I’ve always wanted to own a coffee house!

Scott Sceili just listed a fantastic pair of coffee houses in Salt Lake County (view details  at http://coldwellm-a.com/listings_bb.html#new5). How do you know if this is the business for you?

Scott says the ideal coffee house owner “has great customer service skills, a food background, and a desire to be an integral part of their new neighborhood. And they love to get up really early!”

As the owner of these coffee houses, you can expect hands-on involvement in preparing food and drinks, and you’ll be rewarded with relationships with happy, loyal customers.

New listing — and why should you buy a franchise, anyway?

Scott Sceili’s new listing (click here to view : http://tinyurl.com/38wqpgr) is a very well-respected auto service & repair franchise. So what are some of the benefits of buying a franchise?

Brand recognition — you are buying into an established, nationally known brand. The franchisor has, hopefully, put considerable resources into building a brand that consumers recognize and trust. That’s a lot of work and expense already taken care of for you.

Proven business model — you can see how successful other franchisees have been. Or not.

Support — franchisors typically offer on-going administrative, operational and advertising support. This can range from initial site selection and training to  advice on running your business day to day .

To learn more, you can also reach Scott at scotts@coldwellm-a.com.

New Listing

Check out our latest listing — a budget motel with great access to Yellowstone National Park, Jackson Hole and the Tetons. More here:

http://coldwellm-a.com/listings_bb.html#new6

The Good News Keeps Coming

According to Pitchbook, 2011 has gotten off to a rallying start, with 114 deals closing in the first 3 weeks of January. These deals represent the highest aggregate value for that time period since 2002, with the exception of boom-year 2007.  The total number of deals is slightly lower than 2010′s 122, but represents an improvement over 2009. There is some skepticism about whether this momentum can be sustained, though. Read more, and view their handy chart, here:

https://my.pitchbook.com/viewnewsletter/OImgU-2uPSX

Encouraging Signs for Private Equity

Pitchbook has published their 2011 Private Equity Breakdown. The first line is encouraging: “The U.S. private equity industry, by many measures, turned
in one of its best years in 2010, despite the overall poor economic conditions and turbulent financial markets.” While still far from the levels of the boom year of 2007, 2010 showed clear signs of recovery. And big deals are back, as access to leverage improved. Download the full report at: http://www.pitchbook.com/library.html

A strong finish & a promising start

2010 finished on a strong note for Coldwell Banker mergers & Acquisitions, and 2011 is getting off to a very promising start.

CBM&A ended the year with the sale of EVCO House of Hose to Lewis-Goetz & Company. You can read the press release here: http://coldwellm-a.com/pdf/EVCO_press%20release.pdf. The deal was signed on December 31.

On January 10th, Scott Sceili closed the first deal of the new year. He sold a successful pest control business to a new owner.

We are starting to see our business thawing out, despite the ridiculously cold temperatures here in Salt Lake City. Buyer activity is picking up and, as the economy continues to show signs of improvement, there will be even more attractive companies looking for new owners.

Another Successful Closing

Garit Lawson, V.P. & Director of Coldwell Banker Commercial’s Mergers & Acquisitions group, just completed the sale of Summit and Wasatch counties’ oldest and largest residential and commercial painting contractor.

According to Garit, the transaction was a success because “(t)he company has a 35 year history of being the top painting contractor in Summit and Wasatch counties. As such, it was able to be a steady performer during the difficult housing and economic conditions of the last couple of years. The buyer was a good fit because of their strong financial and operational backgrounds. Their understanding of the acquisition lending market helped them navigate an improving, but still difficult, SBA lending environment. A year earlier, this deal could probably not have been financed. Their strong operational experience will help them understand and transition the management of the business.”

If you want to learn more about how to sell your comapny, please click here:   http://coldwellm-a.com/pdf/download_seller.pdf

If you want to see the other successful companies we have fro sale, please click here:  http://coldwellm-a.com/listings_bb.html

New listing: Fast Food Franchise

This successful hamburger franchise has been in business over 10 years and is one of about two thousand franchise or company-owned stores. This location has been remodeled and will not need any additional remodeling for at least five years. Eight years remain on the lease, from an original 20 year base term, with two 5 year options.

The franchise is owned by a non-operational owner who lives in a different state. The Store Manager has been there for eight years, is very good and will stay post-closing. His salary is $36,000 per year and is reflected in the financial statements.

The current franchise agreement provides options for two additional stores in the area. The fees due to the corporate franchisor are $10,000 per store to exercise the options and then $15,000 per store once the stores are built. New franchisees (an individual who owns at least 10% of the company) are required to go through an 8-10 week training class with a cost of approximately $2,500.

You can learn more at http://coldwellbusinessbrokers.com/listings_bb.html#new2

That was quick!

Scott Sceili closed on the sale of the HVAC company on 11/30. The company, with $99K of adjusted net income on $765K in annual sales, sold for $240,000.

Scott says “It was attractive to the buyer because it was a well established 24 year-old business. It was very well organized operationally and it had excellent financial records. The buyer had over 4 years experience in HVAC management and was well capitalized. Both buyer and seller were very motivated to make the deal happen. It was 15 days from listing to closing. That is what an experienced broker can do.”

If you’d like to learn more about how to sell your business, you can download our tutorial here: http://coldwellbusinessbrokers.com/pdf/download_seller.pdf

New Listing — Successful HVAC Company

Agent Scott Sceili has just listed an HVAC comany serving customers all along the Wasatch Front. Learn more here:
http://www.coldwellm-a.com/listings_bb.html#new1