Business Succession Support
Solve the successor shortage and pass on your technology and vision to the next generation. From family succession to M&A—we help you find the right path.
About Business Succession Support
Over 60% of Japanese SMEs lack a successor.
Without action, world-class technologies and know-how will disappear when owners retire. We want to stop that.
Business Succession Support provides end-to-end assistance from resolving successor shortages to planning and executing succession.
Three Succession Options
| Method | Overview | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Family Succession | Pass to children or relatives | Have successor candidates, want to keep it in the family |
| Employee Succession (MBO) | Pass to executives or employees | Have capable internal candidates, want to preserve culture |
| M&A Succession | Sell to or merge with third party | No successor, need growth capital |
The right choice depends on your company’s situation and your vision. We start by organizing the current state and exploring options together.
Why Succession Is Difficult
Many business owners delay succession for good reasons:
- Don’t know where to start — Taxes, shares, successor development…too many issues
- No successor decided — Children don’t want it, no suitable internal candidate
- No one to consult — Can’t discuss internally, accountant isn’t specialized
- Think it’s too early — By the time you realize, it may be too late
Succession preparation can take 5-10 years. If you think “it’s too early,” now is actually the time to start.
Our Approach
1. Visualize Current State
We organize your financial situation, shareholding structure, successor candidates, and business strengths/challenges. We start by clarifying “what’s blocking succession.”
2. Compare Options
We compare the pros and cons of family, employee, and M&A succession specifically for your situation. We help you make a decision you can be confident in.
3. Develop Succession Plan
Based on your chosen method, we develop a concrete plan covering tax measures, share transfers, successor development, and organizational preparation.
4. Support Execution
A plan is meaningless without execution. We support the handover to successors, employee communication, and coordination with business partners and banks.
Service Areas
| Area | Support |
|---|---|
| Current State Analysis | Financial analysis, shareholding review, successor evaluation |
| Succession Method Review | Comparison of options, optimal recommendation |
| Tax & Legal Planning | Inheritance/gift tax measures, share transfer scheme design |
| Successor Development | Leadership development plan, staged authority transfer |
| M&A Support | Buyer search, negotiation, due diligence, PMI |
| Stakeholder Coordination | Employee communication, partner/bank relations |
Typical Succession Timeline
Current State (1-2 months) → Financial, share, successor assessment
Decision (2-3 months) → Compare and decide succession method
Planning (3-6 months) → Tax planning, share transfer, development plan
Execution (1-5 years) → Successor development, staged handover
Completion → Formal transfer of managementTimelines vary significantly by method. M&A succession is relatively quick (6 months to 1 year), while family succession often takes 3-10 years.
Who This Is For
- No successor, or successor not yet decided
- Children don’t want to take over
- Want to start preparing but don’t know where to begin
- Considering selling the company as an option
- Concerned about tax implications
Connection to Business Turnaround
Succession becomes difficult when performance is declining. When needed, we combine with Business Turnaround Consulting to stabilize the business before succession.
Contact Us
Feel free to reach out about business succession. Even if you haven’t thought about it concretely yet, that’s fine. Let’s start by understanding your situation.