Start-Ups Will Keep Struggling in 2010Published January 7, 2010 | By Achim Neumann, PresidentThe economic downturn has dimmed many entrepreneurs’ hopes of opening a small business, as sources of funding have dwindled or dried up completely. And while many hope 2010 will be better, the outlook continues to be bleak. The majority of entrepreneurs use personal savings or contributions from f... [read more]
EBITDA: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly!Published December 16, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President “EBITDA” is one of those terms that has received increased usage but usually for the wrong reason. This short article will define it and discuss how it can be useful but also misleading. EBITDA is an abbreviation for “earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.” It is ca... [read more]
Confidentiality Agreements: Their Importance To Business Buyers And SellersPublished November 24, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President If you are planning to buy a business in the near future, or sell one for that matter, then you are probably thinking about the price you may have to pay, scheduling business appraisers, collating legal documents, putting in an offer and so on. The list of things to do is indeed long. However, one ... [read more]
Small-Business Myths BustedPublished November 11, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President So many aspiring entrepreneurs dream of the numerous rewards that await them when they finally break free of the shackles of the rat race and become their own boss. But many see only the gold at the end of the rainbow–and go into it with misconceptions about what’s it’s really like to own the... [read more]
The Eight Biggest Mistakes….Published October 23, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President Many people dream of owning a business. I was a teenager when I started my first business. Since then I have bought or started many businesses and helped others do the same. Here are some common mistakes I have witnessed or committed myself. Mistake #1 – Paying too much This results from the comb... [read more]
SBA Loan DevelopmentPublished October 13, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, PresidentThe Small Business Administration ended its 2009 fiscal year on Wednesday, marking the close of a tumultuous year of lending initiatives to keep banks’ doors open. Despite the efforts to revive the credit market, the SBA approved less than 45,000 loans, down 36% compared to last year and 56% from ... [read more]
Find the Right CompanyPublished October 6, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President As briefly mentioned in our last newsletter, we have noticed a significant amount of “cash” sitting on the sidelines – buyers, who are ready to move due to the dissatisfactory investment returns obtained in this market. After all, what does a treasury bill really yield these days? We see this... [read more]
SBA Revises Good Will CapsPublished September 23, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President Effective with loan applications on or after October 1, 2009, the Small Business Administration revokes its position that acquisition financing is limited to buy-sells involving goodwill amounts up to $250,000. NO GOODWILL CAP EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2009 Specifically, the SBA changed the rules for fi... [read more]
Plumbing for Joy? Be Your Own BossPublished September 17, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President By economic yardsticks, Roger the Plumber should be feeling pretty low. Roger Peugeot, owner of the 14-employee Overland Park, Kan., plumbing company that bears his name, is part of a sector hit hard by shrunken credit and slumping sales. He has been forced to reduce staff and is battling new compe... [read more]
What Is An Investor To Do Now?Published September 9, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President What is the investor to do now? With record amounts of cash on the sidelines, debt yields at history lows and gold hitting new highs, many potential investors/business buyers are questioning where the economy will be heading from here and what is the best time to acquire a business. Whereas we woul... [read more]
Distressed Takeovers SoarPublished August 11, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, PresidentThe brutal recession is opening up the landscape to vulture investors as never before. New data show that distressed-debt deals — in which creditors use their debt positions to seize ownership of troubled companies — are running close to double the pace of 2008. Some 140 of the deals have been s... [read more]
Warning! Business Sellers Are LiarsPublished July 24, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President “Business Seller Retiring – Priced to Move” While searching for an existing small business to buy, the novice entrepreneur will come across a few deals that seem almost too good to be true. There are times when a family situation or a dodgy medical condition may require a quick sale at a belo... [read more]
Retailers Negotiate Rent ReductionsPublished July 10, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President Retail chains are using the fine print in their leases to demand rent reductions, eking out critical savings and pressuring mall owners already struggling with vacancies…. …. Retailers that want to stay put are using the triggered clauses to negotiate multi-year rent reductions from their landl... [read more]
Company ValuationsPublished July 2, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, President INC Magazine recently published their valuation guide, which can be found here http://www.inc.com/valuation ... [read more]
Increased Buy Side ActivitiesPublished June 22, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, PresidentATLANTIC HIGHLANDS, NJ -With the slow thawing of credit markets and a diminished decline in economic activities, we see increased buyer activities. A recent new engagement generated 50 inquiries just within five days. Thus, we seem to see a trend that continues from what we had stated in our earlier... [read more]
Economic Recovery?Published May 6, 2009 | By Achim Neumann, PresidentExploring a little further the topic of our last email, namely the up-tick in transaction activity in the spring, we can report that March has been our second busiest month ever in the history of the company. Buyer inquiries have dramatically increased, and assuming this trend being an early indicat... [read more]