this post was submitted on 25 Nov 2023
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I am not talking about startups, I am talking about companies that have been around for decades in many cases but sell one very specific service or product to everyone who needs that world-wide. Often they are not even publicly traded.
I think my point still stands for both cases (even though it was originally directed at startups): if a US company considers a startup or an decades old hidden champion somehow valuable, they will buy that company. They just pay the original owners a shitton of money.
That is not what has been happening in Germany. Stop spreading misinformation.
What are you talking about? Are you honestly telling me that there are no US companies investing (buying) companies in Germany?
https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/banken-versicherungen/banken/fusionen-und-uebernahmen-deutsche-start-ups-beweisen-sich-als-beliebte-uebernahmeziele-vor-allem-in-den-usa/28188238.html
Again, this is an article about German startups. But you claim that this also applies to established mid-sized (usually family-owned) companies that are the opposite of startups: They have successfully saturated the demand for the niche that they are specialized in and neither potential nor interest in expanding further (within their niche, at least). So far, you have provided no justification for your claim, besides ”surely, no one would refuse a lot of money“.
I consider it really odd how defensive and weird some people get with this. Is this a matter of personal pride?
And regarding your question: a 10 second google search will provide you with enough material.
Example (German): https://www.capital.de/wirtschaft-politik/das-sind-die-zehn-groessten-mittelstaendler-in-investorenhand-113694
How will they buy a family owned private company? That would require the family willing to sell and that's simply not the case 95% of the time.
The real problem is that those hidden champions can not grow further because they already dominate their small niche. Often they inhabited this position for generations already and are very conservative and don't really innovate.
This wouldn’t happen by force - they would just offer a lot of money to convince them. I never claimed that those transactions would always be successful, did I?
you claim them to happen at relevant scale,when they dont. Your entire argument is based on something being normal that is not. so shifting the goalposts to "well it happens sometimes" is silly.
Where have I claimed that there were large scale buyout programs like you falsely suggest? Cite it.
I didn’t shift the goalposts- you purposefully want to misunderstand- there is a difference.