Questions
The things people ask before they sign up.
If yours isn't here, ask us — we'd rather answer it than have you guess.
Selling
- Will people know my business is for sale?
- Not unless you tell them. A listing shows the numbers, the industry and the region, but never your business name, address or contact details. Buyers see enough to judge fit and nothing that identifies you. You decide when, and to whom, that changes.
- What does it cost to list?
- Nothing. Listing a business on Fair Market Exchange is free. If you want a broker to run the sale for you, that's a separate service and a separate conversation.
- Can I control who contacts me?
- You can't stop someone expressing interest, and that's deliberate — inquiry volume is what makes a marketplace worth being on. What you can do is decide what a buyer has to tell you before you'll engage: how they'd finance it, what capital they have, what they'd do in the first year, plus up to four questions of your own. You see all of that alongside every inquiry.
- What if I change my mind?
- Withdraw the listing at any time and it comes straight off the public index. Nothing is deleted — your inquiries, messages and signed NDAs are all still there if you come back to it.
- Do I have to use your NDA?
- No. You can upload your own, and that's what gets sent. If you don't have one, there's a template available to start from. Have a lawyer look at whichever you use before you rely on it.
Buying
- Do I need an account to look?
- No. Browsing listings is open to anyone. You need an account to express interest in a business or to get alerts when something matching your criteria is listed.
- Why are you asking me about my financing?
- Because sellers ask. Those questions are optional — you can skip every one of them and still inquire on anything. Answering them makes sellers take you more seriously, and a seller choosing between several interested parties will usually start with whoever has told them the most.
- Will the seller see my name?
- Yes. Sellers are anonymous by default; buyers aren't. A seller is risking their staff and customers finding out — a buyer is risking an afternoon. The asymmetry is intentional.
- How do I find out which business it actually is?
- The seller tells you, when they're ready. Usually that follows a signed NDA, though it's their call. Until then you can message them through the platform without either side giving up anything.
- How often will you email me?
- Only when a new listing matches the criteria you saved, plus updates on inquiries you've actually made. Every alert has a one-click unsubscribe, and using it doesn't affect anything else.
The platform
- Where do you operate?
- Canada, in Canadian dollars. We're based in Alberta and work with buyers and sellers across the country.
- Who can see my information?
- A seller sees the profile of any buyer who inquires on their listing, and nothing about buyers who haven't. A buyer sees a listing's public detail, and whatever the seller chooses to release after that. Messages between two parties stay between them — they aren't visible to anyone else on the platform, staff included.
- Is an NDA signed here legally binding?
- Acceptance is recorded — the exact wording, who agreed, and when — and the wording is snapshotted so a later edit to the template can't change what was agreed. It is not a certified e-signature service, and you should take your own legal advice on whether it's sufficient for your situation.
Still wondering something?
You don’t need an account to ask. If you’re thinking about selling and want to talk it through before anything goes anywhere near a listing, that’s a normal thing to want.