King & King Business Advisors

Excerpted from Diomo.com, by permission:

Meeting with sellers is a crucial step in the business buying process. It is so important that you ask good questions. If not, you will waste time, miss out on good opportunities, or overlook a critical aspect of the business that can haunt you later.
Keep in mind that sellers may have very rehearsed answers and so you need to mix up your questions, take great notes, and look for any hesitation when they reply.
If the seller has an intermediary, (broker), present, your questions and conversations should be directed towards the seller – he/she needs to own the answers to your questions.
There are at least 36 key questions you must ask every seller. Here are a few of them:
• Provide me with an overview of the company from the day you started until today - what have been the successes and failures?
• What do you do everyday?
• Do you anticipate any problems with me getting credit from your suppliers
• Do any of your customers or suppliers represent more than 10% of your business? If yes, who are they?
• Why are you selling?
• What is it that you like best and least about the business?
• How did you arrive at your asking price?
• If you get hit by a cement truck today, who would run the business tomorrow?
• Do your employees know the business is for sale?
• What is the ideal profile of the ideal buyer for this business?
• What can be done to build the business?
• How long will it take me to really learn this business?
• How long can I count on you to train me after the sale?
• What keeps you up at night about the business?
• What are the details of the lease? How long? Any options? Do you anticipate any problems with the landlord assigning it to me or entering into a new lease?
• How much vacation do you take (not that you’re looking for time off…rather, you want to know if they have adequate staff that will allow you time away)
• Are you the only owner?
• Who are the key employees? Any manager in place? Are there any employees that are critical to the business?
• Are you willing to finance part of the purchase? If not, why?
Answers and Research

You want to get enough answers and detail to your questions so you can immediately focus on researching the business, the industry, the competition, etc. Although the Internet allows prospective business buyers to do phenomenal research and quickly, in today’s environment, good businesses sell fast - very fast. As such, you may not have a lot of time between a seller meeting and preparing an offer. Obviously, you’ll want to do your homework before moving to an offer so be sure to get enough information in your seller meeting to conduct your research. On this note, always ask the seller if he/she has copies of any trade publications. They’re a great source for additional information.
Seeing Yourself in The Business

If you take away anything from a seller meeting, it should be the answer to these four questions:
1. Do I like the business?
2. Can I see myself running it?
3. Do I like the seller?
4. Do I trust them?
Questions 1 and 2 are obvious. Questions 3 and 4 are critical. If you like the seller and trust them, chances are you and they will be able to work through any and all of the deal challenges that will arise. Trust is also paramount. If not, you will always keep thinking they are hiding something.
Impress The Seller

If you have any chance of getting the seller to finance the deal, or bend more they would normally on the deal terms, you need to leave them feeling that “you’re the one” to buy their business. If they believe that you can not only get the deal done, but also run the business successfully, they will go out of their way to make the deal happen.
So there you have it: a series of key questions to ask the seller, and the key points to focus on as your goal when you meet them. Good luck!

Mid-Atlantic Business Intermediaries Association (MABIA)
11876 Sunrise Valley Dr., Suite 201
Reston, VA 20191

NEWS RELEASE…NEWS RELEASE…NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release Contact: James M. King
January 13, 2009 Phone: (410) 303-6378

Carroll County, Maryland Business Executive, James M. King
Elected President of the Mid-Atlantic Business Intermediaries Association

Mount Airy, Maryland – James M. King, President of King & King Business Advisors in Mount Airy, Maryland, was elected to serve as the 2009 President of the professional association. MABIA is a not-for-profit professional trade association whose members are professional Business Brokers, Business Intermediaries, and other allied professionals who provide support to the business transaction community.
MABIA members are actively involved in assisting their clients in selling, buying, and evaluating businesses. MABIA represents the interests of the business brokerage profession within the State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Virginia, the District of Columbia, and the State of Delaware.
MABIA is a member chapter of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA) headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The IBBA is the largest international non-profit association operating exclusively for the benefit of people and firms engaged in the various aspects of business brokerage and mergers and acquisitions.
Mr. King is the owner of King & King Business Advisors an “All-In-One-Place” fully-integrated “BusinessOwnership/M&A” services firm. King & King’s local expertise and full array of services makes the business buying and selling experience much easier for both the sellers and the buyers of businesses.

