DOES YOUR BUSINESS 

 HAVE A FUTURE 



Without Your 



Bob Normandeau 



DOES YOUR BUSINESS have a future without you? 

 Think about it. It took years, lots of patience, smart 

 decisions. Or were they good guesses, lots oi risks, 

 plenty of stress and hard work — hard physical work? 

 That's probably what you did to get your business up 

 to its present value. It was your talent, your foresight, 

 your knowledge, your experience, your judgement, and 

 your abilities that put it together 



Yes, the good peole you hired helped make it hap- 

 pen. But think about it. What if you had not done 

 what you did? Do you now understand how important 

 you are to your business? What will happen when 

 you're no longer around to make things happen? 

 Thousands of businesses dissolve or are reduced to a 

 fraction of their value when owners die or become dis- 

 abled. 



That's too bad, because the resulting chaos among 

 family members and business associates could have 

 been avoided of only the proper questions ha been 

 asked and answered in advance. Questions like... 

 a How much will it take to buy or sell my 



share or his/her share in the business? 

 "« Who will own the business after I'm gone? 

 'e' Can they run it successfully? 

 "i' Will my absence result in a financial burden 

 by requiring the services of an experienced 



business manager? 

 ¥ What are the various methods available to 



protect the value of a business? 

 ■ft' How do we provide continuation? 



All too often these questions are asked only after 

 an owner or partner dies. All too often, without his or 

 her availability, the wrong answers come up. And the 

 business begins to die. 



Here are two scenes that demonstrate these principles. 



SCENE A IS AT THE GREEN LEAF GARDEN 

 CENTER: 



Background ; Brothers George and Fred bought the 

 Garden Center five years ago from an old man who 

 just wanted out! He couldn't stand dealing with the 

 public any more and his accounts receivable were kill- 

 ing him. George and Fred each put up $25,000. They 

 got along very well. The business grew and now has 

 substantial value. The were offered $500,000 for the 

 business a month ago. They love the work and turned 

 the offer down flat. 



Today: This morning Fred died of an embolism to 

 the brain. He was ringing up a sale when it happened. 

 He was dead within 20 minutes. 



The funeral was uneventful, but after everyone had 

 gone home, his wife read Fred's will. It said, "1 leave 

 everything to my beloved wife Emelda!" 



Guess who has a new partner? George not only has 

 to learn how to work with Emelda — now each of her 

 six children think changes are needed at the Garden 

 Center. Poor Emelda — she never had to deal with all 

 this! Poor George — he's in a no-win position, unless 

 he buys Emelda out. Let's see... that's $5000,000 di- 

 vided by 2 — no way George can come up with that. 

 Fine, says Emelda, I'll give my share to the kids. 



SCENE B IS AT THE GREEN LEAF GARDEN 



CENTER 



Background: Same — but after reading an article in The 



PlantSTTian, Fred and George sit with there independent 



insurance agent and work out a buy/sell agreement. 



They work out an agreement that goes like this. 



If one dies, the other uses the proceeds from a life 

 insurance policy to buy the widow's share. If no one 

 dies, the cash value of the policy is used to provide 

 retirement benefits to each. The premium is paid by 

 the business, the cash value becomes an asset to the 

 business and perpetuation is assured. 



Events today: Fred dies just as before, but now after 

 the funeral, George gives Emelda a check for 

 $250,000. He received that money from the insurance 

 company because he was the policy beneficiary. 

 Emelda transfers Fred's share of the business to 

 George. George now owns 100% of the business. 

 George is saddened by his brother's untimely death, 

 but he now can run the business without interference 

 from inexperienced relatives. 



These two scenes demonstrate clearly why many sound 

 businesses fail to survive after their owners leave this 

 planet. 



Plan your business' future. Talk to an experienced 

 insurance agent or financial planner. Your family, your 

 employees, your customers, your suppliers are all de- 

 pending on you to make one more smart decision. »*• 



Bob NoTmandeau is President of Wageman Insurance 

 Company, 1217 Elm Street, Manchester, NH 03101. 

 He can he reached at (603) 623-2451. 



October/November 1992 17 



