According to a 2019 report from Guidant Financial, 57% of U.S. small businesses are owned by baby boomers who are nearing retirement. With over 30 million small businesses in the U.S., this means more than 17 million American businesses could potentially be for sale in the near future. And there’s more at stake with boomer-owned businesses than with their Gen X and millennial-owned counterparts. 51% of boomer-owned businesses are older than eight years, compared to 29% of Gen X-owned businesses and 18% of millennial-owned businesses – which means boomer businesses are most likely to have two or more employees.
Many exit planning and business broker firms predicted an onslaught of boomer-owned businesses would flood the market beginning in 2011, when the oldest boomers turned 65. However, the number of boomer businesses up for sale to date has yet to meet this forecast. Several factors explain this phenomenon. Chiefly, a majority of owners prefer to transfer their businesses to children or employees instead of selling to third party buyers. Another contributing factor: many boomers are choosing to work past age 65.
