Dickens was referring to a revolution instead of a temporarily disrupted economy or a longer recession. His words are still a good tagline for a disrupted independent business scene. When you look back at a particularly difficult time, it may well go down in history as the era when investors should be buying small-to-medium-sized businesses.
Maybe the best reason yet to look at a business combination is to add changes in order to survive. The fact that business prices are and may stay depressed for a while should not be the driving factor. You want to look only at ways to add to your product line and/ or marketing strength. (However, do not neglect to fully assess all the factors outlined in other details.) If you are considering or need to move into a business model with an emphasis of online sales or “virtual service delivery, ” acquisition of a struggling company with the needed human resource assets and technical attributes may be in order.
This is the standard “buy or build” debate. You may be able to accomplish an acquisition with little or no cash if you are willing to take a target’s debt position. (You might even be able to negotiate with their lender to take over the debt at a discount if you can pay part of it down.)