Very Odd Situation

[Arctic]

I'll try to keep it short. I hope this is allowed and in the correct forum. Hoping I can get good suggestions. 8ish yrs ago I needed a machine to do a certain task. Nothing available but there were a cpl machines that were overkill but also very limited capabilities and expensive ($200k +). Not having much choice and never really intending to sell to public, I designed, built and tested a prototype for 5ish yrs before starting a patent and releasing to the public. The cost of this machine is $45k.

It's a very small niche and on the extreme side so you kinda have to be the extreme type to even want one so it is a small market but again it was originally built for necessity. The last 3 yrs it's been available for purchase. Website, social media, etc all been up also. It's tough to market as it's very custom and no normal type places for good return on marketing. I've had good interest but no sales.

It's easily expanded into other fields. I marketed almost specificly to one of those markets but found out real quick that I wanted nothing to do with that particular market so backed away quietly. I've a long back ground on similar machines so it's fun for me and the machine performs very well. Very proud of it. I've done everything myself. First PROBLEM: I don't like dealing with people. I like the design, building & testing part. I dislike the public relations part!

Biggest PROBLEM: I retired about the time I released the machine to the public. At that time my tank was empty but I was still having fun. I'm currently running on less than fumes!!! I'm extremely tired and want to act like I'm retired! Even though I wish I did, I have no family interested on continuing what I started.

Questions: What do I do? How do I try to sell the business? How do I place a value on the business? I've thousands of hours in developing it. Testing it. $$$ invested in it. Current intentions are to build another model with upgrades. I enjoy using it so want an upgraded model anyway. My only thoughts are to put some kind of for sale statement on the website very much like I've written here after the upgraded model is up and running and see what kind of interest there is.

When I first released it, I received many calls from engineers and others in similar industries and some that have tried but never finished similar machines. I think they were most interested in how I did certain aspects but not wanting to buy. Suggestions on how to proceed appreciated! Arctic

[vangogh]

Welcome to the forum Arctic. Sorry no one has responded to your question.

Have you actually sold any machines? It didn't sound like it from your thread, but I'm assuming you've sold some to a very niche market. If you haven't or even if you have, but it's only a few, I'm not sure what business there is to sell. It's possible your machine doesn't have a wide enough appeal for someone to be interested in it as a business.

Do you think it would sell at a lower price? You mentioned people being interested, but not buying. It's possible the price was simply to high.

You also mentioned engineers being interested, but not actually buying. Can you patent the technology? If so, maybe the patent or patents are what holds the value. Maybe that's what you can sell as opposed to the business.

Could you tell us more about the machine itself or post a link to your site so we could see it?

[cbscreative]

I second that. If we can see the machine and have an idea what it does, maybe we can offer some useful insights.

[turboguy]

I have to agree that we could be more helpful if we knew more. The more info we have the better our suggestions are likely to be.

[Fulcrum]

I'll throw my hat in with those who want to see the machine.

[Arctic]

Thank you for the replies. No haven't sold one yet. If I lower the price, it would be working for minimum wage so to speak and just not worth the effort as the build is mostly hands on manual labor. The patent is strong however which is good. I do believe there is a value there and you may be correct that it is the patent. Boy, the things I've learned through this process!

[vangogh]

If you've never sold one, there's not much of a business to sell. You could sell off the assets, but in this case the asset is the thing that won't sell. Since the interest has been in the intellectual property, I'd suggest looking into how valuable that is and seeing if there's any interest. Otherwise you could explore the market you didn't want to work with, since you thought they expressed an interest.

[Harold Mansfield]

Thank you for the replies. No haven't sold one yet. If I lower the price, it would be working for minimum wage so to speak and just not worth the effort as the build is mostly hands on manual labor. !

When you work for yourself or are trying to get a side thing going, most times you are lucky to work for minimum wage at first. Usually you end up working for no wages until you get your thing, whatever it is, off the ground and it starts supporting itself, let alone support you.

I agree with the others. If it's a good product, with a market, and you have a working prototype..considering all of your other comments about wanting to be retired, not being a big fan of dealing with people, and everything else that screams you really don't have the energy that it takes to start talking about manufacturing and selling something ..I think Licensing or selling the patents is the obvious play here.

[nealrm]

My suggest is that you don't try to sell a business, you try either selling or licensing the patent. Contact those businesses that you look at to purchase a similar item.

[Arctic]

How would one put a value on selling a patent? There would also be the machine itself, most likely two versions. Schematics, component detail, supplier info and much more related to testing and marketing. I've seen where some have opted for a percentage in future sales of the product, although I would not as I'd feel much better with a clean break so I wouldn't have to mess with future legal issues.
Thank you, Arctic

[nealrm]

As you said, it is generally done as a percentage of future sales. However, you could try and estimate future sales. Then you could negotiate to get that money upfront at a discount. For example, if you were to receive 1% of future sales, and that would net you $100,000 over the net 10 years. You could offer to accept a single payment today of $50,000.

My suggestion, is that you contact a firm the handles selling manufacturing patents. They should be able to help you with how much you patent is worth and how to best monetize it.

[Harold Mansfield]

Also, and I may be a little off here since I don't own any patents..seems to me if it's original, there's an industry for it, and improves a process..that you can set whatever price you want and see if there are any bites. I agree that you should consult with a pro that can better guide you.

[Fulcrum]

I'm still curious as to what the machine does.