SCORE Association Establishes Branch in Valdosta, GA
VALDOSTA, GA, August 4, 2016–The SCORE Association, a not-for-profit organization composed of volunteers who provide free mentoring and free or low cost training to entrepreneurs who wish to start a new small business or grow a business, has opened a new branch in Valdosta, according to Arthur L. Slotkin, the Georgia District Director of the SCORE Association, a resource partner of the US Small Business Administration.
As part of the larger SCORE organization, the Valdosta branch will conduct a series of three training sessions in October, November and December of this year (2016) for local entrepreneurs focusing on business basics, business plan development, marketing, finances and sources of funding for small businesses. This program is called “Simple Steps to Starting Your Business.” The Simple Steps program will be offered at no cost and participation is being funded by the SCORE Association and the SCORE Foundation. Further information about this training program will be forthcoming.
Ms. Erica Hill will lead the Valdosta branch. Ms. Hill founded and ran the “Entrepreneurs of Valdosta,” a group composed of volunteers who engaged in many of the services that the SCORE Association provides at its more than 300 chapters around the United States. According to Slotkin, the affiliation of the Entrepreneurs of Valdosta with SCORE provides infrastructure, training and resources to the local branch which will help further the aims of SCORE in Valdosta.
SCORE is America’s premier source of free and confidential small business mentoring and advice service. Nearly half a million entrepreneurs count on SCORE each year for help with fulfilling their dream of starting a business, as well as helping existing enterprises grow and become more successful.
SCORE’s more than 10,000 working and retired business professionals are committed to helping their communities thrive by providing local small business owners with valuable guidance and insights for success. Each of the SCORE chapters across the country provide services and programs tailored to the local community’s specific business needs and challenges.
If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Ms. Erica Hill at 229-630-1190 or email at Erica.hill@scorevolunteer.org.
Other SCORE Chapters in Georgia:
Ph: (404) 331-0121
Ph: (706) 596-8331
Ph: (478) 621-2000
Ph: (678) 506-0718
Ph: (770) 538-2522
Ph: (912) 652-4335
Is It Possible to Sell to a Business Competitor?
A common question in the realm of buying and selling businesses is, “Is it possible to sell to a business competitor?” The short answer is yes, it is quite possible and rather common. That stated, selling to a business competitor is different than selling to a buyer who is completely new to the industry. The two types of buyers should not be treated the same way, as there are various differing variables.
A Competitor Can Be a Great Buyer
One reason is that a competitor may indeed be the right party to buy your business, is that they usually have an excellent understanding of how your business and your industry works. They may also enter the negotiation process already understanding the value of your business, and this can serve to speed up the process.
Always Proceed with Caution
Competitors, however, must be approached carefully. Unfortunately, there have been many cases where competitors acted as though they wanted to buy in order to acquire access to inside information. That’s why sensitive information like client lists and other “secrets” shouldn’t be shared until the sale is complete and the money is literally in the bank.
Working with a business broker is always a prudent move when it comes to buying and selling businesses; however, when working with a competitor is involved a business broker is even more important than normal. A business broker can act as something of a shield in the process, helping to ensure that you don’t reveal too much prized information until the sale is 100% complete.
Negotiate from a Place of Knowledge
Further, a business broker understands how much your business is worth and can back up that valuation. Having this information before discussing a potential sale with a competitor is of great importance.
Be Prepared to Accept Certain Legal Conditions
Finally, don’t be surprised if your competitor asks you to sign a non-compete or for you to stay on as a consult after he or she has acquired your business. This is a prudent step and one that makes tremendous sense. If you were buying a business from a competitor wouldn’t you want to make certain that the competitor didn’t simply “set up shop” somewhere else a few months or even a couple of years later? Likewise, tapping your expertise is another prudent move for your former competitor.
Summed up, selling your business to a competitor is a potentially great move, but it is also an opportunity that absolutely must be explored with extreme caution. Never divulge critical information to your competitor until the deal is finalized.
Copyright: Business Brokerage Press, Inc.
Read MoreAJC Business Writer Talked to GABB About News Coverage
Matt Kempner, the AJC’s sometimes irreverent business columnist, spoke to the GABB on Aug. 30 about how the news media covers business.
The writer described how journalists find news leads and offered advice for businesses to connect with journalists.
Matt writes a regular column called Unofficial Business in the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Some recent columns include:
Atlanta Spending Divide Starts at the Perimeter
Atlanta Airport Launches Pricey Underground Adventure
Developers Face a Stink in DeKalb
Kempner says he enjoys finding the twists behind our adventures with business, money and careers. Prior to his latest assignment, he wrote a regular column on intriguing entrepreneurs and reported on technology and energy. His career has included serving as a business editor and public editor as well as lots of reporting gigs, from business investigations to politics, government and the environment. You can follow him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mattkempnercolumnist or on Twitter: @Mattkempner
The GABB is composed of professionals who work with owners of Georgia businesses. GABB members represent owners of Georgia businesses and help them establish the sales price of their business, create marketing plans and strategies for the sale of their business, identify and qualify potential buyers, and work to protect the confidentiality of the entire process. Many of today’s business buyers are individuals who have decided not to re-enter corporate America, but are ready to control their own destiny by purchasing and operating a Georgia business. For more information about the GABB, contact GABB President Greg DeFoor at president@gabb.org or call Diane Loupe at 404-374-3990.
