Whether you are a fan of Ronald Reagan or not, I suspect that if you are an entrepreneur you will appreciate the sentiments shared about small business in this video - particularly today when so many slander business owners as being greedy and selfish.

Starbucks' Create Jobs for USA program has been around for a few years now.    You may have seen the red, white, and blue bracelets emblazoned with the word "indivisible" being sold at Starbucks but do you know what this is about?  

See the following two videos to see how Starbucks is proactively helping small businesses.  To support this program you can buy an Indivisible bracelet at Starbucks or make a donation here:   Create Jobs USA

Be honest:  are you excited to go to work in the morning?

There's no shame in admitting it if you aren't.  What it may mean, though, if you are a business owner is that it might be time to call a business broker and discuss whether a sale of your business might be an option.  Don't put this off until you really want out.  Selling a business can be a multi-year process, where you may want to make changes to the business to make it more marketable and valuable for a couple of years before selling, and then the selling process itself may take 6-12+ months.

While this can be a significant undertaking, imagine how it will feel to free up your time and gain liquidity that you can use to pursue something you are passionate about. 

For businesses with $1 million+ in annual revenue and at least a two full-year operating history, Codiligent business brokers offers a free marketability assessment that can help you determine what issues may be inhibiting marketability and value that you may want to address before selling your business.

Here's a link to a blog post from lawyer-turned-entrepreneur Jonathan Fields, that describes his observation on business owners who have lost their passion for their enterprise:   It may be your baby, but is it your thing?

It seems like increasing the minimum wage is a never-ending discussion - particularly among the political class.  The other day I came across this video of economist Milton Friedman describing why a minimum wage, and increasing it, is a bad idea.  This video is about 30 years old and I was struck by how similar the issues were at that time as they are today.  

While I can see both sides of this issue, I find Friedman's position and logic in the video very compelling.  What do you think?  Below is another short video that describes why some businesses may be more interested in supporting a minimum wage increase while others would be opposed.

Are you an elephant hunter?  No - I don't mean literally.  I mean the metaphorical elephant hunt in business:  trying to land the customer that dwarfs all of your other customers.  Many small business owners dream of bagging the elephant, for example getting Wal-Mart, Target, or Home Depot to sell their product.  There's no doubt that landing such a customer could catapult growth and profitability, but it is also fraught with peril.

In an article in The Wall Street Journal, The Right Way to Go After Big Clients, writer Sarah Needleman describes some of the risks and issues associated with elephant hunting, but she missed one that I'll share from a business broker's perspective.  Most business buyers perceive a high level of risk if a single customer represents more than 5-7% of total revenue.  While there are attractive aspects of having a large customer, what happens if that customer decides they no longer want to do business with your company?  Or what if you have invested in equipment and facilities to accommodate far higher volume from a customer, and then that customer starts demanding price concessions - can you say no without replacing their business?  Because of these risk factors, many acquirers will not be interested in buying a business that has a large concentration of revenue from one client.  Even if your business broker or investment banker can find someone to buy the company, an earn-out will likely be required where part of the consideration paid will be deferred and dependent on retention of your key customer over time.  

James Altucher wrote a blog post on Forbes.com titled “The Easiest Way To Succeed as an Entrepreneur“, in which he says that the most important rule for entrepreneurial success is to have a customer before you start your business.   I’d suggest that one of the easiest ways to start with customers is to have a business broker or investment banker help you buy a business instead of starting one.  Sure, it will require an investment - perhaps a larger investment than initially required if starting a business - but if it's a cash flow positive business then from day one you'll be making a return on investment.  

In addition to customers, having systems and trained employees in place, even if not perfect, will allow you to build on something rather than taking the time to hire people and develop processes through trial and error.  Most start-up entrepreneurs significantly underestimate how long it will take them to build and perfect systems, hire and train the right people, and secure stable customers.  So, even if you have a great innovative idea, you still may be better off acquiring a complementary business.  This will provide cash flow, while cross selling your newly launched product or service to the business' current customer base.  

Contact Codiligent business brokers to learn about active buyer representation or if you aren't interested in business broker representation simply submit your acquisition criteria and we'll let you know if we represent sellers whose businesses appear to be a good match.