|
- SOLD -
Alluring Landscapes
 | |
Left to right: Ed Blair (Engelco), Rodney Bodiford (Seller), John Engelhardt (Buyer and President of Engelco), Aaron Tomhave (Engelco) |
Since 1981 this full-service lawn maintenance company had been serving the NW Houston area. Rodney Bodiford, the former owner, had built a substantial loyal customer base that brought consistent recurring revenues over the years. John Engelhardt, the new owner, along with his operations team (Ed and Aaron), plan on substantially growing the operation by expanding the geographic area, adding new trucks, hiring additional personnel, and marketing the business, which the previous owner had not done for a couple decades. Rodney said, "I tried advertising once and I got too many new customers, so I quit doing advertising."
John has acquired several companies recently, two through our firm, as an investment strategy. He looks for specific business models and significant growth potential. As for Rodney and his wife, Barbara, who will be retiring from teaching this summer.....they are now free to retire to their wonderful ranch in Fredericksburg.
Rose Stabler listed the business and sold it. |
Buffet Got It Right This Time (The Street)
Over the past three years I've found myself disagreeing with Warren  Buffett more and more.
However, speaking to investors at Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting this year, he finally said something I agree with: "If business schools could offer just one course, it would not be on stock trading, the efficient market hypothesis or modern portfolio theory. Rather, B-schools should be encouraging students to learn the boring, but critically important, discipline of business valuation."
Warren Buffett There are 27 million small business owners according to the Small Business Administration's 2009 census. I would posit just a small fraction of these actually know what their business is worth. Worse, typically, a small business owner has some 90% of their net worth tied up in the business.
This is a very dangerous bit of ignorance on the part of business owners. Reason: Ceteris Paribas, the federal estate tax exemption will fall from $5 million to $1 million at the end of this year. That mean if you own a business worth $4 million, upon death, $3 million is subject to federal estate tax as high as 55% or $1.65 million.
Read Entire Article |
|
- SOLD -
Cut-Rite Glass & Mirror Supply
Established for over 15 years, this full-service glass company has been offering fabrication and design services for custom glass and related products in the high-end, high-margin commercial and residential markets in the Greater Houston Metro Area.
Former Owners, Jerry and Cheryl Winters, commented that "the whole sale experience was quite enjoyable and exciting. We had many interested prospective buyers and finally found the perfect match. We felt the whole time that everything was handled very professionally."
The buyers, HHC International Group, have an expansion strategy to open several showrooms in Houston and the surrounding areas.
Rose Stabler listed the business and Tom Pence sold it. |
Ask the experts section
Question: How important is brand recognition in my market area if I'm selling my business?
Answer: Business branding has become an art and it all starts with a vision! A little moxie can go a long way if your business is in a competitive market.
A unique brand identity that distinguishes your business from your competitors is the route to success for all companies. The better the brand position you have in the marketplace, the better you will perform over your competitors, which lowers the risk of taking over the business by a new owner. This translates to higher value.
How is your business perceived by your target market? What unique attributes do customers and prospects associate with your business? Is your business name trademarked? Are your logos or other intellectual property protected? These all represent your brand and are valuable.
Not only do you recognize companies by their products or services, you can identify them by their logos, signs, commercials, or theme songs.
Branding does not have to mean spend lots of money. Beating the competition means a better bottom line, which means a higher price paid for your business.
"If this business were split up, I would give you the land and bricks and mortar, and I would take the brands and trade marks, and I would fare better than you." - John Stuart, Chairman of Quaker (ca. 1900)
More on Brand and Perception in the Marketplace |
