Let’s start with the obvious, but often overlooked: Controlling your real estate in some form of ownership, especially in today’s restaurant market, is preferable to leasing. Control gives you the option of converting your…
Two words come to mind for the anatomy of a deal the last few years: flexibility and creativity. Those two words were the hallmark of deals completed during the height of the pandemic and…
As we start the new year, I’ve been receiving a lot of questions about how companies can differentiate themselves in compensation planning. This afternoon I’ll be presenting a series of creative techniques to the…
If it’s December, that means I’m thinking and writing about yearend tax planning. Being a tax lawyer, it is always one of my most enjoyable articles to write. This year, however, is the hardest…
At the recent Restaurant Finance & Development Conference, I had the good fortune of moderating a real estate panel with three experts: Victor Calanog, a Moody’s economist renowned in the real estate sector; Glen…
When clients and fellow restaurateurs ask what their restaurant is worth, my general reply is that it’s worth a multiple of your cash flow, or EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization). Next,…
After taking advantage of targeted government programs, offered as lifelines in a drifting economic sea, the restaurant industry now heads for shore, but with a few extra passengers on board. With Main Street loans,…
Last month I wrote about important issues to consider going forward from a financial standpoint. This month, I’ll focus on seven non-financial items I think we learned from the pandemic that we should take…
The pandemic may be starting to be in our rearview mirror, but don’t relax yet. There are still loose ends to attend to. Here are some actions that you need to be thinking of…
