Member benefits

Fourteen Georgia Business Brokers Achieve 2021 GABB Million Dollar Club

The top five brokers in the 2021 GABB Million Dollar Club are, from left , Steve Josovitz, Matt Wochele, Sarabjeet Kaur, J. Snypp and Jeff Merry. Photo by Roger Easley

Fourteen members of the Georgia Association of Business Brokers (GABB) were named to the 2021 Million Dollar Club for helping broker the sale of more than $86 million worth of small, medium and large businesses. 

The GABB Million Dollar Club awards recognizes professional Business Brokers for successfully
closing business acquisition transactions totaling one million dollars or more. The GABB has the only accredited real estate school in Georgia that focuses on business brokerage.

The top producer for 2021 was Sarabjeet Kaur, a Business Broker and Realtor with Virtual Properties Realty.

“It’s an honor to be included among the industry’s top producing brokers this year,” said Sarabjeet Kaur. “I’m grateful to GABB for elevating the profession of business brokerage and for bringing so many successful like-minded individuals together. It’s a powerful organization, and I’m glad to be a part of it.”

Business brokers among the top five brokers with multi-million dollars in business sales for the year are Jeffery Merry, founder of the BUSINESS HOUSE, inc.; Matt Wochele, founder of Preferred Business Brokers, Inc.; J. Snypp, Vice President at Preferred Business Brokers, Inc; and Steve Josovitz, Senior Vice President at The Shumacher Group.

Other multi-million-dollar brokers were Lisa Young, Senior Business Advisor at Transworld Business Advisors of Atlanta; Brian Judson, Senior Business Broker at Best Business Brokers (B3); Jon Merry, Senior Business Broker with the BUSINESS HOUSE, inc.; Pedro Ferreira, Business Advisor at Transworld Business Advisors of Atlanta; Greg DeFoor, founder of DeFoor Business Services, Inc.; Rob Margeton, Business Broker and M&A Intermediary with Ryco Advisors, LLC; and Dean Burnette, founder of Best Business Brokers (B3).

Other million dollar honorees were Michael Horwitz, Business Broker and M&A Advisor with Transworld Business Advisors of Atlanta; and Brad Coffman, President and Managing Director of Valorem Business Brokers.

Mr. Snypp and Mr. Jon Merry were honored as Phoenix Members of the Million Dollar Club for
achieving more than a million dollars in sales for any ten years.

Mr. Judson, Mr. Ferreira, and Mr. Burnette were honored as Life Members of the Million Dollar Club for achieving more than a million dollars in sales for three consecutive years or any five years.

The Georgia Association of Business Brokers (GABB) is the state’s only professional organization dedicated to buying and selling businesses and franchises. GABB broker members have represented thousands of business sellers and buyers, and the group has a dedicated membership of lenders, attorneys and other professionals to assist business buyers and sellers at every step of the process.

“The Georgia Association of Business Brokers is dedicated to improving the professionalism of our members through education, through the Board Certified Broker program, and through our Code of Ethics,” explains GABB President Judy Mims. “Our members have the opportunity to network with others in this field and in supporting professions, which ensures smoother transactions.”

The GABB’s website lists hundreds of businesses and franchises for sale throughout Georgia in a variety of fields, including automotive, business services, child care, cleaning, construction, electronics equipment, fitness, flooring, floral, food, gas stations, landscaping, manufacturing, medical, shipping, restaurants, retail, security, signs, and businesses related to the internet. 

Find a professional business broker today at https://gabb.org/gabb-business-brokers/. 

The Awardees:

SARABJEET KAUR, a business broker and REALTOR® with Virtual Properties Realty, specializes in commercial properties, hotels, and convenience stores. She is a member of the Northeast Atlanta Metro Association of REALTORS® (NAMAR) and the Atlanta Commercial Board of REALTORS®. She was 2019-2020 Million Dollar Club Gold Award winner with NAMAR; a Million Dollar Club Active Member 2019 and 2020 with Atlanta Commercial Board of REALTORS®; and a 2019-2020 All-Star Award winner with Virtual Properties Realty. She is a member of the Asian-American Real Estate Association of America (AREAA). She studied in Delhi, India, with certifications in IT and fashion designing. She earned her REALTOR’s license in 2017 and is a licensed Life Insurance agent in Georgia. She and her husband, Prakash Srivastava, and her teenage daughter live in Cumming, Georgia, where they are involved in social activities with Sewa International, a Hindu faith-based, humanitarian, non-profit service organization. 

