Plan
“to arrange or design a method for obtaining specified benefits or filling certain needs.”
Cu·rated
“to select, organize, and present information, typically using professional or expert knowledge.”
Plan Curation is simple: Solve problems, and find the best way to maximize benefits.
Take it from Gary.
Gary had inherited the business from his father, and always assumed his kids would want to take it over when he retired.
Only problem? They didn’t want it. When we asked him what his plan was now that his kids were out, he said, “Actually, I’ve been thinking about it for YEARS and have no idea.”
Honestly, that’s pretty common for most business owners we meet. Not because they are unintelligent – actually the opposite! But their problems are difficult, they get multiple ideas from every professional, and they are busy running their successful business. They don’t have the time to develop an elaborate plan that takes into account all the options, opportunities, and benefits available.
Gary was no different. He didn’t feel like he had the time, energy, or expertise to devote to this kind of in-depth planning.
His situation in a nutshell:
1. Estate Taxes – No matter what he did, Tom’s kids were going to owe the government a lot of money.
2. His sister, a minority owner, didn’t have enough money for retirement
3. He had employees that were like family – if possible, he wanted them to be able to keep working in the business
4. Even though his kids didn’t want the business, he still wanted them to benefit
5. He wanted to travel with his wife, work his ranch, and play with his grandkids without worrying about the future
The solution? Sell to a third party at maximum price. We helped hire a CEO to run the business, added new incentive plans and golden parachutes so the employees were incentivized to grow the company and stay with it, and made sure he had professionals that could make it happen.
It took time, like all good plans do. But in the end, Tom was a hero. His sister was able to fund her retirement with the proceeds, Tom got to spend time on his ranch and travel with his wife, and instead of the children owing taxes on a company they didn’t want, they received an inheritance to help them get through the next phase of life.
That's the kind of story we live for.