I called Willard so that he could do some due diligence work for me on a business that I would like to buy. Rather than take the money that I was willing to pay, he invited me to his FREE due diligence workshop. I learned so much from Willard and really enjoyed the collaborative nature of the workshop. His insights helped me analyze the deal at hand from different perspectives that I was not already thinking about. His seminars attract like-minded people, so I actually made some good contacts there as well. His wife puts out quite the spread of food too! Very good use of time. Highly recommend! read more

I went to Willard's due diligence workshop in January and walked away with actionable items. He shared stories with a room full of talented people that helped drive home many of his theories. Willard is an icon in the business buying and selling industry and his insight in making a deal comes off as second-nature for him. He probably forget more than most of his peers know about business. Oh, be sure to not eat for a few days before the event. Willard makes you feel like family at his events and even his wife who is obviously a phenomenal cook sets up a spread worthy of a party! I am personally looking forward to seeking his professional advise if the opportunity arises. read more

Five stars. Thank you for welcoming us into your home. As a business broker and real estate agent with background in many business's, I highly recommend meeting and advising with Willard. Looking forward to another event soon. Best regards, LionGroupInvestments.com read more

His seminars are good. They are candid, inspirational and thought provoking. His business analysis is straight forward and accurate. Its good to have someone like him to look at a business you want to buy or sell because he does not give you BS. read more

I've attended his seminars and will use him when I'm ready to purchase a business. Willard will not let you get ripped off and is on your side which is rare to impossible to find on the buyers side these days. This man has integrity and is one of the most honest people you will ever meet. I can't imagine a seller getting much passed him if you are using him for due diligence. He has your back! read more

We have used Willard's services two or three times getting help with complex important situations where it looked like there was no good outcome to be had and always he pulled the rabbit out of the hat and got a better than expected outcome. Thank you, Willard! read more

I hired Willard to look at a complicated business transaction I was doing to acquire a business. Willard knew everything about it. He is an expert at knowing what is involved when you buy a business. Willard saved me a big headache and lots of money. I recommend him if you are buying a business. He has great intergrity read more

Willard was straight forward and honest. He does not beat around the bush whatsoever. He is very insightful and shares what he knows with you to help you understand if a business is worth buying or not. This was my first purchase of a business and Willard took the time to explain what I should inspect with the financials before I purchased the business. I was able to workout a better offer due to his work on the financials. You need Willard to look over any new business purchases. I will only use him going forward. read more

I had a consult with Willard and he gave me great advice for purchasing a business. I'm new to this process and he gave me solid advice of what I should do and what to consider. He knows his stuff and I am grateful that I found him. read more

I've been using Willard's services for almost a year now. I initially contacted him when looking into a smog shop, and he gave me excellent counselling which ended in me walking away from the deal. Just recently I verified that a lot of his concerns from that deal came true, and the new owner is about to close shop - a huge save for me. One of the best things about Willard is that instead of just telling you yes or no, he really goes to the trouble to explain why, what his thought process is, and what you should continue to look for when searching for businesses. Because of that, I have become much better at getting straight to the point when reviewing businesses, before I even have to get in touch with him to begin the real due diligence. My most recent experience with Willard was great. I was investigating a private transportation business for sale. Because of how long he's been doing this, he has friends and contacts in every industry, and he very quickly gave me a synopsis of the industry and some things to look for - totally saved my butt! A day away from signing the contract I caught the seller in a huge lie that allowed me to walk away from the deal - even the seller's broker walked away from representing him! If Willard hadn't suggested I look, I would have been screwed. Overall, Willard is a great friend to have in your corner. When looking for a business to buy, make sure you remember to ask WWWD? *What Would Willard Do?" read more

Willard is very straightforward, direct, a wealth of information, and very funny. I believe he would give you quality advice.