JEFFERY MERRY, Sr., M.B.A. J.D., past president of the GABB, has been the GABB’s top producer many times and has been a part of the Million Dollar Club since its inception in 1999. He is a GABB board member and will continue to be on the GABB board in 2022. Mr. Merry, owner and founder of the BUSINESS HOUSE, inc., is also a member of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA) and the Business Brokers of Florida Association. For more than three decades, his firm has specialized in serving the manufacturing, distribution, technology, service, veterinary and medical industries. As a business intermediary, Certified Exit Planner, and consultant, Mr. Merry has been involved in mergers and acquisitions that have ranged in acquisition price from $60,000 to more than $15 million. He is a member of the Advisory Board at the University of North Georgia and is a past adjunct instructor for their MBA program. Mr. Merry holds a bachelor’s degree from Mercer University in Macon, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Illinois Edwardsville, and a Juris Doctor degree from Atlanta Law School. Mr. Merry is a licensed Real Estate Agent in several southeastern states, a Senior Business Analyst, and a member of the Exit Planning Institute. Mr. Merry and his wife, Mary, reside in Suwanee. He has five children and five grandchildren and enjoys traveling, reading, and riding his motorcycle. 

MATT WOCHELE, CBI founded Preferred Business Brokers, Inc. in 1996 after a successful 17-year career in the investment banking industry. He is a Life Member of the GABB’s Million Dollar Club, Vice President of the GABB board, a GABB Phoenix Award recipient and a member of IBBA. As President and Managing Broker of Preferred Business Brokers, Inc., he has had the opportunity to be personally involved in hundreds of private business sales. The combined personal experience in the public sector with the private business sales has positioned the company to handle both the smaller main street business deals and the larger middle-market business acquisitions. Matt and his wife, Kathy, a professional artist, have five daughters and live in Sandy Springs.

J. SNYPP III, a former GABB board member and recent continuing education class instructor, lives in Dunwoody, grew up in Atlanta, and graduated from Georgia Southern University with a degree in marketing. Mr. Snypp spent more than two decades in the office furniture business before becoming a business broker and has been with Preferred Business Brokers, Inc. for more than fifteen years, serving as Vice President and Associate Broker. He has found success selling businesses in a variety of industries, most recently selling a medical services company and a landscaping business. He is past president of the Dunwoody North Driving Club, a board member of the Dunwoody High School Gridiron Club, and chairman of the Wildcat Classic Golf Tournament which benefits the Dunwoody High School Football Team. He has also served on the board of the Dunwoody High School Tip-Off Club and the diaconate of his church. He is married and has two boys, ages eighteen and twenty-three. Therefore, when he is not selling businesses, he is usually trying to keep up with the boys or involved in some other family activity.   

STEVEN JOSOVITZ is Senior Vice President of The Shumacher Group, having joined the firm in 1992. He heads up the company’s restaurant business brokerage division in addition to providing commercial retail and restaurant real estate site selection, sales, and lease negotiation expertise. A former restaurant owner and trained professional chef, Mr. Josovitz has an extensive background in restaurant and hotel management. He earned a B.S. in Hotel/Restaurant Management from Florida International University in 1981 and has studied in Europe. As a 28-year GABB member, Mr. Josovitz is a Life Member and a past recipient of the Phoenix Award. He annually receives the GABB’s Multi-Million Dollar Club Award and Top Five Award for business and restaurant brokerage sales in Georgia.

LISA YOUNG is a Senior Business Advisor at Transworld Business Advisors of Atlanta North.  She is an alumna of Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, where she earned a BBA in Information Systems. Through her extensive background in real estate, entrepreneurship, and business consulting, Ms. Young brings a broad spectrum of knowledge and expertise to her clients and is passionate about helping them achieve their goals. She maintains residences in both Canton and Greensboro so that she may better serve her clients. She is a Life Member of the GABB Multi-Million Dollar Club and has been a Transworld Business Advisors President’s Club member for the last four years. A proud “Gigi” of three grandchildren, Ms. Young enjoys hiking, swimming, boating, golf, and volunteer work with organizations such as Second Harvest Food Bank, Habitat for Humanity, and her church.

