How businesses and successors find each other

“Successor wanted” is long past being a single listing in the DACH region; it is a mass phenomenon: hundreds of thousands of owners are thinking about a handover — and they only find a successor if those handing over and those taking over meet on the same channels and both sides know what to look for.

For further reading on this topic: Business succession in Austria, Succession exchange.

The structured search for a successor is our core service: Succession planning. For the German market, the overview is at Business succession in Germany.

How do I find a successor for my company?

You can find a successor in three ways: among family, managers and employees, through the succession exchanges of chambers and the federal government, or through a confidential, targeted approach to suitable acquirers with an adviser. According to the KfW Succession Monitor 2025, 74 percent of succession planners in Germany had not yet found a specific person.

1. Fix timing and goal. Those who start early do not negotiate under time pressure (see timing of succession).
2. Become ready for handover. A business that runs without its owner finds an acquirer more easily (preparing succession).
3. Check the candidate groups. Family, managers and employees (management buy-out) and external buyers.
4. Combine exchange and approach. List anonymously on our own succession exchange as well as on nexxt-change and the WKO exchange; strategic or industry-experienced buyers, according to IGCP practical experience, often do not search in listings and are approached confidentially.

The full sequence with the search channels compared is in finding a successor in seven steps.

Sources, retrieved on 2 November 2026 (German-language): KfW Research, Fokus Volkswirtschaft No. 526 (January 2026) and WKO succession exchange.

How many companies are looking for a successor?

According to the KfW Succession Monitor 2025, around 545,000 companies in Germany aim for a succession by the end of 2029 — 14 percent of all SMEs, about 109,000 per year on a pro-rata basis. At the same time, 25 percent of companies are considering closure without a succession solution, extrapolated to around 569,000 by the end of 2029. The figures come from the KfW SME panel (13,079 SMEs surveyed, survey February to June 2025).

Indicator (Germany, KfW Succession Monitor 2025)	Value
Companies intending succession by end of 2029	around 545,000 (14% of SMEs)
Companies planning closure by end of 2029	around 569,000
Mid-sized companies considering succession in 2025	32% (2024: 33%)
Succession planners who have already found a successor	26% (14% completed, 12% ongoing negotiations)
Succession planners without a specific person	74%
Biggest hurdle: finding suitable candidates	69% cite it
Average age of owners handing over by end of 2026	66.5 years

In Austria the picture is similar, but on a smaller scale. The WKO counted 8,202 business takeovers in 2025 (2024: 7,792) and, for 2020 to 2029, cites a need for 51,500 businesses that require a successor. The follow-up study by KMU Forschung Austria published in October 2026 (preliminary final report commissioned by BMWET and WKÖ) expects around 56,600 employer businesses with almost 780,000 employees to face a handover between 2026 and 2035; because the calculation method changed, the figure is not fully comparable with earlier estimates. According to the study, external handovers (55%) are now more common than family handovers (45%). How reliable such figures are, which surveys lie behind them and why they differ from one another is put in context by the statistics on business succession in Germany. “Successor wanted” is therefore not a niche topic, but the starting position of an entire generation of entrepreneurs.

This article looks at both sides of the market: the owner looking for a successor, and the acquirer looking for a company. Those who want to plan the search process step by step from the owner's perspective will find it in Searching for a successor.

Why is “successor wanted” becoming the rule?

The reason is demographic and structural. According to KfW, 57 percent of mid-sized owners are 55 or older, and the average age is just over 54; 20 years ago (2003) only 20 percent were over 55. At the same time, the share of takeover founders is falling: in 2024 only 17 percent of business start-ups were takeovers. KfW puts the share of takeover founders at more than halved compared with 2002.

This shifts the balance of power: it is not the acquirer who applies for the business, but increasingly the business that applies for the acquirer. As reasons for a planned closure, those affected cite, according to KfW, retirement age (52 percent), lack of interest in the family (47 percent) and administrative burden (42 percent; multiple answers).

For owners this means two things. The search can take a long time — how long depends on industry, size and handover readiness; we have not found a reliable DACH-wide average duration (not measured). And a well-organised business that is ready for handover has a real advantage in the competition for the scarce resource of a successor. How a company becomes ready for handover is covered in Preparing succession.

Where do “successor wanted” listings actually appear?

