Three years of P&Ls and returns, weekly sales, lease, licenses, and a recast bridge.
The parent guide is /guides/preparing-3-years-of-financials/. Also read SDE, inventory at cost, the valuation pillar, and how a sale works.
USDA FNS: SNAP authorization does not transfer; the new owner files a new application 3.38 average earnings multiple on grocery/supermarket businesses sold on BizBuySell in 2025. This page is the short, citeable answer — not a second CIM.
| Topic | Grocery reading | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings | Recast SDE or EBITDA | SDE |
| Stockroom | Inventory at cost | inventory |
| EBT | New owner application | SNAP |
| Debt | DSCR on the recast | DSCR |
Illustrative, not a quote. For a What documents do I need to sell, recast SDE of $265,624 at 1.74×–3.00× plus $246,022 inventory at cost frames a going-concern band of about $708,208 to $1,042,894. The 2.63× midpoint lands near $944,613. Lease remaining term and license lag can move the check more than the multiple.
Checklist: What documents do I need to sell
- Recast the P&L into SDE
- Separate inventory at cost
- Abstract the lease
- List SNAP, alcohol, food, WIC, tobacco
- Read the wholesaler agreement
- Write license conditions into the LOI
Illustrative, not a quote. Keep the conversation on What documents do I need to sell, scan data, and license clocks — not on a neighbor’s rumor multiple.
Add-backs that repeat every year are the business. Stop calling them one-time.
Food-desert rhetoric does not replace a P&L. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
Working capital is the cash to buy the next load, not a vibe. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
Attorneys and CPAs who have never closed a grocery file will rediscover SNAP in week six. See also lease diligence, liquor transfer, recasting a P&L.
Recast before you argue a multiple. Owner pay, one-time legal, and personal autos can move SDE; recurring shrink cannot.
Wholesaler over-advances are debt. They are not a cute add-back. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
SNAP authorization does not transfer. Budget downtime in cash and in the story you tell the landlord. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
Unreported cash does not survive SBA. It also does not survive a serious conventional buyer. See also turns, DSD, wholesaler, asset sale.
Ethnic mix without language on the floor is a shrink plan.
Seller notes often sit on standby behind SBA. Read the standby, not the folklore. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
A CIM that omits the lease abstract is a brochure. See also turns, DSD, wholesaler, asset sale.
Selling to family or a manager still needs a real price and a real note. Soft language creates hard lawsuits. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
Read lease diligence, liquor transfer, recasting a P&L. Cross-check how a sale works and the FAQ. Format pages live under sell an independent supermarket and buy an independent supermarket. Tools: valuation calculator, cash-to-close, rent checker.
Wholesaler over-advances are debt. They are not a cute add-back. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
SNAP authorization does not transfer. Budget downtime in cash and in the story you tell the landlord.
Unreported cash does not survive SBA. It also does not survive a serious conventional buyer. See also SDE, inventory at cost, shrink, SNAP authorization.
Ethnic mix without language on the floor is a shrink plan. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
Seller notes often sit on standby behind SBA. Read the standby, not the folklore. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
A CIM that omits the lease abstract is a brochure.
Selling to family or a manager still needs a real price and a real note. Soft language creates hard lawsuits. See also turns, DSD, wholesaler, asset sale.
DSD vendors will keep delivering after a sloppy close only if someone is paying them. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
Owned real estate is a second asset. Recast the store on market rent, then cap the building. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
Tax clearance belongs in escrow language, not in a handshake.
A rural box can be a good living and a terrible loan. Those are different questions.
DSCR is annual cash flow over annual debt service. Hope is not a ratio. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
Comparing offers means cash at close, note terms, inventory treatment, and license risk — not the headline price. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
Multi-store sales need a shared recast and a shared license calendar, or they unravel store by store. See also lease diligence, liquor transfer, recasting a P&L.
Turns are not one number. Center store and wine do not share a clock.
A below-market related-party rent juiced the earnings and will reverse on day one. That is how a grocery file is actually read.
Bulk-sale or successor-liability practice can still exist after UCC Article 6 died. Put it in the CIM or it will show up as a re-trade.
WARN and union contracts are calendar items on larger headcount files. See also SDE, inventory at cost, shrink, SNAP authorization.