September 26, 2001
A
When Selling Makes Sense
faced about the unknow n results
of the split. Financially, the origi
ness into two separate entities is nal business was doing well.
how second generation brothers W ould the separate businesses
Jon and David Marks chose to survive the costs o f the split and
maintain a closely-knit family. The o f form ing new adm inistration
brothers had worked together for and operations? H appily, in the
thirty years and admit that they second year after the 1997 split
have different management and and m any grow ing pains, each
philosophy styles. However, when business alone is earning more
the third generation began to enter than the original single com pany
the business, David and Jon knew ever did.
SHAPING A SALE
sotnething needed to change if the
There are legal and financial
family and the business was going
implications when selling the fam
to survive.
Fortunately, the Marks com ily business. All of the companies
pany had two separate locations in this article worked with attor
and separate clientele. “I resisted neys, accountants and financial
at first when David recommended I and investment advisors. Sale of a
that we split,” says Jon, “but I family business can take time.
The greatest difficulties often
eventually saw that it would work
and give each of use the latitude to lie in the personal emotions asso
ciated with a sale.
grow.”
Som etim es a fam ily business
Naturally, fear and anxiety sur-
continued
from C8
d o esn ’t know w hether selling is
the right thing to do. They might
not know the questions to ask
and w here to start. “Jon and I
went to a three-day seminar given
by Pat Frishkoff,” says David
M arks. "It was an eye opener,
and it helped give us direction.
Pat listened and assured us that
we were experiencing normal fam
ily business issues.” Jon credits
Pat with getting them through
the process, “The educational
tools and w orkshops of the A us
tin Family Business Program were
a superb resource for us.”
Kay Cooke is the Marketing
Manager of the Austin Family
Business Program of Oregon
State University. She can he
reached by calling 541-737-
6014 or 800-859-7609. For more
on the program, go online to
wHW.familybusinessonline.org.
To Lease or Not to Lease
Should you buy or
should you lease your
building space and your
equipment when you
start out in a new small
business? Very often,
it’s sm arter to lease
rather than take on the
large financial outlays
or debts necessary to
buy.
W hen it’s smarter to
lease, here are some of
the q u e stio n s you
should ask before putting your
’name on the dotted line:
1. Does the lease specifically
state the square footage of the
prem ises? T he to tal rentable
square footage of the building?
2. Is the tenant’s share of ex
penses based on total square foot
age o f the building or the square
footage leased by the landlord?
Your share may be lower if it’s
based on the total square footage.
3. Do the base year expenses
reflect full occupancy or are they
adjusted to full occupancy (i.e.,
base year real estate taxes on an
unfinished building are lower than
in subsequent years)?
4. Must the landlord provide a
detailed list of expenses, prepared
by a CPA, to support increases?
5. Does the lease clearly give the
tenant the right to
audit the landlord's
books or records?
6. If use of the
building is in te r
ru p te d , d o es the
lease define the rem
edies available to the
tenant, such as rent
abatement or lease
cancellation?
7. If the landlord
does not meet repair
responsibilities, can
the tenant make the repairs, after
notice to the landlord, and deduct
the cost from the rent?
8. Is the landlord required to
obtain nondisturbance agreements
from current and future lenders?
9. Does the lease clearly define
how disputes will be decided?
For more information on all of
SBA ’s programs for small busi
nesses, go online to www.sba.gov.
Bring ¡Jour Hext
Conference or M in g
Io Portland, Oregon
Rov Jav. President/CEO
FREE ASSISTANCE:
(503) 244-5794 EXT 45
www.minorityconventions.com
www.oregoncvb.com
R oy J ay E nterprises I nc .
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I
(In partnership with P0VA)
We Support
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Page C9
MINORITY BUSINESS
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♦ PACIFIC POWER
Pacific Power a Division
of Pacificorp
Joins with
CL he JUnxdlanh (Oh se ru er
in Celebratili
Minority Business
Development week.
Let us take time to honor the energy,
determination, and optimism of our state's
minoritv entrepreneurs.
Pacificorp believes that support of the Enterprise
Zone can be an integral part of the development of
an economically strong and livable community.