BRIDGEPORT, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--There are 28.8 million small businesses in the United States which make up for 99.7 percent of all businesses in the country, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. However, a large number of business owners fail to successfully plan for retirement or business conversion. Designed Destinations, a book by Lawrence J. Ganim, shares how business owners can create a thoughtful, measured plan to work on their business while preparing for the ultimate transfer or sale of the business.
“All business owners part with their businesses voluntarily or otherwise. All owners want to receive – or have their heirs receive – the maximum amount of money when the business changes hands,” writes Ganim. “As the most tangible reward for entrepreneurial creativity and persistence, the money is an important measure of success.”
A 2015 survey from the Financial Planning Association and CNBC revealed that 78 percent of small business owners planned to sell their businesses in order to fund their retirement. These same owners would need the money from the sale of the business to fund 60 to 100 percent of their retirement needs. Yet, less than 30 percent of these same business owners actually have a written succession plan.
Many business owners fail to plan before an emergency or when finances are strained, making it difficult to plan for the future or foresee problems with their businesses. Ganim warns that making decisions based on a crisis leaves you vulnerable and often leads to financial pitfalls.
With more than 30 years’ experience in succession planning, Ganim is passionate about planning and says, “My mission is to advise business owners on how to achieve the strongest possible position for the sale of their business to outside or inside buyers.”
Ganim illustrates how business owners can create a consciously designed Ownership Conversion Plan™ (OCP) which will ensure that business owners are in full control of a realistic and timely approach to passing on your business. Creating a sound OCP is achieved in seven key steps outlined in the book. The steps include assessing your retirement goals, taking stock of your assets, making your business as attractive as possible for buyers, planning for your business to run with or without you, establishing income outside of your business, deciding to sell or transfer ownership from the inside or out and, finally, receiving the maximum value of the conversion with the highest after-tax cash in your pocket.
A keen understanding of opportunities to leverage financial instruments and tax planning can dramatically reduce the impact on the business, the purchaser, and the seller. In addition to planning for your future financial and retirement goals, the OCP will make your business run more efficiently and more profitable today.
In order to achieve the OCP, it is important for business owners to develop a team of trusted advisors including a financial advisor, a CPA, legal counsel and various other professionals, depending on your line of business. These team members will examine your business from every angle and determine how to ensure you have a functioning, growing and attractive business while laying the foundation for your road to retirement.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration and the Internal Revenue Service estimate that Americans will need 70 to 90 percent of their preretirement income to maintain their current standard of living when they stop working. Establishing a retirement plan helps your business, your employees and yourself.
Find more information about the book at www.designed-destinations.com.
About the Author
Larry Ganim’s passion for working with the entrepreneur is boundless. He believes that, by helping the business owner, he helps many others as a result. Benefiting the owner also benefits all those who depend on the business to support themselves and their families. A healthy thriving business benefits all. Larry’s passion is evident in every client interaction where honest and direct communication can always be counted on by all involved.
Ganim comes from an entrepreneurial family, having worked most of his childhood in his father’s business, before entering in his new profession in 1981 when he became licensed as an insurance broker. He began almost immediately reaching out to those he admired most – local business owners – learning about their passions and needs.
He has spent most of the last 36 years working with entrepreneurs. Larry founded his own business in 1985, focusing on the entrepreneur and their unique needs as business owners. Larry is the founder and president of Ganim Financial and GFS Wealth Management Advisors, Inc. He is very active in his local community in Connecticut and in his industry, having served in leadership positions on many boards over the years.
About the Book
Designed Destinations is available through Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
“This book is a must read for entrepreneurs. The author, a successful financial services consultant, clearly lays out a comprehensive road map for entrepreneurs to plan the profitable transition or sale of their business,” wrote one reader. “Strategies and tactics are clearly defined including real life examples. His book focuses on the importance of setting a quantifiable plan for future divestiture of the business, retirement and financial security immediately.”