Our relationship with Willard began 6 years ago when he helped me and by business partners acquire a "hidden gem," a business that was worth little, but was poised to excel with the right ownership. He facilitated a fair transaction. Just yesterday, I attended a great seminar that Willard held on buying and selling businesses. We can now start making changes to how we run our business to make it more valuable to a potential buyer in the future. We'll start these changes now, so that when we do decide to sell (if ever), we'll be in a better position to get the most value. Even if we never sell, some of these tips will make us more successful in the meantime. Willard's knowledge of the marketplace is vast, and he has a large network. Even better, he's legitimately interested in bringing ethics to an industry (buying/selling businesses) that is notorious for being full of scams and fraud. You want this guy on your side. read more

Recently, I stumbled on one of Willard's introductory promos on the Internet when I was looking for someone to assist me in the final due diligence for a business for which I was ready to proceed with the purchasing process. To make a long story short, Willard showed me that the income/expense cash flow information I had included a lot of information, but not the right information to allow me to fully effectively evaluate the business. Additionally, based on information he had from his network of contacts, he was aware of pending legislation that was going to have a very negative impact on the pricing associated with the kind of business I was looking at, which was contrary to my plans to increase the profitability of the business through some low cost marketing approaches. The combination of these negative impacts resulted in an estimated value of the business at about 40% of what I was considering paying for the business, and I decided against pursuing that one any further. I have since attended one of Willard's seminars and I want to list this small sampling of the kind of topics Willard speaks of with great succinctness from his extensive prior experience. 1. He discussed some of the advantages and disadvantages of each type of business he brought up, and highlighted the fact that businesses can be good or bad depending on the existing management. 2. He discussed the advantages and disadvantages of taking over an existing business versus starting a new business from scratch. 3. He spent considerable time on the advantages and disadvantages of a franchise investment versus a one off business of your. 4. And maybe most helpful of all, he spent a significant amount of time on how to value a small business based on the analysis of the right financial information for that type of business. I learned a lot from Willard in a very short period of time, and I strongly recommend you consider sharing the results of your preliminary diligence with him before proceeding with negotiating or purchasing any small business you are considering. I think the return on your investment will make the effort very worthwhile. And he's a great guy to deal with! read more

Williard did a great job in helping us to analyze a business last year. He saved me a great deal of time and helped me avoid the wrong business purchase. He know financials very well and can help you determine true cash flow. I recommend read more

I found the seminar to be very informative. Willard's teaching style was unique and memorable. I feel that his expertise would be highly useful when buying or selling a business. read more

I have been to several of Willard's seminars and have found him to be a wealth of knowledge when it comes to doing due diligence on a business. He completed a review of the financials for a small retail business recently that I was contemplating making an offer on. The information he provided allowed me to make a fair and reasonable bid based upon the objective business records that were provided. It proved to be very helpful and gave me additional insights into what to look for as I continue my search to find the right business. Thank you Willard!! read more

It wasn't easy to listen to Willard in the beginning. He was telling us things we didn't want to hear. After a long search we had identified a business that we really liked and had negotiated a deal that we thought was fair. Our enthusiasm caused us to overlook flaws in the deal and look past shortcomings in the seller. Willard's instincts proved to be correct and in the end we had to walk away. A much better outcome than if we had risked our life savings on the wrong deal with a dishonest seller. read more

I recently attended one of Willard Michlin seminars on conducting due diligence when buying and selling a main street business. I was extremely impressed at how knowledgeable he is about the industry and purchasing a small business. Willard breaks down complex information to a level of understanding that resonates with his audience. While he educates his audience on business specifics and how to read financials, he also provides real examples and cases to reiterate his topics and does so with humor and flair. He also provided multiple handouts that can be used when looking at a small business to purchase while fully explaining how to use them and what to look for in the information provided by the Seller. Even though Willard teaches these seminars for free, there is a significant amount of knowledge that I gained and would have paid a few hundred dollars for his seminar. I would highly recommend attending Willard seminars to anyone who is even remotely interested in purchasing a small business. I will be utilizing Willard Michlin services very soon to conduct due diligence and sincerely look forward to working with him in the near future to purchase a small business of my own! read more