Making the Most of a Quick-Turnaround Sale
Where business begins, friendship ends. Or so the saying goes. But for Nathan and Jen, it seemed only natural to reach out to longtime friends at Pendleton Street for occasional off-the-cuff business advice. When the couple was ready to sell their burgeoning lifestyle company, they knew it was finally time to engage in a formal relationship.
As Nathan recalls, “We were at the end of ourselves. The business was doing well, but we didn’t have the time and energy to devote to it, or to make sure it kept growing. Selling seemed too daunting, so we announced we were going to close up shop. Then we got all these offers — I think that was when we knew we needed outside expertise.”
Pendleton Street was engaged to value the early stage company and then separate the serious offers from the unqualified. Once the field had been narrowed to two buyers, the team negotiated a buyout that would allow Nathan and Jen to retain 40 percent ownership of their business in exchange for Jen’s continued creative involvement. According to Jen, it’s been the perfect solution. “To be honest, we never thought our company would grow as quickly or be as successful as it was,” she says. “Now we have the best of both worlds, and I feel so at peace with our decision.”