Exit strategy time for private equity hurts those sellers who wait

Exit strategies are mounting as Private Equity and the Baby Boomers start to sell businesses - some good revenue spinners and many more as poor revenue earners. The challenge for business owners will be to compete in such a crowded market. Getting in private equity partners as a first stage in the sales process is the smartest move for many business owners.
The Wall Street Journal elaborates:

Private-equity firms globally, with $1 trillion in uninvested assets, are under pressure not only to put capital to work in new investments but also to return capital to investors through monetizing old investments."Private-equity firms will feel pressure to unload assets in 2012," said Hugh MacArthur, head of consultant Bain & Co.'s private-equity practice. "They have been slow to return capital to investors since the downturn."Bain, which advises private-equity firms and their stakeholders, said nearly $2 trillion in assets are on firms' portfolios.