Ready to Sell, But Ready to Leave? What the Buyer Sees

How do you tell buyers you're selling when you can't tell anyone you're selling? Not the staff, not the suppliers, not the customers. And what does that look like from the buyer's side of the table? Will Strange has sat on both sides. He pitched Three65 undies on Shark Tank, built sports GPS company SPT from a watch taped to his back at local footy and sold it to Italy's K-Sport in a deal that fell over, then came back, just after half-time at a Carlton game. Now he buys industrial businesses with the aim of keeping the name on the door for good. Will talks about meeting key staff with the owner still in the room, the anonymous message that arrived mid-sale, why the next generation rarely wants the factory and the owners who reach settlement day and ask, who am I now? If you've spent 30 years building the place, are you as ready to leave as you think? Chapters 00:00 Welcome to My Shout 01:19 Pitching on Shark Tank 05:10 SPT and the JB Hi-Fi Watches 09:49 Selling SPT at a Carlton Game 13:42 Why Spark Equity Buys to Hold 19:18 When the Kids Don't Want the Factory 21:36 Selling Without Telling Anyone 27:55 The Anonymous Message Mid-Sale 30:47 The First 90 Days as New Owner 35:02 When the Old Owner Leaves Early 45:01 Bringing Tech to the Factory Floor 47:19 Who Do You High Five? 50:07 Today's Shout: Water from Derek Today's shout was water, supplied by Derek at Castaway Studios in Collingwood. Castaway Studios: https://castawaystudios.com.au/ About Will Strange Will Strange is a reformed tech entrepreneur who scaled a business across the globe with offices in Australia and the US, exiting in 2025. More recently, his focus and commitment has been permanent equity-based businesses: buying, owning and holding industrial businesses, building systems, bringing the growth mindset into these businesses and industries and leveraging the work previous brand holders have done. Website: https://www.sparkequity.com.au LinkedIn:   / williamstrange   Follow My Shout wherever you listen. Apple Podcasts: https://myshoutpodcast.com/apple Spotify: https://myshoutpodcast.com/spotify More episodes: https://myshoutpodcast.com/episodes #MyShout #FamilyBusiness #BusinessExit