About Dan Humke | Sell Your Beauty or Wellness Business in Colorado

Your Broker

Dan Humke

Senior Business Broker · Sunbelt Business Brokers · Denver, CO

Dan Humke works exclusively with business owners who are considering selling — never buyers. That matters because the interests of a seller and a buyer are fundamentally different, and Dan's job is to protect yours from the first conversation to the day you close.

He works with a limited number of clients at any given time. That's not a sales pitch — it's how he operates. Selling a business is a major financial event, and it requires real attention. Dan doesn't manage a high-volume listing pipeline. He manages your deal.

His background includes years of transaction experience across the Denver metro and Front Range, with particular depth in beauty, wellness, and cash-pay service businesses — including medical aesthetics practices, day spas, salons, and specialty beauty studios. He understands the recurring revenue models, membership programs, staffing dynamics, and lease structures that drive value in each category.

Dan will give you an honest assessment of your situation — including if the timing isn't right yet and you'd benefit from a year of positioning first. That kind of candor is rarer than it should be in this business.

CO Broker License #FA 100108434

Senior Business Broker, Sunbelt Business Brokers

Seller-Side Representation Only

Denver / Highlands Ranch · Serving All of Colorado

720-428-1294

Working with Sunbelt gives Dan access to one of the largest networks of pre-qualified buyers in North America — including private equity groups, industry consolidators, and strategic buyers actively looking for beauty and wellness acquisitions in Colorado.

The Process

From first conversation to closing day

Here's exactly what selling your business looks like when you work with Dan. No surprises, no pressure, no obligation at any step.

Free confidential valuation

Everything starts here — and nothing moves forward without an NDA signed first. Dan reviews your financials, walks you through how buyers will evaluate your business, and gives you a realistic range of what it's worth in the current market. This is a real analysis, not a sales pitch. There is no cost, no commitment, and no obligation to list with anyone. If you decide the timing isn't right, the conversation ends there and stays completely confidential.

Listing preparation and the CIM

Once you decide to move forward, Dan prepares a Confidential Information Memorandum — or CIM. Think of it as a professional business profile: three to five years of financial history, an overview of your services and client base, your team structure, equipment or build-out details, lease terms, and a description of what makes your business worth buying. This is the document serious buyers evaluate before making an offer. A well-prepared CIM directly affects the quality of interest you receive.

Buyer outreach and qualification

Dan markets your business to pre-qualified buyers without revealing your identity or location publicly. Every prospective buyer signs a non-disclosure agreement before seeing your CIM. Your staff, clients, and competitors won't know you're exploring a sale. Dan vets buyers for financial capability before you ever take a call, so your time goes toward conversations with serious parties only.

Negotiation, due diligence, and close

When offers arrive, Dan helps you evaluate them — not just on headline price, but on deal structure, earnouts, transition terms, and what you're actually walking away with after fees. He negotiates on your behalf, manages the due diligence process, and coordinates between your attorney, accountant, and the buyer's team to keep the deal moving. From the day you list to the day you close typically takes 6–9 months, though some transactions move faster depending on the buyer and deal complexity.

Buyer Intelligence

What buyers look for — across every beauty and wellness category

The specific details vary by business type, but the fundamentals buyers evaluate are consistent. Understanding them helps you see your business through a buyer's eyes before you go to market.

Owner independence

The single biggest driver of your multiple in every category. A business where the owner performs most of the services — injections, cuts, treatments, lashes — is riskier to a buyer than one with a trained team. Even a strong manager who handles day-to-day operations meaningfully improves your valuation.

Recurring and membership revenue

Buyers pay a premium for predictable cash flow. Membership programs, prepaid packages, and standing appointments all signal that revenue doesn't disappear when a new owner steps in. This is a significant value driver in every category from med spas to nail salons.

Staff retention and transferability

In beauty and wellness, clients often follow their stylist, injector, or technician — not the business. Buyers look carefully at how loyal staff are to the business versus to the owner personally, and whether key employees are likely to stay through a transition.

Clean, consistent financials

Three years of clean tax returns and P&L statements reduce perceived risk. Buyers add back legitimate owner expenses to calculate your true SDE. Cash-heavy service businesses with inconsistent reporting often trade at a discount — sometimes a significant one.

Lease terms and location

A favorable lease with several years remaining is a genuine asset. In retail-dependent categories like nail and hair salons, location drives a large portion of walk-in and new client volume. Buyers scrutinize lease terms carefully — both length and renewal options.

Documented systems and processes

Written protocols, employee handbooks, client management software, booking systems, and marketing processes all signal to a buyer that the business can run without you. The more turnkey it is, the more confident a buyer feels — and the more they'll pay.

Common Questions

What beauty and wellness owners ask before they start

No — not unless you choose to tell them. The entire process is confidential from the beginning. Dan signs an NDA before reviewing any financial information, and every prospective buyer does the same before seeing your CIM. Your staff, clients, vendors, and competitors will not know you're exploring a sale. The transition conversation happens after a deal is signed, on a timeline you control.

The starting point is your Seller's Discretionary Earnings — or SDE. That's your net profit plus your owner salary and any personal expenses run through the business. We then apply a market multiple based on your business category and quality factors. Medical aesthetics practices typically trade at 2.7x–3.5x SDE. Day spas and wellness centers at 2.0x–3.0x. Nail salons, hair salons, and specialty beauty studios generally range from 1.5x–2.5x, with well-run studios with strong membership revenue reaching the higher end. The online valuation tool on this site walks you through the calculation for your specific category.

It's never too early. In fact, getting a valuation 12–24 months before you want to sell is often the most valuable thing you can do. It tells you where you stand, what's moving your multiple up or down, and what a focused year of changes could mean for your final number. Many owners are surprised to find they can add significant value just by making operational adjustments before going to market. There's no obligation, no pressure, and no cost to find out where you stand today.

Most transactions close within 6 to 9 months of listing. The time breaks down roughly like this: one to two months to prepare the CIM and go to market, two to four months to surface qualified buyers and reach a letter of intent, and then two to three months for due diligence and closing. Some deals move faster — particularly when a motivated buyer and a clean set of financials are involved. Others take longer if the deal is complex or financing takes time.

This is one of the most common concerns in beauty and wellness, and it's a legitimate one. Buyers do think about client transferability — especially in categories like hair and aesthetics where relationships are personal. The good news is that a well-managed transition, typically including a period where the seller stays on to introduce the new owner, goes a long way toward retaining clients. Dan will walk you through how to structure the transition to protect client relationships and maximize the value that transfers.

Seasonal variation is common across beauty and wellness — holiday bookings, summer slowdowns, back-to-school rushes. Buyers account for this by looking at trailing twelve-month revenue and multi-year averages rather than any single month or quarter. What matters most is the annual trend line. If your revenue is growing year over year, seasonal swings are much less of a concern.

The valuation is free. There's no upfront cost and no retainer. Dan is paid a success fee at closing — a percentage of the sale price, paid only if and when your business sells. That structure means his incentive is to get you the best possible outcome, not to put a transaction together quickly or at any price.

How the process works — and why sellers choose to work with us