# 206: How to Sell Your Hardware Product Business

- Show: [Product Startup](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup)
- Published: 2023-12-15
- Length: 22m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business
- Listen: https://productstartup.com/

## Summary

Dan Shea, Managing Director at Objective Capital Partners, explains how hardware founders can maximize valuation for an eventual exit by focusing on product innovation, customer-centric design, and building a culture of continuous improvement. He emphasizes that large corporations are increasingly acquiring startups to access this innovation, making it critical for early-stage companies to think about their long-term value proposition from day one. Shea details the M&A process, noting that buyers look for tangible assets like product portfolios, IP, and diverse customer bases, and warns that the average age of entrepreneurs selling their businesses is getting younger.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business#t=0) Introduction and Dan Shea's Background
- [4:32](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business#t=272) Building Value Through Innovation and Blue Ocean Strategy
- [9:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business#t=594) Institutionalizing Innovation and Profitability
- [13:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business#t=818) Marketing, Global Reach, and Financing Growth
- [16:43](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business#t=1003) The M&A Process and Due Diligence

## Topics

- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Objective Capital Partners (company)
- Mako Design (company)
- Harvard Business Review (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [#066 - How to apply lean startup principles to hardware, with Ash Maurya of Leanstack, USA](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2019-01-16-066-how-to-apply-lean-startup-principles-to-hardware-with-ash-maurya-of-leanstac) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [Always Be Exiting: How Manufacturers Build Value Years Before a Sale w/ Eric Wiklendt](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2026-09-29-always-be-exiting-how-manufacturers-build-value-years-before-a-sale-w-eric-wikle) (The Manufacturing Executive)
- [#063 - Your (hardware) product is not your product - think in terms of business models, with your host Balint Horvath, Switzerland](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2018-10-24-063-your-hardware-product-is-not-your-product-think-in-terms-of-business-models) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [#025 - How to benefit for your startup from the one and only hardware accelerator of Southern California, with Shaun Arora of Make in LA, USA](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2017-05-10-025-how-to-benefit-for-your-startup-from-the-one-and-only-hardware-accelerator-o) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [#053 - Which one to choose - b2b or b2c for hardware startups, with Balint Horvath, your host, Switzerland](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2018-04-25-053-which-one-to-choose-b2b-or-b2c-for-hardware-startups-with-balint-horvath-you) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-12-15-206-how-to-sell-your-hardware-product-business. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Product Startup.