What Should I Consider Before Buying a Business? with Meena Sharma (Ep. 131)
If you’re a busy professional thinking about buying a business, the pull is easy to understand. Maybe a heavy tax bill has you looking for relief, or you want more control over your future. But running a business can demand hours you don’t have, and a purchase made mainly for a tax write-off can end up costing more than it saves.
On the WealthStyle Podcast, Iván Watanabe speaks with Meena Sharma, Real Estate & Business Broker at eXp Commercial, about how prospective buyers can test whether a business fits their time, strengths, and long-term goals before committing capital. Iván asks how much time a buyer can realistically give a business before any talk of tax benefits, and Meena shares what she sees from the transaction side, from hype-driven choices to franchises, messy books, and shifting financing conditions.
Meena discusses:
- Why the lifestyle a buyer wants today and in 5 and 10 years can shape the type of business they acquire
- Why she suggests looking past the hype around laundromats and car washes, which are often seen as passive and may trade at higher multiples
- How matching a business to your existing skills, such as logistics or communication, can reveal opportunities others overlook
- What makes a franchise feel like a business in a box, with more structure, guardrails, and support than an independent small business
- Why messy or incomplete books may mean more work to evaluate a business without necessarily meaning it’s a bad one
- And more!
Connect with Iván Watanabe:
- Opus Private Client, LLC
- iwatanabe@opus-pc.com
- LinkedIn: Iván Watanabe
- YouTube: OPUS Private Client, LLC
Connect with Our Guest:
About Our Guest:
Meena Sharma is an entrepreneur, commercial real estate and business broker, and founder of Sharma Solutions Group. With a strong background in finance, accounting, taxation, and corporate strategy, she brings a unique perspective to building wealth through business ownership, real estate, and entrepreneurship. After spending over a decade in corporate America, Meena transitioned into entrepreneurship, leveraging her financial expertise to help business owners, investors, and aspiring entrepreneurs identify opportunities and build lasting wealth. As the daughter of immigrant entrepreneurs, Meena understands firsthand the power of ownership, calculated risks, and creating opportunities beyond a traditional paycheck. Passionate about making wealth-building more accessible, she challenges conventional definitions of success and empowers others to think bigger, invest strategically, and build financial independence on their own terms.
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