Sometimes, there are no businesses for sale in a certain category. The logical reasons we think we have may only be rationalizations. Or, the seller can indemnify the buyer. There are several ways to do this. The idea that there are operational systems that can't easily be changed is usually just wrong.
Small businesses are usually quite flexible and changeable.
Employees usually welcome enlightened change. My experience is that we pay for it one way or the other. Either we pay the seller for goodwill or we have to put lots of extra money into working capital to develop goodwill ourselves. Instead, my ego drove me to start my own business, Maine Business Brokers. In the 1980's, my new firm struggled and barely survived, while the firm I didn't buy made profits many times in excess of its 1981 asking price.