August 10, 2008 — Pasadena, Maryland
In the early morning hours on Sunday, August 10, 2008 Pasadena Maryland we meet, Me, the Broker, Hassan Channaoui, the Buyer, Glenn Brumwell, the Seller, and Justin McInerney, a Settlement Attorney from Transaction Trust Services, (a King & King Business Advisors Prestige Partner), come together one last time to finalize all of the paperwork, write checks and exchange keys. It’s official, we are proud to announce that King & King Business Advisors was selected by both the Seller and Buyer to represent them in this completed business transaction. The picture in this article depicts the Buyer-Hassan Channaoui (left) and Seller-Glenn Brunwell (right).
Congratulations Glenn on the sale of your business, Brumwells One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning and, Congratulations Hassan on your acquisition. Good Luck to you both.
Jim King, President
King & King Business Advisors

Many of you that know me know that I am a dyed in the wool, flag waving, flag wearing, Harley-Davidson riding, “love it, or leave it,” in your face Patriot with a capital P. All year long I look forward to Memorial Day weekend. For me it marks the official beginning of the summer season and it’s the one weekend in the year when I can ride my Harley into Washington DC with 400,000 +/- of my motorcycle riding friends to express my sincere concern for all POW’s & MIA’s and to show my gratitude and appreciation for all of the Veterans that have ever served our country.

There are a few Veterans that have had such a huge influence in my life that I want to thank for their service to our country and for always being there for me:

David King, U.S. Navy WWII (my Dad)
Herbert Ernest Daniels, U.S. Army - Paratrooper WWII (my Uncle)
Herbert King, U.S. Navy fought in WWII (my Uncle)
William Daniels, U.S. Army – Paratrooper WWII (my Uncle)
William Daniels, Jr., U.S. Navy fought in Viet Nam (my Cousin)
James Barbour, U.S. Air Force (Father-in-Law)
Herbert Lee Davis, U.S. Army fought in Viet Nam (my Brother)
Frank Davis, U. S. Navy (Brother)
Ernest Daniels, U.S. Army (Cousin)
Regis Canny, U.S. Air Force (Brother-In-Law)
Lennie King, Sgt. U.S. Marines (Brother)
Matthew Wayne Walker, U.S. Air Force (my Step-Son)

Whether it is rainy and cold or absolutely beautiful like it was this year, it is always a humbling experience to be in the presence of so many people that take time out of their lives to pay their respects to our fallen heroes and express their gratitude to all other Veterans for their service to our country.

On the Sunday of the Memorial Day weekend we gather at the local Harley-Davidson dealership in Frederick, Maryland in the early morning hours to share coffee and donuts, seemingly endless war stories, and to get organized for the ride into the city. At 9AM we leave, approximately 2,000 of us. We travel south on Maryland Route 270 with Police escorts to our destination the Viet Nam War Memorial (“The Wall”). All along the way we’re greeted by people who have stopped their cars on the shoulder of the road to acknowledge us as we go by in mass with our flags waving and tears in our goggle covered eyes. On the bridges and overpasses there are individuals and families, Moms and Dads with kids waving their flags and watching us as we slowly go by, two abreast, the line stretching for miles and miles.

Once we arrive in the city we gather in the Pentagon parking lot and wait for the official “Ride To The Wall” to begin. The crowd is made up of Business Owners, Doctors, Lawyers, Construction Workers, Retirees, Cab Drivers, Firemen, Policemen, Housewives, Realtors, young people and old people, Republicans and Democrats. There are no fights, no disturbances, no drunks, no stolen purses. There is however, a pervasive sense of gratitude and solemnity that is apparent on the faces of all those around you. At the end of the day we gather up our stuff, (trash included), and leave the city headed for our homes. Some will have to travel all the way to California to get home, some to Florida, some to probably every other state in the union.