Georgia Film Industry Creates Local Business Demand
When you see Tom Hanks portraying Sully Sullenberger in a movie this Christmas, don’t assume that most of the movie was filmed in New York City.
In fact, much of the flight simulation and interior shooting was done in Georgia, according to Lee Cuthbert, a Location Specialist for Georgia’s Film, Music and Digital Entertainment office. Georgia’s ability to mimic other places is one of the state’s assets, said Ms. Cuthbert in a July 26, 2016 speech to the Georgia Association of Business Brokers about the economic impact of film industry on Georgia’s economy.
Georgia’s film industry is estimated to have had a $6 billion impact on the economy in 2015, based on a multiplier.
A big propellant for the film industry growth is “a very successful and somewhat generous tax incentive for film and television production in Georgia,” she said. Productions that spend at least $500,000 get a 20 percent tax credit. Productions that put the Georgia Peach logo in the credits can earn up to 30 percent. Ms. Cuthbert noted that big budget movies can have budgets approaching $200 million, so “30 percent of that means a lot to them.”
“This is not a rebate; we are not writing these folks a check. This is a tax credit and because they’re not generally Georgia corporations, or even if they are, they don’t owe that much in Georgia taxes, so they sell the tax credit to someone who owes Georgia taxes,” she said. “That’s how they monetize it.”
Georgia businesses and individuals can buy these film tax credits for between 85 and 92 cents on the dollar, so a $10,000 tax bill can be paid off for about $9,000. “That marketplace has grown exponentially since 2008 when our incentive went into effect,” said Ms. Cuthbert. In some states like Louisiana where the incentive is a rebate, and they actually are writing a check to the production company, it can take up to two years to get that check. Ms. Cuthbert noted “these folks want to be able to get their money as quickly as possible.”
Many brokers deal in film tax credits and conservation tax credits in Georgia, and Ms. Cuthbert offered to provide anyone with that list. Georgia Film Office contacts.
Georgia’s vast array of locations, from beaches to mountains to small towns and big cities, is also attractive to film companies. “We have everything in Georgia but a desert,” Ms. Cuthbert quipped. Georgia has stood in for Florida in productions of Baywatch and Magic Mike XXL, in part because Florida discontinued their film incentive.
“So much of what they do now involves adding a green screen and bringing in other elements like the Brooklyn Bridge or something like that,” Ms. Cuthbert said. “They aren’t as particular about the look necessarily of our downtown.”
Georgia also has an extensive roster of skilled workers for the film industry. In 2011, the Motion Picture Association of America estimated that there are 80,000 jobs tied to the industry in Georgia, and “we think it’s significantly more than that,” she said.
Many Georgia colleges and universities have film and television programs at the undergraduate and master’s level. In 2016, the Georgia Film Academy opened as a joint venture between the technical college system in Georgia and the university system in Georgia. The academy is teaching people technical positions for film and television crews.
“So one of the things we’re really invested in doing is training these folks and then keeping them here working in Georgia and paying Georgia taxes. They’ve always had to go to the coasts before, New York or California, to find jobs. That’s rapidly changing here,” Ms. Cuthbert said.
The infrastructure surrounding the film industry has also grown, and Ms. Cuthbert noted that “those are Georgian corporations paying their full share of Georgia taxes and employing Georgians who pay their full share of Georgia taxes. They do not receive the incentive but they’re here working supporting these film and television projects that we do give the incentive to, and it’s very diverse.”
Among the categories of businesses involved in film include cameras, props, costumes, fabrics, military surplus, and period military gear suppliers. One very specialized trade is foam fabricators.
“If you’re looking at a set and you see boulders or you see pieces of a glacier or something like that, even wreckage of a building, it’s probably sculpted in foam,” said Ms. Cuthbert. “Those people are very skilled, and it’s a very specialized training. And we’ve had some of these businesses here for years.”
Georgia’s professional stage capacity has grown. After the Walking Dead snapped up a stage near Senoia in 2008, an economic downturn motivated some other businesses to convert some big box and warehouse space into stages.
“Companies came in and would put up their own lighting structure–they call it a grid–and run their own air conditioning from trailers outside and make these things defacto stages,” she said. “In the interim the stage infrastructure environment has grown very extensively here.”
Pinewood, the English company that produces the Bond, Star Wars and Harry Potter films, built a facility in Georgia which now has 15 stages, and eventually plans to have 31.
