Grant Buchan-Terrell - gbtlaw - Business Law, Exclusively

10/23/2023

Selling your business is NOT like putting up a "For Sale" sign on your front lawn.

It's more akin to putting your mature child up for adoption. Gut wrenching, highly emotional. Fearful. Permanent.

You likely built your business from scratch. You survived the startup years as no doubt there were rough stretches and economy - wide recessions. Your business grew and created wealth for you and your family, your employees and city, and many jobs created in your community.

No, it's not at all like putting up a For Sale sign. In selling your home, you must first decide your price and who will help you sell it. You can do a "FSBO" (for sale by owner") or you can sell thru a realtor. Of course, realtors will tell you that it always pays to hire a realtor to sell. FSBO's get less attention and lower sale prices they say. Most homeowners don't attempt DIY for their residential property. It's just too risky for the very high stakes involved.

What's higher stakes for you personally than your business? Nothing of course, it's your prime source of retirement income. So, am I pitching for you to hire a business broker to sell your business? Yeah, I am.

But with the sale of a substantial business - let's say several hundred thousands to many millions, or more, you actually require a lot more than just a sales agent to successfully market your business.

I strongly recommend that you create a small but properly qualified team to assist you - with that team including a business broker, your deal-savvy CPA , a financial advisor if your CFO is not experienced in deals, and - here it comes - a well-qualified business attorney. Yes, I am one.

"Qualified" means expertise (technical legal knowledge & skills) + experience (an attorney that does lots of sales of big & smaller businesses) and capacity (lawyers, students, clerks with capacity to do your deal, now). Not all CPAs or lawyers are deal-savvy. Generalists are obsolete in today's fast-changing business world. You might have to "shop around" or conduct a "beauty contest" to flush out the best choice of team members. And do I need to say, "Price isn't everything", and "You get what you pay for"?

Here's an off-the-cuff list of a few attributes or skills your team needs:
- deal design and structuring experience
- income, sales and corporate tax knowledge
- negotiating, strategizing abilities
- broad contract expertise over many areas - HR, P, commercial leases, debt instruments, insolvency, corporate finance & securities (options, pref shares vs common shares, shareholder loans, preemptive agreements, voting trusts, shareholder , and so ...).

Do you have those covered off on your own? No one does. Smart owners rent, not buy, the expertise and experience they need. Would you believe me if I said that the financial value of a qualified broker, CPA and business attorney always exceeds their respective fees to you?

Trouble is, you only have one chance at selling your business.

04/27/2023

04/27/2023

Go Leafs!!!!

04/27/2023

No words.

04/25/2023

Oh yeah.

04/23/2023

One good way to continue the legacy.

We are happy to announce the launch of the new Trevor Harrison Civic Engagement Scholarship!
At 24 years old, Trevor was diagnosed with an astrocytoma brain tumour. He lived with his tumour for another 12 years. This time was spent contributing to Canadian public policy, working for candidates he believed in, and making lifelong friends, including his wife.
To honour Trevor’s legacy, his family has created this Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada student scholarship in his name. The scholarship aims to provide financial support to politically engaged students who have also been impacted by a brain tumour and who want to make positive contributions to public policy and/or politics through civic engagement in their pursuit of post-secondary education.
➡️ Learn More and Apply: http://ow.ly/rysr50NPn7L
*Applications must be sent by May 20, 2023.

04/23/2023

Just the facts. I hate CBC, but really loathe the con networks. From Fox-Murdoch to CTV is only a question of degree. All con as****es with an agenda: elect PP though he is deplorable, reduce taxes for rich, deregulate, to hell with all climate change measures, especially carbon tax, appoint right to lifers as judges, push back on equality for women & diversity, supress voting by minorities, reduce public health and education funding in favour of private, encourage urban sprawl and pauper public transit, oh yeah, screw old people by fostering private, unregulated LTCs. Did I miss anything? Did I say anything false?

A previous study shows CBC News gave more airtime and favourable coverage to the Conservatives than other media outlets

04/21/2023

04/21/2023

Neat!