When my wife and I get home we always watch the evening news to see how they report on the event. Of course it goes without saying, the 4-5 seconds of news coverage we get consists of one small shot of a few moving motorcycles and then the leader of Rolling Thunder shaking hands with the President. There are no interviews with any of the riders or the spectators to ask them why they participate in the annual “Ride To The Wall.” There are no helicopter shots to show the viewing audience the motorcycle riders staged in the Pentagon parking lots waiting for the “Ride To The Wall” start. There is never an interview with a Police official or other government person to tell us how the city prepares for this event, or how it has grown over the years, or how this event compares to other similar sized events held in the city. It is at the end of this day, after yet another disappointing showing on the part of the national news media that I wonder, how much coverage would we have gotten if there were 30-40 of us gathered on some street corner with protest signs cussing at our government and chanting God ______ America? My 55 years on this earth and my many years of observing the way the national news media works tells me there would most likely be 10 reporters for every single protestor.

I have said my piece and I thank all of the Veterans who have ever served for giving me the freedom to do so. I, we, owe you all a debt that can never be repaid.

I have pasted below a few pictures from the day:

If you own or operate a business in the state of Maryland you need to pay very close attention to what is going on in Annapolis now that the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of our state government are controlled exclusively by one party.

If it isn’t Governor Martin O’Money himself pushing higher taxes and anti-business bills through in special sessions or behind closed doors its the legislators slamming these things through the house with little to no scrutiny, analysis or debate on how they will hurt small business people.

If you are a businessperson you need to visit the Maryland Chamber of Commerce website or blog at the very least once a week to learn what these shiftless and shameful, witless and wanton, fools that have never created one real job or made a payroll are doing that will hurt your business. Below I have inserted an excerpt from the Chamber Blog that cover three very important issues everyone of us business people need to keep an eye on:

February 21, 2008
Prevailing Wage Bill is a Bad Idea
Maryland Chamber Vice President of Government Affairs Ron Wineholt testified last week in opposition to HB 970 - Procurement - Prevailing Wage. This legislation would require contractors working on state or local public works projects that cost more than $500,000 and use any state funds to pay a state-determined wage level to their employees.

Current law applies this prevailing wage to projects funded with at least 50 percent state funds. This bill would make the prevailing wage applicable on projects that use any state funds.

Studies by the Department of Legislative Services in 1989 and 1995 determined that the prevailing wage law inflated the cost of public works projects by 5 to 15 percent. “The prevailing wage law undermines the competitive bidding process by requiring projects using state funds to pay a higher labor price than would be required through market based competitive bidding,” Wineholt said. “At a time when Maryland needs to build more schools, this bill will cause us to build less.”

For more information, contact Ron Wineholt at rwineholt@mdchamber.org.

February 20, 2008
Attention Business Property Owners
Legislation (SB 561/HB 676) has been introduced that would authorize counties to specify the classes of property that are subject to real and personal property taxation and to vary the rates of taxation among the classes. Defeating this legislation is a priority for the Maryland Chamber.

State law has long established the classes of property subject to county property taxation and required that counties impose one rate of tax that is applicable to all real property.

“If counties are authorized to set their own classes of property taxation and to vary tax rates among those classes, they will use that authority to push additional tax burden toward business property and engage in further tax discrimination against businesses,” Maryland Chamber Vice President of Government Affairs Ron Wineholt said.

Significant real property tax burden is already shifted to businesses as a result of the real property homestead tax credit for residences and the business personal property tax rate that is 2.5 times the real property tax rate.

HB 676 will be heard by the House Ways & Means Committee on February 28. No Senate hearing has been scheduled yet. For more information, contact Ron Wineholt at rwineholt@mdchamber.org.

February 19, 2008
MD Chamber Opposes Unrealistic Global Warming Bill
The Maryland Chamber of Commerce testified today before the Senate Education Health and Environmental Affairs Committee in opposition to SB 309 - Global Warming Solutions - Reductions in Greenhouse Gases.

