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This is a family-owned coffee roasting and distribution business operating in Southwest Florida since 2000. The company roasts its own coffee and distributes it, generating roughly $3.69M in annual revenue with $946k in owner cash flow, implying a healthy 25.7 percent SDE margin. It runs from a 10,500 square foot facility with 12 employees including a manager, and carries about $1.05M of FF&E and $372k of inventory in the deal.
The business is being sold at a $3.0M asking price on an all-cash basis, with the seller explicitly noting it is not eligible for SBA or third-party financing. That financing ineligibility is a meaningful friction point and signals either documentation issues, customer concentration, or asset-quality concerns that a buyer must resolve before writing a check of this size. The real estate is not included: the building can be leased for $10k/month or purchased separately for $2.2M.
The seller frames the upside squarely around a new owner with marketing and product skills, which is broker code for underinvested sales and brand efforts. For an operator who can build wholesale accounts, private-label programs, and modern e-commerce, there is a credible path to grow a roaster with existing production capacity, an established book of business, and a 24-year operating history in a growing Florida market.
Why we like it
- Earnings quality looks strong on paper with $946k of cash flow on $3.69M of revenue, a 25.7 percent margin that is above average for a roaster/distributor and suggests real pricing power or lean overhead. The multiple of 3.17x is reasonable for a manufacturing business of this scale if the earnings prove out in diligence.
- The business has been operating since 2000, which is a 24-year track record that removes a lot of the go-to-market risk that kills younger coffee brands. Longevity through multiple economic cycles and a family-ownership structure often means durable vendor and customer relationships that are hard to replicate.
- The deal includes over $1.4M of tangible value in FF&E and inventory ($1.05M of roasting/packaging equipment plus $372k of coffee stock), which meaningfully backstops the $3.0M price. Owning the production line free and clear means a buyer is not dependent on toll roasters and controls its own cost of goods.
- The seller is openly signaling upside from marketing and product work, which is exactly the lever a capable operator can pull without reinventing operations. Existing roasting capacity and distribution routes mean incremental volume drops to the bottom line at high contribution margins.
How to improve it
- Build a real B2B wholesale sales engine targeting SW Florida restaurants, hotels, offices, and grocery, since the current owner has clearly underinvested here. Standing wholesale accounts with weekly reorders would convert this from transactional sales into predictable, quasi-recurring revenue.
- Launch a subscription and direct-to-consumer e-commerce channel for the roasted coffee, capturing full retail margin instead of wholesale. Even a modest subscriber base compounds into recurring cash flow and higher enterprise value at exit.
- Pursue private-label and co-packing contracts for local brands, cafes, and hospitality groups, monetizing spare roasting capacity with sticky, contracted volume. This uses existing equipment and staff with minimal incremental fixed cost.
- Rationalize the SKU and packaging lineup and reprice against current green coffee input costs, protecting the 25.7 percent margin against commodity swings. Locking in green bean supply agreements would stabilize COGS and defend earnings in a volatile input market.
- Resolve the financing ineligibility as a top priority by cleaning up books, tax returns, and add-back documentation so the business can qualify for SBA 7(a) in a future resale. Financeability directly expands your buyer pool and multiple at exit.
- Negotiate the real estate decision deliberately: either lock a long-term lease at or below the quoted $10k/month or acquire the $2.2M building through a separate financed entity to capture appreciation and control. Do not let the landlord relationship become a hostage risk post-close.
- Reduce key-person dependency by empowering the existing manager and documenting roasting profiles, vendor terms, and customer relationships. A business that runs without the family owner is worth more and de-risks the transition.
Diligence notes
- The single biggest flag is that this business is explicitly not eligible for financing and requires a full $3.0M cash purchase. Find out exactly why: it usually points to weak or unverifiable financials, customer concentration, asset condition, or lease/title issues, and the answer determines whether the price is fair or a trap.
- Scrutinize the $946k cash flow claim against three years of tax returns and bank statements, and rebuild the SDE add-back schedule line by line. A 25.7 percent margin is attractive but must be verified given the business cannot pass a lender's underwriting.
- Analyze customer concentration and revenue mix between wholesale distribution and any retail or private-label accounts. If a handful of customers drive most revenue, or if there are no written contracts, the earnings are far riskier than the headline multiple suggests.
- Assess the $1.05M of FF&E for actual condition, age, and remaining useful life of the roasting and packaging equipment, since a large capex reserve could offset the tangible-asset story. Confirm the $372k inventory is fresh, saleable green and roasted coffee and not stale stock inflating the balance sheet.
- Verify the real estate terms carefully given it is separate from the deal: pin down whether the $10k/month lease is triple-net, its length, renewal options, and escalators. A short or unfavorable lease from the selling family creates post-close leverage risk you must neutralize before closing.
- Confirm the reason for sale (retirement) and quantify how dependent the operation is on the family owner across roasting expertise, vendor relationships, and sales. Four weeks of training is thin for a manufacturing business, so negotiate a longer transition or consulting period.
Source
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