If you’re the owner of a successful family business in Buffalo or elsewhere in Western New York, you’re likely quite content with the hard-earned efforts that have secured that reality. It is not easy to turn an entrepreneurial idea into a thriving enterprise that has proved viable over the long term.
Any thoughts you might have concerning your realized dream might also become tempered over the years, though, by one progressively growing concern.
That is this: How can you ensure the continued existence and profitability of your business once you surrender the managerial reins to retire or pursue other endeavors?
Company principals everywhere eventually dwell upon that question. We note on our website at the long-established Tarantino Law Firm in Buffalo that many owners harbor a dream to eventually “pass along the business to one or more of their children.”
The optimal time to begin laying a firm foundation for doing so is the present. A proven business law legal team can play a vital role in crafting a tailored results-oriented succession strategy.
That strategy will be centrally informed across many dimensions, including these:
- Timing
- Document/governance scrutiny
- Identification of key personnel
- Tax consequences
Notably, it is generally a good idea to begin focusing on succession matters several years before any material changes being made. Family members need to well informed and on board for what is upcoming. Key company agreements must be accurately updated. The roles of all affected parties must be delineated. A succession date must be selected.
You worked long and hard to establish a successful business. Careful succession planning can ensure its continued viability in the future.
