Business Buyers’ Articles

It’s normal to think about interview etiquette when you’re going up for a position, but what about when you’re making the hiring decisions? In a recent Wall Street Journal article, reporter Sue Shellenbarger points out the significance of employer conduct during the selection process. It is important to think about how you treat potential employees. We all know the feeling that there aren’t enough hours in a day. With a small business, you can't put everything...

“I can’t get good employees.” How often have you heard this from small business owners? Cultivating a good team is an essential challenge. Here are some tips for attracting and retaining good employees:  Model integrity. Say what you’ll do, then do what you say. Always be respectful to employees and customers, even when you’re angry. People hear how you talk about others in moments of frustration and assume that's how you'll talk about them when they...

In a recent Harvard Business Review article, Harvard Business School professors Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff advocate for more aspiring entrepreneurs to pursue their goals by buying a business. They site concern over risk as the most common explanation for shying away from acquisition. They further argue that these concerns are short sighted and unfounded. Comparing Risk “We think that these concerns about ‘risk’ are misplaced and that searching for a business is less risky than...

SFNM-Article

To learn more about this business acquisition opportunity, visit C.G. Higgins for Sale.

By Steve Terrell The New Mexican

Posted: Friday, July 29, 2016 11:00 pm

The candy-maker wants to call it quits. Chuck Higgins, founder and proprietor of C.G. Higgins Confections, which has two locations in Santa Fe, says health problems have convinced him to sell his operation to “somebody with fresh enthusiasm. Someone who has a passion for chocolate and candy.”
Higgins, 68, said he’s tired. “I’ve been making candy for 35 years.”
He has been operating his production center and retail shop on St. Francis Drive at Ninita Street for about 15 years. Higgins also has operated a downtown shop on Lincoln Street, just north of the Plaza, since 2013. He sells his candies, Taos Cow ice cream as well as coffee, which he said comes from a cooperative in Nicaragua that’s Rainforest Alliance Certified.
“I’ve developed this great brand, this great format, a great product that tastes good,” Higgins said. “We make it all ourselves. The quiche, the truffles, the candy, the chocolate, the brittles.”
About a year ago, Higgins said, he had a transient ischemic attack, commonly called a mini stroke. “And that really kind of set me back,” he told a reporter. “It’s been really difficult to keep things going.”
He put the building on St. Francis Drive on the market a couple of months ago, he said. Then on Thursday he went public to sell his whole operation.
“I’m setting it up so the business is available with all the equipment, all the expertise, the branding, the training, everything they need to just slide right into it,” Higgins said.
He said whoever takes over can either buy or lease the building.
Higgins grew up in Iowa. For years he made a living selling candy, nuts and other treats at state fairs across the country, operating out of New Orleans and Little Rock, Ark. In the mid-1990s, he came to New Mexico to sell his caramel apples at a concession stand at the state fair. He’s lived in the state since, first in Los Lunas, where for a short time he had a restaurant. He said he worked at the New Mexico State Fair for 20 years at a booth called “Chuck’s Nuts.”
“I want to live in Santa Fe for many years,” Higgins said. “The main thing is to find a way to gently step back and turn over the day-to-day to new owners.”
Zia-ConfidentialThe businesses shown for sale on our website vary in price, location and industry, but practically all have one thing in common. Rarely do we disclose the identity. There’s multiple reasons behind this decision. When you buy an established business, you are acquiring more than furniture, fixtures, equipment and leasehold improvements. You are buying a proven model, a good name in the community, and established vendor and customer relationships. The very attributes that make a business successful may be jeopardized when it becomes publicly known that it is for sale.

Message Control

If a business’ for-sale status begins to circulate in the community, some may read this as a sign that the business is distressed. In most instances, the opposite is usually the case. Personal more so than financial reasons tend to drive a business owner’s decision to exit their company. Most sellers wait to go to market until they have a solid, sustained track record of growth. While the business is listed, they continue to focus on growing market share, revenue and bottom line profits. There are other potentially negative consequences. Vendors may begin to identify alternative outlets for their wares or services. Employees become nervous, weigh their options and circulate their resumes. Competitors could be emboldened to poach employees or encroach upon their customer base. Confidentiality allows the seller and the ultimate new owner to control this message. The latter decides when it makes sense to make this information publicaly known. Some wait a month or longer after the paperwork is officially inked to have the time to secure important relationships.

This morning Michael Greene and Simon Brackley with the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce discussed Sam Goldenberg & Associates' designation as the City of Santa Fe's 2015 Best Small Business of the Year, took a closer look at what a business broker does, and shared their thoughts on the local economy. The program aired at 11:30 am to SVSF 101.5 (The Voice of Santa Fe). To listen to the podcast, click Business Matters....

