Buying an industrial supply distributor in Treasure Coast

• Authorized supplier lines in writing, with territories and terms that can survive a change of owner.
• Many customers, none a large share of sales.
• Margins (what's left after the cost of goods) that hold up, set by a pricing system, not each salesperson's gut.
• Inventory that sells regularly, with little dead stock on the shelves.
• Salespeople with long customer relationships who are likely to stay, paid to reward profit, not just sales.
• An inventory and accounting system that tracks costs, stock levels and what each customer buys.
• Services that keep customers loyal: repairs, assembly, or managing stock at the customer's site.

• Supplier agreements: length, how they can be ended, territory, and whether a new owner needs the supplier's consent. Losing a major line can cost a large share of sales.
• Inventory: a physical count, how long items have sat, and how slow-selling stock is valued in the price.
• Sales and margin by customer, and how much rides on the biggest few.
• Overdue customer bills and bad debts; contractors can be slow payers.
• Supplier rebates and incentives, and whether they depend on volumes the business may not keep.
• Sales tax filings and exemption certificates. Missing certificates can become tax bills after an audit.
• The warehouse lease, and the condition of trucks, forklifts and racks.

• Which supplier lines matter most, and have you told them you might sell?
• Who are your biggest customers, and who looks after each one?
• How much stock hasn't sold in a year?
• How much of your profit comes from supplier rebates?
• What do customers buy from you that they can't get quickly elsewhere?
• Which salespeople would customers follow if they left?
• How has online competition affected you?

This region covers Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties on the Atlantic coast and Okeechobee and Highlands counties inland: Stuart, Palm City, Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce, Vero Beach, Sebastian, Okeechobee, Sebring and Avon Park. Port St. Lucie is the largest city and has grown quickly as a suburb within reach of Palm Beach County to the south.

The coast draws retirees and winter residents, and health care, construction, real estate, boating and sport fishing are big parts of the economy. The coast lies in the Indian River citrus district, named for the lagoon. Inland, Okeechobee and Highlands are cattle, dairy and citrus country around Lake Okeechobee and along the ridge near Sebring, with many retirees of their own. Home service companies, the building trades, marine businesses and medical practices find steady customers here.

The coast is seasonal, with winter residents filling restaurants, golf courses and service schedules, and summer is quieter. Hurricane Nicole came ashore near Vero Beach in November 2022, and the region has a long history of storms, so check insurance, flood zones and how a business came through recent ones.

Water quality in the St. Lucie River and the Indian River Lagoon is a recurring problem, and in a bad year it can hurt fishing, boating and tourism businesses. Inland, distances are longer and the labor pool thinner. A company in Sebring or Okeechobee may be one of very few of its kind nearby, which can mean loyal customers and little competition, but also few people to hire. Most new homes on the coast are going up in and around Port St. Lucie.