David Braun
Author's posts
Ikea Buys Freelance Platform TaskRabbit so You’ll Never Have to Assemble Their Furniture Again
If you have ever purchased Ikea furniture, you understand the struggle of trying to assemble it. The “simple” diagrams are not easy to follow, some of the screws or nails go missing, and sometimes the piece falls apart after you finish building it. Ikea is hoping to solve this problem for future buyers with its …
Buy vs. Build? How to Know Which Solution is Best
Should you acquire a company or develop your own solution? This is a question many leaders wrestle with when considering the best path forward for their company; however, there’s no one answer since every company’s situation is unique and each approach has its advantages and disadvantages. Let’s take a moment to explore these two pathways …
Developing a New Product or Service? Consider Acquisition
96 percent of businesses fail within 10 years. 80 percent of consumer products fail annually. Statistically, it’s obvious that launching a new product or service is challenging. Entrepreneurs pour their lives into starting their companies and while some of the lucky ones become the next Facebook, most struggle to succeed. Even large established corporations face …
Nestlé Bets on Fast Growing Markets with Sweet Earth and Blue Bottle Coffee Deals
Nestlé is scooping up two brands in fast growing markets to expand its product offerings in North America. The Swiss company will acquire Sweet Earth, a maker of plant-based foods, as consumer demand for natural, organic and healthy food grows. Nestle expects the market to reach $5.21 billion by 2020. Based in Moss Landing, California, …
How to Navigate Today’s High Valuation Multiples
Valuation multiples in the middle market are “unprecedented” due to low interest rates, relatively cheap debt available in today’s market, and high amounts of dry powder chasing the same deals. According to GF Data, average valuations reached 7.4 times, the highest quarterly mark the data base has recorded in 15 years. With such high valuations, …
Fujifilm to Use Acquisitions to Grow Beyond Shrinking Film Market
Can you remember the last time you had film developed? My guess is that it’s been a long time for most of you. Digital cameras, first introduced in the 1980s, have surpassed traditional film cameras in popularity. Kodak, once the dominant player in photography, failed to transition from analog to digital and went bankrupt in …
M&A Today: Smaller Deals Are on the Rise
Acquirers are favoring smaller acquisitions over mega deals. If you were to compare M&A in 2017 to previous years, you might think that dealmaking is declining, but a closer look at the data tells a different story. Although announced US deal value decreased by 16 percent in the first half of 2017, the number of …
5 Steps to Rethink Your Company’s Approach to Strategic Growth
When it comes to pursuing strategic growth, one of the biggest mistakes a leader can make is to simply keep doing something because that’s the way it has always been done. It’s important to reevaluate processes and methods with today’s business environment in mind. The very nature of business is change. New technologies, capabilities, and …
What Role Does an M&A Advisor Play in Negotiations?
During negotiations, a third-party M&A advisor acts as a buffer between buyer and seller. As you can imagine, negotiations can become quite intense and emotional on both sides and we want to do everything in our power to preserve a harmonious relationship between both parties. Having a good working relationship with the seller is important, …
5 Paths for Helping Your Credit Union Grow
In the last three to four years, credit unions have taken a heightened interest in growing noninterest income due to a combination of factors. As interest income dwindles, credit unions need to offset additional expenses such as compliance. Over the past decade, we’ve seen a massive influx of noncredit union centric people coming into the …