New Mexico’s small business owners bring their talents and creativity to making New Mexico the Land of Enchantment.  And in this season, the Land of Romance. Over the years, we have sold some of New Mexico’s best-known brands, including those pictured here.  Looking to make a memorable impression this Valentine’s Day? Click below to open an interactive image for some unforgettable and enchanting ideas. Want to join them? Contact us. ...

[caption id="attachment_25001" align="alignleft" width="100%"] The New York Deli in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Photo: Sam Goldenberg & Associates[/caption] Small business owners are the most optimistic they've been in seven years. This according to a Wells/Fargo Gallup Poll released last Thursday, February 5, 2015. Now at an index of +71, optimism among proprietors of Main Street businesses has increased steadily over the last two quarters. Business owners are feeling good about their current situation and are optimistic...

We enjoyed reading about the success SGA's client and restaurant buyer Lane Sanders and is having with his new enterprise Elevation Bistro, formerly the Atomic Bar and Grill. We handled the sale of this downtown restaurant in Fall 2013 and Lane immediately impressed at the time. The Santa Fe Reporter recently stopped by the bistro to give us a behind-the-scenes look at what is happening at one of the only handful of Santa Fe's late-night dining...

With SGA's own highly informal survey based on chatting with our past Santa Fe business buying clients, New Mexico appears aligned with these national trends. Small-Business Owners Love What They Do, Despite the Economy A new Gallup poll shows that eight of 10 small-business owners would do it all again if they could. May 22, 2014 By Matt Vasilogambros The National Journal The economy may rise and fall, but small-business owners remain happy with their career choice. In a new Gallup and Wells...

farmingtonAn interesting article recently appeared in the Farmington Daily Times discussing a movement just getting underway to make Farmington one of New Mexico's Arts & Cultural Districts.
Farmington artists, business owners consider New Mexico Arts and Cultural District designation
Joining program could increase tourism, revitalize downtown, officials say
April 22, 2014
By Hannah Grover, The Daily Times
FARMINGTON — Local artists hope to transform downtown Farmington into one of New Mexico's Arts and Cultural Districts over the next few years.
Running your own business is not just another job; it’s a lifestyle. With employers demanding more and giving less, many consider the trade-off worth it. What one person perceives as a burden, another relishes as an opportunity, but this is not to say that owning and running your own business is necessarily for everyone. We encourage you to look at some of the Pros and Cons and to talk to acquaintances, friends and family members who have experience owning a New Mexico business for a well-rounded idea of what the reality of running your own company is like.
passportEB-5 Immigration Assistance This is rather a glib title for what often is a long, complex process. We make every effort to help our foreign clients find a business investment suitable for their immigration and personal needs. New Mexico's multicultural milieu and bustling immigrant populations make it an attractive choice for the foreign investor. Every year, visitors from Canada, Germany, the U.K, Israel and elsewhere make Santa Fe one of their top North American destinations. When a visitor decides to live here, they sometimes review the option of an Immigrant Investor Visa, more commonly known as an EB-5 Visa. Congress created the Immigrant Investor Program  in 1990 to stimulate the U.S. economy through job creation and capital investment by foreign investors. The program provides foreign investors with a green card in exchange for investing a minimum of $1 million U.S. dollars in a new or distressed U.S business. The condition is that the business venture has to generate a minimum of 10 full-time U.S. jobs for Americans, excluding the investor or the investor's family members. According to a peer-reviewed study released by The Association to Invest in the USA, each year spending associated with EB-5 investors supports over 16,000 U.S. jobs each year, contributes $1.3 billion to U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), and investor spending brings an additional $713 million in federal tax revenue and $109 million in state and local tax revenue.
What Exactly Do You Buy When You Buy a New Mexico Business? SGA will help you understand the type of transaction it is. The vast majority of business purchases we facilitate are defined as “asset” purchases. An asset purchase specifically identifies the assets and liabilities you are purchasing or assuming. Sometimes business owners own their assets inside a corporation. The owner owns Stock in the corporation, while the corporation owns the assets. A buyer typically forms their own legal entity, such as an LLC or S Corporation, to purchase the assets from the seller’s corporation.

Typically business buyers contact us after first seeing our listings posted on our site or one of the other major internet businesses for sale portals, such as the SunbeltNetwork.com, BizQuest.com or BizBuySell com. Before providing specific information regarding the businesses that we list, we always ask you to sign a  Nondisclosure Agreement (NDA). The purpose of the NDA is protect the business for sales' confidential on-market status. An NDA prevents you from revealing this status to...