Hottest Businesses to Buy in St. Louis
Unemployment and energy costs are slightly lower in St. Louis than the national average, and other economic and industry factors point to business growth in the area — at least in some sectors. Individuals looking to buy a company in the area can find robust businesses, as well as those that are struggling but poised for growth under the right leadership. While companies are available across all sectors in the St. Louis area, you'll find the hottest businesses to buy in a few specific sectors.
Hottest Industries in St. Louis
St. Louis has a high concentration of businesses in certain industries, such as manufacturing. The sheer number of businesses in these sectors makes them easy to find and purchase, and the city has a history of successful companies in its most concentrated clusters.
The data processing and hosting niche had one of the highest concentrations of companies in 2013, and that number has likely grown in intervening years due to rising demand. Businesses in this niche provide localized data servers and hosting, as well as cloud-based processing and hosting services, which means they can serve all the other business in St. Louis, as well as clients around the nation and globe.
Other industries that have found a foothold in St. Louis include management companies, wholesale electronics and telecom. Manufacturing is a huge sector in the metro area, with food, equipment and chemical manufacturing leading the way in proliferation. American auto plants, Emerson Electric and Anheuser-Busch, are just some manufacturing companies that have a presence in St. Louis. Buyers have options to purchase small and large manufacturing firms, as technology such as 3D printing, has made it possible for almost anyone to enter these markets, especially when they have a unique product idea that solves a problem in a niche industry.
Agriculture and health care are also large players in St. Louis. In fact, Fortune magazine has called the city one of the nation's regional hubs for these industries, and companies such as Pfizer and Centocor have major offices in the area.
What Does This Mean for Buyers and Sellers?
Understanding the role your industry plays within the St. Louis market is important if you want to buy or sell a business in the area. For buyers, inclusion in one of the hottest sectors in the metro area means a potential perceived value bump, which could drive up the sale price of the business. For sellers, buying into one of the hottest sectors means investing in something that already has potential.
For either a buyer or seller, due diligence is still critical. It's not enough to be in a growth sector. Buyers must still ensure their company is prepared for the transactions, and sellers must ensure the business isn't encumbered by unknown obligations and that it's healthy or capable of being made healthy (and thus successful in the industry). By working with a LINK broker in St. Louis, you can ensure all these details are handled as you buy or sell a company in one of the city's hottest sectors. Contact LINK St. Louis today at (314) 487-0005 or email to infostl@linkbusiness.com to speak to an experienced, professional business broker.