Georgia’s amenities are also attractive to the film industry. “You know these guys come in, they take their whole department out to see a Braves game or a Hawks game, and they’re always asking for tickets and affordable housing.” Hotels, shopping and a lively art scene are also important. Georgia’s temperate climate is also a draw. “It’s hot but you can shoot all year long.”
Hartsfield Jackson International Airport is “very, very important.” “They do not have to change planes to get to Georgia as opposed to going to work in Louisiana or North Carolina,” she said. “These are not folks who love changing planes, honestly, and there are 26 nonstop flights a day to and from L.A. to Atlanta.” Virgin American Airlines established two routes from California to Atlanta specifically at the request of folks in the film and television production industry.
The economic impact — $6 billion in 2015 – includes crews coming in and spending money, “tipping waiters and waitresses, dry cleaning and shredding services, pet sitting, massage therapy,” she said. “That dollar in the film industry has a very wide ripple. So chances are a lot of businesses that you work with have been impacted by this industry whether or not you are dealing with them directly.”
Georgia’s Camera Ready program places a certified a film friendly liaison in all of the state’s 159n counties, and is the only film office in the country with a program like this.
“We have somebody who’s our boots on the ground expert that we or a production company or a location manager can pick up and call and say “give us a hotel,” or “can you find us a courthouse” or anything that we may not know about some counties out in the state. They can go on our web site click a county and find the name of the film friendly liaison and find a little bit of information about that that area as well,” Ms. Cuthbert said.
Most of Georgia’s film industry stays within a 30 to 40 mile radius of Atlanta or Savannah, largely because of union rules and the added expense of transportation and housing of crew outside that zone. Ms. Cuthbert’s office is working to try to get productions to work outside of that area.
Film tourism is another business that benefits from the industry. The Tour Georgia Film website includes information on Georgia films coming out; information on how to be an extra; autographed items; and a map of film locations so fans can take their own tour. The film tourism industry also extends years beyond the production, Ms. Cuthbert said. Although the Dukes of Hazzard filmed five episodes in Georgia five, when they had a 2013 reunion, they drew 10,000 people.
People are still wandering Savannah’s squares looking for Forrest Gump’s bench, eating in Juliette, Ga., featured in Fried Green Tomatoes. Covington brags that it’s the Hollywood of the South because its historic town square has been used for productions of “I’ll Fly Away,” “In the Heat of the Night,” and the “Dukes of Hazzard.”
Citizens wanting to promote their communities as film destinations can investigate the location database and contact a Camera Ready contact to help promote. Citizens can also add their own homes or other properties to a database of sites available for film productions.
“If you’re a vendor who wants to market to the film industry or if you’re a crew member who wants to work in the film industry you can list in our real crew production directory free of charge,” Ms. Cuthbert said.
Read MoreThe Importance of Having a Dominant Position in the Market
In order to get top dollar for your business, it is necessary to prepare for the sale well in advance. In short, a tremendous amount of strategy and preparation goes into a successful sale. The amount you ultimately receive for your business is directly tied to how well you prepare.
At the top of the list of making sure that your business is attractive to potential buyers is to make certain your business is as well positioned in the market as possible. Of course, this is often easier stated than done. Here are some of the best ways to make sure your business is optimally positioned.
Tip One – Start Positioning Your Business Well in Advance
Selling your business isn’t something you should just do one day. You should start positioning your business at least one year before the closing.
Quite often, experts say business owners should always operate as though a sale is on the horizon. This makes a great deal of sense on one hand. If you ever experience an unexpected turn of events and need to sell, then you will certainly be ready. Another reason that this advice is solid is due to the fact that operating as though a sale is on the horizon helps you make certain that your business is running as effectively and efficiently as possible.
Tip Two – Always Think About Growth
Another way to ensure optimal position in the market is to always stay focused on growth. Asking yourself what steps you can take to grow your business in both the short term and the long term is a prudent move. You should always know what it takes to launch a new growth stage.
Tip Three – Customers, Lots of Customers/Clients
You don’t want a prospective buyer to see that you have only one or two key customers or clients. Understandably, this situation should make a buyer quite nervous. It comes across as extreme vulnerability. Having many varied customers or clients is a step in the right direction.
Tip Four – Be Ready for Due Diligence
Whatever you do, don’t overlook due diligence. Neglecting or waiting to prepare for the buyer’s due diligence stage until the eleventh hour is quite risky. Have all of your financial, legal and operations documents ready to go. A failure to properly handle due diligence could derail a deal or even reduce the amount you receive.
Tip Five – Understand Your Business’s Strengths and Weaknesses
Every business has strengths and weaknesses. Don’t attempt to hide your weaknesses or overplay your strengths. Be transparent!
A business broker is an expert at handling investors and even writing a business plan that you can hand to potential buyers.
Think about boosting your market position while simultaneously increasing the odds that you receive top dollar for your sale. Instead of rushing, take the time to prepare and work with a business broker to achieve the best market position and sale price possible.
Copyright: Business Brokerage Press, Inc.
Read More