How Long Have You Been a Shop Owner, & When Are You Looking to Retire?

[Joe Marconi]

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[Transmission Repair]

I've been in transmission repair industry for 40 years and been a shop owner 26 years.  I've already retired quite comfortably.

[xrac]

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[Transmission Repair]

16 minutes ago, xrac said:

I will be 70 in December and have ran a shop 24 years in March. My shop is for sale. Covid hit and killed a potential sale. Another sale was killed because another less expensive shop came up for sale during due diligence.  We have had five shops or body shops change hands here in the last year. 

Are you selling the real estate with the sale of the business or just the business?

[xrac]

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[Transmission Repair]

34 minutes ago, xrac said:

We will consider both options. I would prefer to lease the real estate. 

I started out by being the mortgage holder to the real estate.  $9,100 month.  Then the owner sold it all and the new buyer paid the mortgage off in one lump sum.   I didn't have an early payoff clause/penalty.  Sadly, we had to pay $400K in income taxes because the real estate alone sold for $2.3M.  Damit that hurt. 😞  Leasing is better.

[tomkatv10]

Two years, I’m out. Some of the employees are forming a corporation in 2023 to buy the business in 2024. I’ve been in it for 28 years and at the 30th year, I will walk away. I will stay on, though, for about 6 months in a consulting role. After that, my plan is to consult younger shop owners to help them grow their businesses. I have been approached by a coaching company already, but they don’t fit my style so I’ll be looking around for the best fit. As for the real estate side, I own several residential rentals and have had no desire to own commercial real estate in the state of NJ. Leasing has always been the best option for me.

[Joe Marconi]

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[Joe Marconi]

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[Transmission Repair]

1 hour ago, tomkatv10 said:

Two years, I’m out. Some of the employees are forming a corporation in 2023 to buy the business in 2024. I’ve been in it for 28 years and at the 30th year, I will walk away. I will stay on, though, for about 6 months in a consulting role. After that, my plan is to consult younger shop owners to help them grow their businesses. I have been approached by a coaching company already, but they don’t fit my style so I’ll be looking around for the best fit. As for the real estate side, I own several residential rentals and have had no desire to own commercial real estate in the state of NJ. Leasing has always been the best option for me.

Tom, you say you have no desire to own commercial real estate in NJ, but in the very next sentence you say leasing has always been the best option for you.  My experience has taught me to play as a mortgage holder with a pre-payment penalty clause to where the mortgagor has to pay all unearned interest in the event of an early payoff.  I've done it both ways, lease and sell, but made the mistake of not having an early payoff penalty clause.  I don't know about you, but I'm 67 and have very serious doubts that I would outlive a 30-year mortgage.  J. Larry Bloodworth, [email protected], (801) 885-2227.

[JerryK]

I have been a shop owner for almost 42 years. I have a good team that take great care of our clients and I am only in the shop a few days each week. It is a great time to be an owner! Why sell? 

[Joe Marconi]

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[Transmission Repair]

4 hours ago, JerryK said:

I have been a shop owner for almost 42 years. I have a good team that take great care of our clients and I am only in the shop a few days each week. It is a great time to be an owner! Why sell? 

Can't afford to retire or sell is a good reason.  Like Joe said, plan an exit strategy or life may give you a curve ball.  Joe has taught me a LOT.

[Transmission Repair]

12 hours ago, Joe Marconi said:

Glad to see you have a plan.  Please help this group of employees with the process.  Sometimes, their "desire" does not materialize into actual reality. I had two serious-minded employees that really want to buy the business but bailed out when the time came.  Looking back, I should have done a better job of helping them through the process. 

Joe,

You talk realities.  We would all like to think our crew at the shop could handle everything like we did after we're gone.  The truth of the matter is for former employees need to get strongly engaged in coaches like you.   Bob Cooper, and other shop coaches in your company.   I spent a lot of money with Bob Cooper's company years ago, but it was a great deal in the long run.  No regrets.

J. Larry Bloodworth, [email protected] (801) 885-2227

[Joe Marconi]

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[Transmission Repair]

5 minutes ago, Joe Marconi said:

Thank you, Larry, for your kind words, and your endorsement. Before I began coaching and training, I was a client of Bob Cooper and Elite. Being coached greatly helped me in business too.  It's my time to give back, it's why I coach others today and cofounded Auto Shop Owner.  

Not to sound like a sales pitch here, but a coach can help a shop owner today, and through the process of preparing for an eventual exit. 

Thanks again, Larry! 

For the second half of my career, I was really big on sales and management training.  Elite was one of many in my career.  I used to think that the training HAD to be industry-specific.  Not so.  I had Roy H. Williams in Austin, TX as a trainer around 2014-2015.  He would say, "I don't care if your selling and managing jet engines, a donut shop, or a bookstore, the principles in sales and management remain the same."