BRIAN JUDSON has been a Senior Business Broker with Best Business Brokers (B3) since 2015. He has more than a dozen years in the business brokerage industry after thirty years in automotive service management. In 2021, he served on the boards of Buy Local Savannah and TEDx Savannah. He holds a leadership position in Gulfstream’s Student Leadership program mentoring high school students and is a member of the Savannah Traffic Club, the CFO Council of Savannah, and the Savannah Estate Planning Council. His recent community involvement includes chairing the Savannah Historic Review Board, serving on an investment panel for United Way, and being a Master Docent at the Telfair Academy and the Jepson Center for the Arts. Brian moved to Savannah in 2006 after more than thirty years in Santa Cruz, California. He and his wife, Liza, a Coordinator of Advising at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), have three children, two rescue mutts, and more art than they can hang at any one time.

JON MERRY, a senior business broker with the BUSINESS HOUSE, inc., has been in the Business Mergers and Acquisition Industry for more than fifteen years. He specializes in serving the manufacturing, distribution, service, medical, and healthcare industries. He has a keen understanding of the buying and selling process and is well versed in the industry, handling a wide range of deal-making activities for the firm and assisting with numerous M&A transactions. Since 2012, Mr. Merry has been recognized as one of the GABB’s top five brokers for closed M&A transactions and is a former GABB board member. In addition, he has been a Certified Machinery/Equipment Appraiser (CMEA) with the National Equipment Business Builders Institute (NEBB Institute) since 2000 and became a Master CMEA in 2014. As a CMEA, he is intensively trained in the legal requirements involving USPAP standards, as well as the methodology approach employed in establishing fair market value, orderly liquidation value, and forced liquidation value in any market condition. Mr. Merry is a member of IBBA and the International Society of Business Analysts (ISBA). A native of Georgia, Mr. Merry was a professional umpire for Minor League Baseball for eleven years. He and his wife, RaeLynda, and their two sons, Jacob and Joseph, live in Historic Dahlonega.

PEDRO FERREIRA is a Business Broker with Transworld Business Advisors. Mr. Ferreira has successfully sold businesses from several industries including technology, automotive, retail, hospitality, construction, distribution, beauty, and manufacturing. He is committed to creating win-win deals by listening to the needs of all the parties involved and providing the most comprehensive business sale process. Mr. Ferreira has volunteered as a PR Director with the Brazilian American Chamber of Commerce of the Southeast and has published business and economics articles in government and international media publications. He is currently on the advisory board of the Customer Experience Executive Education program at George Washington University and has served on the Food and Beverage Advisory Board of the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Ferreira has volunteered as Assistant Director of Development at Peacebuilding Solutions and as an Artistic Associate for Pinch ‘N’ Ouch Theatre. He currently lives in Suwanee with his wife, Sara Bess, two children, Olivia and Leonardo, and their pet Yorkshire Terrier, Sampson.

GREG DeFOOR is a business broker, CPA, and Certified Fraud Examiner. He became a business broker in 2002 after working in public accounting followed by private industry experience as an accounting and financial executive in the healthcare and retail automotive industries. While in private industry, he was engaged in business transactions and decided to use that knowledge and experience to start his own firm. He has a unique blend of accounting, tax, corporate finance, business advisory and transaction experience to use for the benefit of his clients. He has an active Georgia real estate broker’s license. His firm, DeFoor Business Services, Inc., specializes in the sale of small and middle-market privately owned businesses in a diverse mix of industrial classifications. Mr. DeFoor is a past President and current board member of the GABB. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree with a concentration in accounting from Auburn University. He resides in Cobb County.

