Transition of Ownership of Family Businesses in San Marcos
Also Helping Family Business Owners in Carlsbad, Vista, Escondido, and Oceanside
You worked hard to build up and establish your family business in San Marcos, California. Whether you own a thriving engineering firm, subcontracting agency, or a real estate empire; or whether you built a “mom and pop” restaurant into a thriving hot spot in the San Marcos area, the team at the Law Office of Darius Khayat can help you protect your legacy and transition the ownership of your family business to the next generation.
Choosing Your Successor
Perhaps you already have a clear idea of whom you want to take over your business. Perhaps you plan to entrust your company to your adult twin daughters. Alternatively, maybe you are confused about whether to transfer full or partial ownership to a child who lacks industry experience; or whether you might give the business to someone outside the family, such as a close associate or even someone you recruit specifically to succeed you as the owner.
According to research published in the Family Business Review, nearly a third of all family businesses last into the second generation. Approximately 1 out of 10 successful family-owned businesses makes it to the third generation or beyond. However, success at “succession” is by no means guaranteed. The strategic choices you make now, while you are still in command of your faculties and knowledgeable about the whys and wherefores of your industry, can profoundly impact not only your legacy and your children’s future but also possibly your grandchildren’s future and beyond.
A Suite of Unique Challenges for Family Business Owners
Managing Legal Issues and Logistics
As a family business owner, you know how complicated industry regulations, business tax law, and employee management can be. Small errors on your corporate taxes, for instance, can lead to years of litigation and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses. As an entrepreneur, you learned how to think strategically: to focus on your strengths and build your business to avoid your vulnerabilities. Building a business is an ongoing process. You no doubt still feel “thrown off your game” from time to time.
Deftly Handling Family Politics
Even if you’ve groomed a successor for your family business, perhaps you fear finally and totally merging your business and family life. Perhaps you want to retain control. Perhaps you and your son or daughter (or other “heir apparent”) hold divergent philosophies about how to manage the business, deal with competitors, break new ground, deal with problematic employees, and so forth. Even the smallest of disagreements can confound an otherwise smooth, orderly, happy transfer of power.
Contingency Planning for the Unexpected
As a successful entrepreneur, you have come to see special wisdom in Jack Welch’s famous quote about transformation: “change before you have to.” In other words, you recognize that your industry, your business, and your life are all perpetually in flux. To protect yourself from the ill effects of jolting or unwanted change — to maximize your ability to thrive in an uncertain environment — you need a flexible, strategic approach.
The team at the Law Office of Darius Khayat can help you transition the ownership of your family business in San Marcos in a way that abides with your principles, ensures maximum control, safety and compliance, and positions the successor generation for success.
The Law Office of Darius Khayat serves San Marcos as well as surrounding communities, including Carlsbad, Vista, Escondido, and Oceanside. Call us now: 760-591-0245.