This bill would require Maryland to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25 percent by 2020, and 90 percent by 2050 - the strongest mandate in the country. Passage would require Marylanders and Maryland businesses to make major changes in their daily lives and operations by driving 1/3 less and consuming 1/3 less electricity.

Maryland’s man-made GHG emissions comprise approximately 1.5% of the United States’ emissions and a very small percentage of the world’s total emissions. Since GHG emissions disperse globally and Maryland’s emissions are a very small percentage of the total global problem, this issue needs to be addressed on a national level in concert with international efforts.

“It is impossible for a small state, such as Maryland, to achieve a reduction goal as large as the 25 percent by 2020, and 90 percent by 2050,” said Maryland Chamber Vice President of Government Affairs Allyson Black. “This legislation is counterproductive, and would make it extremely difficult for businesses to survive.”

A number of Maryland Chamber members testified in opposition to SB 309 today, including Maryland Industrial Technology Alliance, Maryland Petroleum Council, Redland Brick, Inc., NewPage, Allegheny Energy, Mirant Mid-Atlantic, Constellation Energy and ArcelorMittall.

For more information, contact Allyson Black at ablack@mdchamber.org.

Related

NAM: Maryland: Adding Regulations on top of Taxes
O’Malley supports limits on pollution
Posted by Will Burns at 4:52 PM to Environment & Energy | Permalink | Comments (0)
February 18, 2008
February 27 - Save Maryland IT Day

Join us in Annapolis on February 27 for Save Maryland IT Day, a media event and lobbying day to advocate the repeal of the computer services sales tax.

This tax will stifle economic development and job creation in Maryland. Whether your company is a user or provider of IT services, this tax will have a negative impact on your competitiveness. Unless repealed, the 6 percent computer services sales tax will take effect on July 1. We need you in Annapolis on February 27 to tell your story to the media and to lawmakers.

The event will begin at 10:30 a.m. at the Maryland Inn on Church Circle in Annapolis. We will hold a media briefing featuring a number of CEOs at 11 a.m. We’ll also hear from some legislators who support the repeal of the tech tax at 11:30 a.m. Following the briefing, we will walk over to the House and Senate office buildings to urge lawmakers to repeal the tax.

The event is being held in partnership with the Tech Council of Maryland, the Fight the Tech Tax Coalition Partners and the Maryland Computer Services Association.

For more information, or to RSVP, contact me at wburns@mdchamber.org.

Posted by Will Burns at 9:59 AM to Budget & Taxation | Permalink | Comments (0)
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Recent Posts
2008 Maryland Business Hall of Fame Inductees
Prevailing Wage Bill is a Bad Idea
Attention Business Property Owners
MD Chamber Opposes Unrealistic Global Warming Bill
February 27 - Save Maryland IT Day
MDOT Freight Plan Outreach Meetings
Remember to Vote on Feb. 12
Legislation Would Moderate Onerous Corporate Reporting Requirements
House Tech Tax Hearing Scheduled for March 12

Creative Small Business Financing: SBA 504 Program Panel Discussion
Start Date: Mar 05, 2008
End Date: Mar 05, 2008
Time(s): 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
Address: Howard Community College; Gateway Campus Building, Room 6; 6751 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia, MD 21046

Cost: Free
Registration Info: For more information or to register, contact Brenda Miller at the Business Finance Group at 703-352-0504.

Event Sponsor(s): j-ref, Business Finance Group and CommerceFirst Bank

Categories: Finance,Other
Web Site: www.jref.org
Contact Info: Brenda Miller - J-Ref
lbcoster@costercommunications.com
703-352-0504

Description: J-Ref, a small business financier in Howard County, is working with the Business Finance Group and CommerceFirst Bank to host this event: The SBA 504 program is a long-term financing tool for major fixed assets which has a significant impact on small business financing. This panel will explain who the program assists and how j-ref’s fund can be used in conjunction with the program.

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