Selling a Restaurant , Buying a Landmark :Marian’s Bagels, South Florida

This is a story of a business sale in South Florida of a Landmark Bagel Restaurant with a 40+ year history of business operations known as Marian’s Bagels. This bagel restaurant is located in Plantation, Florida.

At the same time this story is about the sale of a restaurant, it is also then about the purchase of this Landmark bagel restaurant by a new owner. The new owner re-located to Boca Raton, Florida from New York about three years ago with the intention of finding the right business to buy. Magic happened when Dean Manos was shown Marian’s Bagels .

I interviewed the Real Estate Business Broker, Russell Cohen, award-winning Owner/Broker of a Murphy Business Franchise for almost 17 years in Florida. Russell is credited with a sales volume in excess of $80 million dollars in selling 480 businesses since 1999. Having an experienced professional who has experienced so many situations in these transactions can also be a huge benefit to the buyers and sellers because in the end, these businesses are people’s lives and livelihoods .

According to Russell Cohen, the purchase and sale of Marian’s Bagels was a textbook perfect transaction. The business went from listing to sold and closed within 60 days. We wanted to learn about the elements that contributed to making this statement true.

Russell shared what helps the owners of a business to sell the business for the best possible price in the most reasonable amount of time and to get to the closing. The seller of this restaurant was more prepared to sell this business by having proof that the business was profitable that could be verified by the buyers.

Although this business was listed and closed quickly, the buyer had been looking for the right business to purchase for almost three years, so the buyer had spent much more time considering other opportunities and knew this business was a match for his requirements.Marian’s bagels had location, track record of success, reputation, and income that all were taken into consideration by the buyer when making this life-changing decision which will impact everyone for years to come.

In previous interviews Russell has told us about owners who think it is better not to show and document they are making money. This concept does not work in their favor when they want to sell and the buyer wants a business that makes money. It is not a good strategy we’ve learned for those who are looking to borrow money from a traditional lender such as a bank or finance company and they have to prove the ability to repay any loan they are taking on their business.

It can be easier for the buyer to evaluate and understand a business opportunity when the buyer has industry experience. Not all buyers have industry experience and some buyers of businesses may not have ever owned a business before. Some buyers need additional industry consultants, coaches, mentors and training to be successful with a business. Having money is not enough to guarantee a business will succeed.

Another factor that contributed to Marian’s Bagels being an excellent sales and purchase transaction was the fact that this long-time established restaurant also had a great reputation.

In this world of digital business and online reviews, one can find out information at the click of a mouse that was not as readily available years ago. A good reputation helps the buyer to have more confidence that this business will continue to attract customers and repeat clientele and that certainly helped.

The sellers were so happy with Russell Cohen’s business brokerage services that they gave Russell referrals to new clients right after the closing and that is one of the best compliments a broker can have. For information on businesses for sale in Florida or to sell your business http://www.FlaBiz4sale.com