ROB MARGETON is co-owner of Ryco Advisors, LLC, a professional lower-middle market business brokerage firm serving Atlanta and the Southeast that specializes in selling owner-operated businesses with annual revenues between $3 million and $50 million. He has more than eighteen years of experience in financial services and as a business owner. Prior to co-founding Ryco Advisors, Mr. Margeton was a Managing Director at a New York middle-market financial restructuring firm and has worked on more than fifty transactions across a diverse set of industries. He also has extensive experience running and managing his own business. Together with his wife, Mr. Margeton acquired the flagship Fleet Clean location in 2013 and oversaw a successful sales process in 2018. During their tenure, they successfully grew revenues and EBITDA by 75% and 95%, respectively. They managed more than thirty employees and served more than 150 clients throughout Metro Atlanta, including many Fortune 500 companies. An Eagle Scout and a Certified M&A Professional, he is a member of M&A Source and the Atlanta Commercial Board of REALTORS®. He and his family reside in Peachtree City.

DEAN BURNETTE is the founder of Best Business Brokers (B3) in Savannah. More than three decades of business ownership and management experience in various industries have given Mr. Burnette a wide range of experience and business knowledge. These experiences contribute to his abilities to help identify and qualify appropriate buyers, put together sales prospectuses, negotiate terms of a sale, and recognize the importance of confidentiality in these types of business transactions. He has been a member of the GABB Multi-Million Dollar Club many times. Mr. Burnette, a past president of GABB, is excited about the many opportunities that the current economic conditions and recent economic events have created in Georgia. He is a sponsor of the Georgia Logistics Summit; a past president of the Savannah Small Business Chamber; and a member of the Savannah Traffic Club, Savannah Real Estate Commercial Alliance, GAR, and NAR. Mr. Burnette also serves on the Education Advisory Committee for the Georgia Real Estate Commission and on the Board of Directors for Maritime Bethel Savannah. He is married and has two children and four terrific grandchildren.

MICHAEL HORWITZ is a Business Broker and M&A Advisor with Transworld Business Advisors of Atlanta North. He has been helping people buy and sell small and lower-middle market businesses for more than five years. His experience runs the gamut from senior management roles in Fortune 500 corporations to leadership positions with venture capital-backed high-tech enterprises. Mr. Horwitz also brings small business knowledge through his seven years of owning an independent bicycle shop. He has been in the North Atlanta area for more than twenty-five years now. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and received his undergraduate degree from Case Western Reserve University. After ten years in the workforce, he went on to receive his M.B.A. from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Horwitz is an avid cyclist, kayaker, and backpacker.

BRAD COFFMAN, CBI, CM&AP, CFC, BTS, is President and Managing Director of Valorem Business Brokers and has more than fifteen years of experience in starting and growing businesses. Mr. Coffman is an entrepreneur who was only twenty years old when he established his first startup company, which grew to a multi-million dollar entity with more than thirty employees within the first two years. Mr. Coffman’s diverse background as a founder and CEO of multiple businesses includes commercial real estate, commercial relocation services, mergers and acquisitions, restaurants, and more. He has won several awards and designations during his career in Florida and Georgia including but not limited to GABB Million Dollar Club Top Five, IBBA Members Excellence Award, and IBBA Chairman’s Circle Award. Mr. Coffman resides in Palm Beach, Florida, with his wife and two sons.

Photo Gallery:

1 2 3 ►

Sign up to Attend the Dec. 9 GABB Holiday Gala

The 2021 GABB Holiday Gala will be held on Dec. 9, 2021, at Villa Christina.

Our annual gala will also be the occasion of presenting the 2021 Million Dollar Club awards to the association’s top-selling brokers. Brokers who qualify have until Nov. 5 to apply.

We ask that every attendee contribute at least $35 per guest (feel free to donate more!) to the Foster Care Support Foundation. This group helps some of the more than 15,000 children in Georgia who are in foster care, not including hundreds of thousands of children being raised by thousands of grandparents, relatives, or fictive kin. They support these children by providing vital, basic needs.  Please note in your online donation that you are a member of the GABB. 

The Foundation gives out more than $12 million of in-kind items to foster and displaced children each year and their budget is a fraction of that with no government funding. A tax deductible receipt will be sent to you for your donation. Thank you for making a difference!

GABB Million Dollar Club Applications Due Nov. 5

The GABB is now accepting applications for the 2021 Million Dollar Club, recognizing members who have sold businesses that added together are worth at least $1 million in the previous year.  The deadline for submitting applications is Nov. 5, 2021.

Awardees will be honored at the annual GABB Holiday Gala on Dec. 9 at Villa Christina. GABB board members Jeff Merry and Jon Roman comprise the Million Dollar Club committee and will review the applications.

