Most small business owners spend decades building their companies. Then when it’s time to sell, 70% walk away with nothing.
The numbers tell a brutal story. Of the businesses that actually make it to market, only 20 to 30% close a deal. The rest? They sit, they expire, or the owner gives up and shutters operations—watching a lifetime of work evaporate.
This failure isn’t about bad businesses. It is about bad timing, poor preparation, and owners who waited too long to plan their exit.
Now multiply that individual tragedy by 12 million.
The silver tsunami hits critical mass
Baby boomers own 51% of privately held businesses in America. By 2030—just five years away—every single one of them will be at or beyond retirement age. We’re already seeing 350,000 baby boomer business exits annually, and that pace accelerates every quarter.
The math is staggering: $10 trillion in business assets will change hands over the next two decades. That’s not venture capital or public market activity. That’s Main Street—the dry cleaner, the manufacturing shop, the regional distribution company your neighbor built from scratch.
Most of these owners have no succession plan. No buyer lined up. No idea what their business is actually worth. They’re heading toward the same cliff that claimed 70% of their peers, except this time it’s happening at unprecedented scale.
The preparation gap creates massive opportunity
Here’s where the business brokerage opportunity explodes. The gap between owners who need to exit and successful transitions isn’t closing—it’s widening. As baby boomer business exits surge, the demand for professional guidance in succession planning and deal facilitation grows exponentially.
Business brokers don’t just list companies. They bridge the chasm between an owner’s retirement dreams and market reality. They prepare businesses for sale, find qualified buyers, structure deals that work, and navigate the complex transition process that sinks most DIY attempts.
The business brokerage industry is experiencing record growth in 2025 precisely because this demographic wave can’t be stopped. It is not a maybe. It is math. Millions of business owners must exit, and most lack the expertise to do it successfully.
For prospective franchisees, this creates a rare alignment: massive market need meeting limited professional supply at exactly the right moment. The businesses that need selling aren’t concentrated in major metros—they’re distributed across every community in America, creating local market opportunities for brokers who understand how to sell a small business.
Why business brokerage franchises win now
Traditional business brokers operate solo or in small independent shops. They lack the infrastructure, training systems, and brand recognition that make complex transactions efficient. That’s the franchise advantage.
Transworld Business Advisors’ proven model provides franchisees with over 40 years of business consulting expertise, turning first-time brokers into effective advisors who can handle small business transitions from valuation through closing.
The turnkey investment structure eliminates the years of trial-and-error that sink independent brokers. Franchisees start with established processes for finding sellers, qualifying buyers, and closing deals—the exact capabilities this market demands right now.
The business brokerage industry’s growth trajectory isn’t based on speculation. It is driven by demographics that can’t reverse. Every day, more baby boomer business owners hit retirement age. Every day, more realize they’re unprepared. Every day, the gap between supply and demand for professional brokerage services widens.
The window won’t stay open forever
Market timing matters. The baby boomer exit wave peaks over the next decade, creating maximum opportunity for business brokerage growth during this specific window. Early entrants establish market position, build referral networks, and capture inventory before competition intensifies.
Yes, 350,000 businesses change hands annually—but millions more need help they’re not getting. The succession planning franchise opportunity isn’t about fighting over scraps. It is about serving a massively underserved market at the exact moment demand explodes.
This isn’t complicated. Millions of business owners must exit. Most will fail without professional help. Business brokers who position themselves now capture the largest wealth transfer in American history.
The question isn’t whether the opportunity exists. The question is whether you’re positioned to capture it.