who acquired a concrete cutting business in Brisbane because he'd stayed in loose contact with the owner for four years before anything happened. No competitive bidding, no broker, price well below what he'd have paid through a formal process. The entire deal came from one cold email in 2021 and four years of occasional check-ins (which is more deal discipline than most buyers ever demonstrate).

Industry-specific tactics for trades in Australia

Different trades have different sourcing dynamics.

Plumbing and electrical: Licencing requirements mean owners tend to be qualified tradespeople, not career business operators. Many have no succession plan and haven't thought about it seriously. Industry associations have searchable directories — prioritise members registered for 15+ years.

Cleaning: High volume of operators, but quality varies enormously. Target commercial cleaning businesses with contract revenue rather than residential sole traders. BSCAA (Building Service Contractors Association of Australia) maintains a membership directory.

Landscaping, fencing, concreting: Less formalised industries with fewer searchable directories. Trade suppliers — landscape supply centres, concrete batching plants, fencing wholesalers — are your best referral source.

Pest control: Licencing is state-regulated and strictly enforced. AEPMA (Australian Environmental Pest Managers Association) has member directories. The recurring termite inspection and treatment revenue model makes these businesses particularly attractive, so expect more competition from other buyers.

In every case, target businesses operating for more than ten years with stable ownership. That's the owner who's tired and ready — not the one who's still building.

Building a long-term pipeline

The direct approach is not a one-shot tactic. It's a pipeline discipline.

Most buyers want a deal in the next six months. That urgency is understandable, but it also means they miss most of the market. The businesses that are "available" in six months are already in motion — listed, broker-engaged, or in conversations with someone else.

The businesses that will be available in 18–24 months are sitting there right now, with owners who haven't decided anything yet. Those are the deals worth building toward.

Aim to have 20–30 businesses on a tracking list at any given time — some you've contacted, some you've met once, some said "not yet." Review it monthly and stay in contact: not aggressively, just persistently. This is the sourcing habit that separates buyers who do one acquisition from buyers who do several.

Module 3 of the Playbook covers the full pipeline management approach — how to build a deal pipeline, track relationships, and stay consistent over the 12–18 months it typically takes to find and close the right business.

FAQ

How do you approach a company you want to buy? Keep first contact short — a brief email or LinkedIn message explaining who you are, that you're interested in their industry, and that you'd like a no-obligation conversation over coffee. Don't mention price, structure, or timelines. The goal is a conversation, not an offer.

Who can give me advice on buying a business in Australia? A commercial lawyer, an accountant with acquisition experience, and a business broker (for listed deals) are the core team. For direct off-market approaches, you largely manage the initial relationship yourself and bring in advisers once both parties are genuinely interested.

What is the 1% rule in business? Not a formal standard in Australian business buying. Sometimes used to mean 1% of annual revenue as a monthly rent ceiling for lease-dependent businesses — more relevant for retail. For service-based trades businesses, focus on EBITDA multiples rather than revenue-based rules of thumb.

How much is a business worth with $1 million in sales in Australia? Revenue alone doesn't determine value — profit does. A $1M revenue trades business earning $200K EBITDA might sell for $400K–$700K at 2–3.5x EBITDA. If it's earning $50K profit, it's worth much less regardless of top-line turnover.

More on buying Australian small businesses in The Leveraged Worker — weekly deal analysis, buyer case studies, and acquisition strategies from someone doing it in real time. Or go straight to Module 3 of the Playbook for the full deal-sourcing framework.