The most important public exchanges in the DACH region are free of charge and run by the chambers; alongside them, networks and direct approaches often contribute more to success than the listing alone.

Platform	Region	Operator / access
nexxt-change	Germany	largest German company exchange, supported by KfW, chambers and associations
WKO succession exchange (nachfolgeboerse.at)	Austria	free service of the economic chambers, for those handing over and those taking over; according to the WKO factsheet, over 1,000 active listings
Follow me	Styria	actively supported succession marketplace of WKO Styria

On these exchanges, those handing over list their offer and those taking over list their request, filtered by industry and region. How these marketplaces work in detail and how to set up a listing is shown in Company exchange. We have found no published figures on the placement rate of individual exchanges (not measured). Those who wish to place the business confidentially will find our own succession exchange.

What do family-internal and external solutions offer?

Owners' wishes go first to the family; reality more often points outward. According to KfW, 55 percent of succession planners favour a handover within the family, 42 percent consider a sale to outsiders, 28 percent an employee buy-out and 24 percent a management buy-out (multiple answers possible). The figures show: those who rely on the family alone often have no second plan. For listings this means that, besides external buyers, managers and employees should also be considered as a target group.

For owners handing over: why most listings fail

A “successor wanted” entry alone rarely brings the right candidate. Four mistakes recur.

Too late: those who only list when the desired exit date arrives sell under time pressure — the worst negotiating position. Why timing is the central value lever is explained in Timing of succession.

Too open or too anonymous: a listing that makes the business recognisable unsettles employees, customers and suppliers. One that reveals nothing arouses no interest. The balance — enough substance, no identifiability — decides.

Not ready for handover: a business that only works with its owner deters every serious acquirer. No listing makes up for that.

No price expectation: those who do not know a reasoned range end up negotiating on gut feeling. According to KfW, the asking prices of owners handing over by 2029 average EUR 499,000, with a median of EUR 375,000 — these are expectations, not prices paid. A well-founded assessment is provided by a company valuation before the sale, a first orientation by the company value calculator.

For acquirers: reading an offer correctly

The buyer side also makes mistakes. Anyone examining a “successor wanted” offer should look beyond industry and price.

Check whether the business depends on one person or is carried by processes. Ask about earnings over the last three years, not only the last good year. Clarify whether the owner is willing to support a handover phase — a gradual exit secures customer relationships. And work through the financing before you negotiate; whether a takeover rather than a start-up suits you is put in context by Business succession. If it concerns a restaurant, a shop or a workshop, clarify the lease and the key-money payment before the price — the sequence is explained in the article Taking over a business: lease, key money and employees.

KfW cites financing as a hurdle for 18 percent of respondents, and agreeing on the purchase price for 30 percent — both can be clarified before the first conversation.

Is a succession exchange enough to find a successor?

For smaller businesses often yes, for substantial companies usually not on its own. A public exchange is a good starting point, but a marketplace — open, broad and not very discreet. The truly suitable acquirers, such as strategic buyers or industry-experienced investors, do not search in listings. They are approached in a targeted and confidential way.

This is exactly where the difference lies between an advertisement and a guided process: not many contacts, but the right conversations — curated and without making the business public prematurely. Which routes of succession are open in principle is put in context by Finding a successor.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I find companies with “successor wanted”?

On the free chamber exchanges: in Germany nexxt-change, in Austria the WKO succession exchange (nachfolgeboerse.at) and in Styria “Follow me”. Additionally through tax advisors, banks and industry networks.

How many companies in Germany are looking for a successor?

According to the KfW Succession Monitor 2025, around 545,000 companies want to hand over by the end of 2029; 26 percent of succession planners have already found a successor, 74 percent have no specific person yet.

Does a listing on the succession exchange cost anything?

No. The WKO succession exchange is a free service for those handing over and those taking over, as is the German nexxt-change. Costs only arise through advice, valuation and transaction support.

How do I write a “successor wanted” listing that works?

Enough substance on industry, size and region for serious interested parties to come forward — but without making the business identifiable. And early enough not to negotiate under time pressure.

Is a succession exchange enough to find a successor?

For smaller businesses often yes. For substantial companies worth transferring, the curated, confidential approach to suitable acquirers is usually more effective than the public listing.

The best succession begins years before closing. Speak early and confidentially with IGCP Capital Partners — independent, discreet, on equal terms. → igcp.at