This article studies business takeovers out of necessity, whether these are for economic reasons or due to family pressure. It intersects the research fields of business takeovers and necessity entrepreneurship. Based on an exploratory study of twelve individuals who have taken over businesses out of necessity and four heads of support organizations, our contribution details the individual, organizational, processual, and contextual specific characteristics of this type of business takeover, drawing on Gartner’s four-axis framework (1985). The results show that there are four distinct profiles of individuals who have taken over businesses out of necessity, for whom the intensity and types of pressure differ. The discussion goes into more detail about how knowledge on business takeovers out of necessity is enhanced by this new four-dimensional perspective.