GABB members are eligible for the:

• Million Dollar Club if they have eligible sales from Nov. 1, 2020 to Oct. 31, 2021 of  $1,000,000 to $1,999,999.
• Multi-Million Dollar Club if they have eligible sales generated totaling $2,000,000 or more during the same period.
• Life Membership in the Million Dollar Club when they’ve been elected to the Million Dollar Club for three consecutive years or any 5 years.
• Phoenix Award if they have been elected to the Million Dollar Club for any 10 years.
• Silver Phoenix if they have been elected to the Million Dollar Club for any 25 years.

To be eligible for the award, an applicant must be a current member in good standing of the Georgia Association of Business Brokers. Each business sold doesn’t have to be worth more than a million, but the total sales price of all businesses sold during the qualifying period must total a million or more. Only transactions closed after the effective date of membership in GABB will count towards Million Dollar Club volume.  All Million Dollar Club members must have attended at least three GABB events during the eligible period, such as meetings, conferences, or social events, either in person or online.

The online application, along with detailed rules about the club, can be found at the GABB website.

Million Dollar Club rules:

Please contact diane.loupe@gabb.org or 770-744-3639 if you have any additional questions about this matter, or if you are unable to complete this application online.

Affordable Care Act Enrollment Reopened

The Affordable Care Act Open Enrollment period has reopened (Feb 15 – May 15th)

By Bob Smith, GABB Affiliate and Licensed Health & Life Insurance Agent

It has been almost 12 months since we began experiencing challenges brought to bear by the COVID-19 virus.  The challenges have been on multiple fronts leaving few people unscathed.  Due to no fault of their own, many individuals have been impacted by business closures creating an unenviable reality of lost employer sponsored group health insurance.  Being able to afford monthly premiums with the loss of income can make shopping for health insurance devastating.  This at a time when being without health coverage can cause a family a medical and financial crisis.       

The Federal Government recently addressed this potentially dire situation by reopening of the Affordable Care Act Open Enrollment period. Effective February 15 thru May 15 individuals have an opportunity to select health insurance on the Federal Marketplace at healthcare.gov.  Subsidies based upon estimated 2021 income can lower monthly premiums making the health plans affordable during this difficult time.   

No one can anticipate the unexpected and being without health insurance creates a vulnerable situation.  In order to avoid the medical and financial consequences of an illness, accident or injury it’s important to be proactive before the window of opportunity closes. 

Selecting coverage that addresses a family budget can present pitfalls while there are resources to help avoid making a mistake in the plan selection process.  The process can be confusing when considering provider networks, copays, deductibles and out of pocket maximums, etc.  With this in mind consider utilizing the services of a licensed Georgia Insurance Agent who also has been certified by the Federal Government to represent the insurance companies on the Marketplace.  In most cases the services provided by agents is at no cost to individuals as they are compensated by the insurance companies. 

The Affordable Care Act Open Enrollment will end on May 15 for plans issued June 1, and applications submitted in March will be issued in May.  The time to be proactive to secure health insurance is now.

Bob Smith, Licensed Health & Life Insurance Agent

Bob@BobCaresForYou.com

www.BobCaresForyou.com

404-593-9663

Million Dollar Brokers Share the Secrets of Their Success

Would you like a chance to hear from Georgia’s most successful business brokers?

Some of the 19 members of the 2020 Million Dollar Club spoke to the Georgia Association of Business Brokers on Dec. 16, and shared their thoughts about what has made them successful. They mentioned referrals, integrity, good communication and networking within the GABB. Hear more about what they had to say at this link.

Collectively, the 2020 Million Dollar Club honorees sold almost $61 million worth of small, medium and large businesses. The honorees were named on Dec. 10 at the GABB’s annual Holiday Gala.

The GABB provide leadership and resources to promote professional business brokerage and to provide education and resources to improve our profession. To achieve that goal, the GABB endeavors to establish a multi-faceted communication system among members, buyers, and sellers and the resource industries needed to accomplish the sale and purchase of businesses in Georgia. For more information about GABB, contact 2021 GABB President Judy Mims at 404-842-1997 or judy@childcare.properties, or Diane Loupe at diane.loupe@gabb.org or by calling 770-744-3639,