Business Brokerage
Business Brokerage in North Jersey
We sell businesses, not just buildings. Alongside our residential and commercial practice, the Chopper Russo Team represents North Jersey owners selling the business itself — restaurants, salons, service companies, licenses and the real estate that goes with them. Every engagement is handled confidentially, so your staff, customers and vendors learn about the sale on your timeline.
Currently on the market
Our active listings are published and maintained on BizBuySell, the largest business-for-sale marketplace in the country. The full roster — with asking prices and confidential detail available under agreement — is always current there.
Businesses we sell in Bergen County
Main Street businesses across Bergen, Passaic, Hudson and Sussex counties. These are the categories we handle most often.
Restaurants & Bars
Full-service restaurants, bars and taverns — including deals where the liquor license and the real estate transfer together.
Selling a restaurant → 02Salons & Barber Shops
Hair salons, barber shops, nail salons and blowout bars, where the value sits in the client book, the staff and an assignable lease.
Selling a salon → 03New Jersey Liquor Licenses
New Jersey caps licenses by municipal population, which makes them scarce and valuable. We handle license sales on their own and as part of a larger transaction.
Selling a license → 04Service & Specialty Businesses
Instruction, trades, repair and specialty retail — including owner-operated businesses that come with the property.
Selling a service business →How a confidential business sale works in New Jersey
Selling a business is not like selling a house. The building can sit on a sign in the front yard. The business cannot.
Valuation and positioning
We review your financials and comparable sales to establish a defensible asking price, then decide what gets disclosed publicly and what is held back for qualified buyers only.
Blind marketing
Your business is advertised by category and region, never by name or street address. Employees, customers and competitors have no way to identify it from the listing.
Buyer screening
Inquiries are qualified on funding and timeline before anything moves forward. Financial detail is released only after a confidentiality agreement is signed.
Offer and diligence
We manage offers, buyer diligence and the moving parts most owners have never dealt with — lease assignment, license transfer, inventory and equipment.
Closing and transition
Attorney review, municipal and state approvals where a license is involved, and a handover plan that keeps the business running through the change in ownership.
What if your biggest asset isn't your home?
Chopper Russo on why most owners either wait too long or guess at the value of the business they have spent a career building — and what that guess tends to cost them.
If you were to step away in the next one to three years, do you know what your business would sell for today?
Who you work with
Thomas “Chopper” Russo
RE/MAX Select · Franklin Lakes, NJ
Chopper handles commercial sales and leasing alongside business transactions, and is listed in the BizBuySell broker directory serving Bergen County. Business sales sit at the intersection of both — most deals involve a lease or a building as well as the business itself.
Patrick Varelas
Commercial & Business Brokerage
Patrick is the first call on business and commercial inquiries, and manages confidential conversations with owners who are evaluating a sale but not ready to go to market.
Read the full transcript
Let me ask you a question. What if the biggest asset you own isn't your home — it's your business? And you don't even know what it's worth.
A lot of people know the Chopper Russo Team for real estate. But what many don't realize is we sell businesses every single day. We've helped owners transition out of pharmacies, gas stations, restaurants, delis, pizzerias, even physical therapy practices and dental offices. And that's just scratching the surface.
Let me ask you: if you were to step away from your business in the next one to three years, do you know what it would sell for today?
Because here's the truth. Most owners wait too long, or they guess at the value. And that can cost them tens, sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars.
We don't just list businesses. We position them, package them and negotiate them the right way, so you walk away with what you've worked years to build and accomplish.
If you've even thought about selling, or just want to understand what it's worth, let's have a private conversation. No pressure, just clarity.
The Chopper Russo Team — from homes to highrises, and yes, businesses too. Thank you, and I look forward to hearing from you.
Common questions
What kinds of businesses do you sell?
We have helped owners transition out of pharmacies, gas stations, restaurants, delis, pizzerias, physical therapy practices and dental offices, along with salons, barber shops and specialty retail across North Jersey.
Will anyone find out my business is for sale?
Not unless you choose to tell them. Every engagement is marketed blind: your business is advertised by category and region, never by name or street address, and financial detail is released only to buyers who have signed a confidentiality agreement.
How do I know what my business is worth?
Most owners either wait too long or guess, and both are expensive. A proper valuation looks at provable earnings, your lease, your staff structure, your systems and whether real estate or a license is part of the sale. That conversation is free and carries no obligation.
Do I need to be ready to sell right now?
No. Most owners start this conversation one to three years before they actually exit, which is the right time to start. Knowing what your business would sell for today tells you what would need to change to move that number.
Do you handle the real estate too?
Yes, and that overlap is often the point. Many business sales involve a lease assignment or the building itself, and our commercial practice handles that side of the transaction alongside the business sale.
Thinking about selling?
Most owners start the conversation a year or more before they sell. There is no obligation and nothing becomes public — we will tell you what your business is likely worth and what would need to happen to get there.