Ruaidhrí's Business Guidance
Dublin family business succession

Pass on your business, not your problems.

Without a succession plan, the company you built can be split by tax, timing, and family tension. Why leave that to chance? We design clear routes for family transfer, management buyouts, and third-party exits, so your legacy stays operational and your wealth stays protected.

Start Your Succession Planning Call +353822378939
94%
report a smooth transition within 12 months.
3 routes
family, management, or third-party transfer.
17 years
of advisory thinking focused on exits and inheritance.
Three generations standing together inside a bright Dublin bakery office, reviewing a succession folder beside a counter

Family meeting facilitation

Secure your legacy with a watertight plan.

Who inherits control, who receives value, and when does retirement income begin? Those questions deserve calm answers before emotions take over.

Three succession routes

Which route actually fits your business?

Every family business is different. Should the next owner come from the kitchen table, the management team, or a buyer who can pay full value?

Family transfer

Parent-to-child transfers, sibling partnerships, and careful equalisation between involved and non-involved relatives. The goal is simple: keep the operating business intact while treating the wider family fairly.

  1. 01 Value the company, freeze the current equity story, and map who needs income versus control.
  2. 02 Use holding structures, gifting rules, and shareholder agreements to reduce friction.
  3. 03 Put training, governance, and retirement timing into writing before anything changes hands.

Management buyout

Selling to the people who already know the books, the customers, and the pressure points. Can they finance it properly? Usually yes, if the structure is planned early.

Third-party sale

If retirement value matters most, a market sale may be the cleanest path. We position the business so due diligence does not derail the deal.

Tax-smart succession strategies

What can be optimised before shares move?

We model the tax position before anyone signs. That means looking at retirement relief, gift and inheritance thresholds, staged transfers, and whether a family holding company can freeze value in the right place.

Strategy
Why it matters

Case study

A Dublin bakery passed to the third generation tax-efficiently.

Grandparents

They wanted retirement income, but they also wanted the family name kept on the door. Sound familiar?

Parents

We reworked governance, introduced a family holding BV, and staged the transfer so control and value moved separately.

Adult children

Preference shares were gifted with care, the operating company stayed stable, and the next generation brought fresh energy to the counter.

Your timeline

What does the planning process look like?

Discovery

Family workshop, asset audit, and a hard look at who wants to stay involved.

Design

Scenario modelling, governance design, and tax planning that respects the family map.

Implementation

Legal documents, share transfers, and training the next leader without rushing the handover.

Monitoring

Annual check-ups keep the plan aligned if tax rules, family roles, or business value change.

Questions we hear every week

Family succession questions you were afraid to ask.

How do I treat children who are not involved in the business?
We separate control from value, then use valuations, trusts, and staged transfers to make the outcome feel fair. If there are three children and only one wants the shop floor, should the others simply wait? No. We plan the equality upfront.
What if no one in the family wants to take over?
That happens more often than owners expect. In that case, we compare a management sale and a third-party sale, then build an exit strategy that protects retirement income and the business name.
Can I sell to an employee without triggering CGT immediately?
Often, yes, if the structure is phased properly. Employee ownership, vendor finance, and staged share transfers can be coordinated, but the paperwork needs to match the commercial deal.
How do I retire and still receive income from the business?
Through a mix of retained income rights, preference shares, dividends, or sale proceeds. We map the cashflow first, because a retirement plan without income is just a hope, isn’t it?

Begin the conversation

Arrange a private family meeting facilitation with our Dublin team.

Bring the family, bring the numbers, and bring the awkward questions. We’ll help you turn emotion into a structured plan, one conversation at a time.

Email us [email protected]

Office

Stillorgan Road, Dublin, D04 E1X8, Ireland

Phone

+353822378939