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Valuation of business assets in France in 2021

The number of business transfers has been falling since the Covid-19 pandemic. A decline of more than 10% in 2020, suggesting a drop in the valuation of goodwill.

The number and value of transactions vary greatly depending on the sector of activity and the geographic location of the businesses. The data on business sales in France from 2017 to 2021 provides an initial assessment of the trends observed in recent years.

Number of business transactions by region

Unsurprisingly, ÃŽle-de-France remains at the top of the rankings for the entire period from 2017 to 2020. The region records an average of 5,000 business transmissions each year, but sees a slight decline in 2020. Sales were down to 4,269, a decrease of around 15% that is not reflected in the valuation of business assets.

In second place, we find the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, with 3553 transactions, down by 9.5%. Then the PACA region (Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur) counted 2674 sales (-10.4%), almost similar to Occitania (2610 sales, i.e. -11.4%). In fifth place, Nouvelle-Aquitaine had 2523 sales, a figure only 6.2% lower than 2019.

All regions note a decline in the number of transactions in 2020. Notably Corsica, which has the largest drop, with -18.6% of commercial goods trade. Then the Grand East falls below the 1,500 sales mark, which is 16.1% less than the previous year.

Trends change over the first 6 months of 2021. The regions are all experiencing an increase in transactions, with the largest increase coming from the Pays de la Loire, which has signed 880 business transfers, a 36.6% higher recovery compared to 2020. Corsica is not to be outdone and has seen an increase of 36.1%. Then Hauts-de-France recorded the third best recovery in the first half of 2021, with an increase of 30%.

Number of sales of business assets by activity

Some sectors of activity recorded more exchanges than others. Although highly impacted by the health crisis, it is in the restaurant sector that the most transactions have been made: a total of 4300 sales for traditional restaurants, 2500 for fast food restaurants and 2300 for drinking establishments.


Next come two craft activities. There are more than 1,500 sales of business assets in bakeries and pastries and more than 1,100 for hairdressing salons.

Average transaction price

The volume of transactions decreased in 2020, but this was accompanied by an increase in sales prices. In 2017, the average sale price was below €180,000. In 2018 and 2019, there was already an increase and an average approaching 185,000€.

This amount has increased significantly in 2020, as the average sale price has reached €198,000 (and even €200,000 in the first half). In the first half of 2021, this figure shows a very slight decrease and does not allow us to determine a trend for the year.

Average price for the sale of a business by region

At the beginning of 2021, Pays de la Loire and Île-de-France are the two regions with the highest business valuation , at €227,819 and €226,705 respectively. On the podium is Corsica, with an average price of €223,952, followed by Brittany (€214,563) and the PACA region (€206,968).

Average sale price of business assets by activity

The first place on the podium goes to the value of pharmacies, since it is necessary to count on average more than 1 000 000€ to become a buyer. This amount far exceeds that of hotel complexes, which are sold at an average of €340,000, as well as tobacco shops (€268,780). Optical stores have an average sale value of €225,914, close to that of car dealerships which reach €224,741.

Average age of the sale of a business

While those under 40 years of age represented 22.3% of sellers in 2017, they will only be 17.5% in 2021. Conversely, 60% of them will be over 50 years old in 2021, compared to 50% in 2017. This increase in the age of sellers has been constant for 4 years and can be explained by retirements.

Business valuations in France over the last 5 years show a slowdown in 2020. The health crisis has therefore had an impact on business sales and disposals, particularly in the hotel-restaurant sector.

However, this phenomenon was already observable, to a lesser extent, in previous years. A constant decrease in the volume of transactions was observed since 2017. Furthermore, it is likely that the pandemic has not frightened off buyers in areas that have been hard hit by the pandemic, since the largest number of transactions has been in the restaurant sector.
Finally, the decrease in the number of transactions has been accompanied by an increase in the average sale price in several areas of activity.

Link to the study: click here

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