Small Business Forum

Business building tips,resources,newsletters,new listings by state and category and a full fledged broker directory exclusively at acquireo.com.

Business building tips,resources,newsletters,new listings by state and category and a full fledged broker directory exclusively at acquireo.com.

Back in my college days at the University of California at Berzerkeley, my roommate started a wee little business: typing papers for the hunt-and-peck fraternity crowd. He bootstrapped the entire operation: borrowing my technologically advanced electric typewriter with built-in correction ribbon and “borrowing” clean sheets of paper by the ream from the campus office of his part-time job. Business was just picking up to nearly $5 a day (5 typed pages) as word-of-mouth advertising spread when he ... [read more]

Read "Part 1: I Don't Know" here Everyone's mother warned about not taking candy from strangers, but I don't remember any of those mothers talking about rejecting well-meaning but totally ignorant advice. The clothes-buying couple mentioned to a shop clerk the intolerable six-hour duration of the Highway 101 voyage down to LA. The clerk, giddy from the fresh sale, commiserated and let them know that if they took Highway 5 back, it would only take three hours. Thank goodness for friendly shop c... [read more]

I joined a Chinese couple, who recently began a retail clothing business, on a buying trip to Los Angeles, where I was to serve as English-language navigator. (I thought it would be fun since I don’t know LA at all and I could take a break from my work.) We hopped in the car in the darkness of Friday’s pre-dawn hours to begin our 550-mile voyage south. After one hour, we were east of where we started and lost. (I get to confess innocence since I don’t drive and therefore am not expected to know ... [read more]

Business building tips,resources,newsletters,new listings by state and category and a full fledged broker directory exclusively at acquireo.com.

I get a lot of mail and packages for my various businesses. But I’m not always around to sign for the packages. In the 1980s, I discovered private mailbox rentals. Back then, there weren’t as many choices as we have today. Most were independent mom-and-pop shops; I don’t remember seeing franchise mailbox and packaging companies like Mailboxes Etc. and others until much later. But I did find Chuck, who owned and operated A-OK Business Services, to be a very personable guy and decided to rent a bo... [read more]

I remember from my surfing days an Australian who was in town to do construction management for an executive’s new luxury home. During the weekends, he would surf. (He flew in his surfboards with him from Sydney.) One of his philosophies was really simple: “You don’t ask, you don’t get.” I like that. It’s simple. And it works. Apply this to gathering intelligence. If you’re thinking about buying a business, it’s good to go into the situation with as much understanding you can get. Even the sim... [read more]

Taking one of my famous long walks in the neighborhood last Saturday afternoon, I ended up in front of the Great India Restaurant, reading the signboard they have out front: Buffet - $6.45. Since I was in the mood to stuff myself to the gills, I went in, grabbed a plate, and piled it dangerously high. An elderly Indian gentleman came to my table to fill my water glass and I asked him if it’s customary to eat with the right hand rather than using utensils. He explained that those in the south of ... [read more]

We’ll occasionally post information on news and updates about Acquireo. Here are a few changes about site improvements we just made and how they help you: Searching for businesses for sale: Buy a business search page: to help you search for businesses easier by searching by keywords and city, and to sign up for automated alerts (RSS feeds and e-mail alerts), all from one page. We've added auto suggest functionality to the location textbox to help you find businesses faster. Advanced search pa... [read more]

Some of you are wondering what RSS is, how you can use it, and how it can make life easier for you. You got 2 choices: Read the full-blown RSS explanation we have on Acquireo, or read the 2 short paragraphs below and then choose one of the RSS feed readers. You want short paragraphs followed by easy action? Good. What does RSS do? It sends information from websites (such as Acquireo) to you, rather than you needing to go back to those websites to check for updates. It works really well on websi... [read more]

I love going into Chinatown to my favorite Chinese bakery to order their Chinese pork buns (known in Cantonese as char siu bao). Priced at 80 cents each, the counter help long ago upsold me by letting me know I can get 4 buns for $3. I have been ordering 4 for $3 ever since, 3 times a week. I was a bit surprised last Sunday when I dropped in, ordered 4 from the manager, and was charged $3.20, 20 cents more than usual. I walked away with my 4 pork buns, 20 cents short of what I expected, without ... [read more]

This morning, after finishing my shower, I turned the water off and switched off the diverter. (Okay: so we're gonna talk about plumbing businesses, right?) Then, I heard something I hadn't heard for quite a while: water draining from the shower spout down onto the tub spout, creating a ringing bell sound. I hear that sound every day, but I don't "hear" it, having tuned it out a long time ago. Its human behavior to quickly tune out environmental noise that it first finds to be distracting. Like... [read more]

"Have your own hare-raising experience. Rabbit farm for sale. Reasonable price. Includes rapidly growing inventory. Call 555-1234 after school hours until bedtime and ask for Jennie or Tommy." Why are Jennie and Tommy selling? They have suffered financial reverses, already pawned their Xbox® game equipment, but still are desperate for cash. Jennie and Tommy are overwhelmed by success and lack the experience to manage their business at its larger level. Executives (Mom and Dad) of their corpor... [read more]

Are you one of the zillions of people whose work routine is to leave the house, walk down to the corner, buy a $3 cup of espresso-based coffee, find a table and power up your laptop, and log onto a wireless internet? You mean that was you at the table next to me? Nice shoes. In the old days, you got your cup of coffee at the diner, along with a slice of homemade apple pie, served by a friendly, mothering, gum-chomping waitress named Madge, clad in her pale pink and white uniform. You remember:... [read more]

I'm delighted that we recently went live with BrokerLogics, our broker services division of Acquireo. It's especially tailored to the needs of business brokers who list their client's businesses for sale on Acquireo. Brokers have 2 types of accounts to choose from: High Gear broker services and Low Gear broker services. High Gear accounts get unlimited premier listings and a free preferred business broker directory listing. This gives both their listings and their firm greater exposure throughou... [read more]

I follow real estate and saw the following headline: "Rents take a leap as retail vacancy rate plummets to 3.02%" I can imagine retail brokers across that particular region checking in with each other before retail space is leased or offered for lease, in order to maintain that magical 3.02% vacancy rate. Let's listen in on a phone call at that well-known business brokerage that also handles retail leasing now: Broker: Good morning, ABC-XYZ Realty. How may I help you? Owner: I own that sh... [read more]

I was hungrily grazing in the bookstore seeking food for thought and found myself in an alcove filled with business start-up books and guides. Pulling one about the specialty travel industry off the shelf, the back cover promised to feed me: "Turn your hunger for adventure into an exhilarating – and lucrative – business." Checking the menu (table of contents), I found there was a lot to digest and more of a meal than I was prepared to stomach in one sitting: briefing the reader on what the indu... [read more]

Way back in the last millennium – I think it was 1988 – a fellow tenant named Sam owned a Subway® sandwich shop on the ground floor of the two-story walkup office building I was in. He did great business, since everyone knew the Subway® brand of sandwich franchise, and the parking lot was overflowing on weekends. I got to know him since he sublet office space at night from me to do his accounting, as he had no room in the back of his shop for a desk. I don’t know what kind of margins a retail s... [read more]