Preparing Your Company for Sale: The CIM, Teaser & Data Room Explained

A great business presented badly gets ignored. International buyers evaluate opportunities in a specific format — and arriving in that format is often the difference between competitive offers and silence.

1. The anonymous teaser

The teaser is a one-page, identity-protected summary: sector, geography, size, headline financials, and the investment angle — with nothing that reveals who you are. Its job is to let a buyer decide, in 60 seconds, whether there's a fit. It's the first thing a buyer sees and the gatekeeper to everything else.

2. The CIM (Confidential Information Memorandum)

Once a buyer signs confidentiality, they receive the CIM — the full story. A strong CIM includes:

• Normalised, three-year financials with adjustments explained
• Business model, products, and customer base
• Market position and growth opportunities
• Team, operations, and key contracts

Written to international standards and in English, the CIM is what turns interest into an offer.

3. The data room

When a buyer moves toward diligence, they need documents — organised, complete, and ready. A prepared data room (financials, legal, HR, assets, contracts) signals a well-run business and dramatically shortens the path to closing. Scrambling for documents mid-diligence is where deals stall.

4. Prepare before you go to market