Selling the Business
Pieces of my journal from 10/29/2020 through 11/27/2020
My prayer journaling through the fall of 2020 was spotty. I wish I would have written regularly, but I know why I didn’t… because it would be the same thing I had been praying all year…
“Lord, I’m tired. I’m burnt out. I’m head over heels in debt. I’m done with the scooter shop. Show me a way out.”
Here are a few bullet points from some of the prayers I did make during this time…
Thursday, October 29th, 2020 8:53a - “Thank you for answered prayers. I know you could place money in my lap at any moment for the cash flow troubles, debt, etc. that is causing hardship at these times, but what would I learn? How would I be stonger? I’ve prayed for resources, mentors, coaches and you’ve delivered.”
[I’ve found that asking Jesus to put the right people, resources, and opportunities in my path is wildly effective. Try it.]
Tuesday, November 3, 2020 8:01 am - “It’s election day. I’ve voted and I pray it was the right choice and that you take it from here. In many ways this country is united, but it feels in most, we are divided.”
[Please pray for our country.]
Tuesday, November 10th, 2020 8:27 am - “I need clarity. PLEASE. What do you want me to do? Going ten days into the month and having one scooter sale is scary. Is this the writing on the wall? Do I sell off, sell the building, and get out? Am I holding on emotionally?”
[Scooter sales are 65% of our overall revenue, so when they completely stop, we hurt badly. We sold 6 scooters total that month, which is extremely low (the year before we sold 23 units in November and if you remember 2019 was a bad year for us, too.)]
Tuesday, November 17th, 2020 8:30 am - “I trust you and know that you know what is best. I pray my vision aligns with your will for my life. I pray that we will get this property leased up, be generating income from the rents, or it sells. I pray that I’ll be 100% out of the business by April and pray for your blessing on that timeline. I pray over our people. I pray for their families. I pray that it will be an easy transition for everyone. Thank you for having our PPP loan of $85,200 forgiven yesterday. Thank you...”
[I started to gather the pieces together to close the shop. The plan was watery at best at this stage, but these were the options I was thinking through… 1. Try to sell the business. 2. Liquidate and close the business, then rent out the buildings to generate income. 3. Sell the property.
Why did I pray to be out by April 2021? I knew I would have to know by April 2021 because the end of April would be the end of the spring semester. If we were going to stay open, I would have to promote summer storage and take advantage of that revenue by early April. I would also have to plan to order scooters so they would be here in time for the fall semester. End of March / Early April would be the time to close the business if there was one. I thought for sure the scooter shop would be closing for good by the time April 2021 came around.]
Tuesday, November 24th, 2020 8:44a - “Jesus, I see a grand vision for my life… maybe not employing thousands like I once thought, but impacting thousands and millions… Yes.”
[Proverbs 29:18 KJV “Where there is no vision, the people perish…”]
(I started this entry at the bottom of a page under another to not waste paper. Sorry for the weird cut, lol.)
Friday, November 27 9:18 am - “Thanksgiving was yesterday and spending quality time with Shannon, Maddox, Schaefer, Sandy and Chris [Shannon’s mom and stepdad / the grandparents] was great. I’m so grateful. I love talking to Shannon about our future, listening to Dave Ramsey in the car, and discussing what we love. I loved the golf cart rides with Maddox, pushing him in the swing, rocking him in my lap, and him coming to me and asking me to pull his tooth. These little things mean so much to me. May I please remember them and cherish them forever. Playing ‘Among Us’ with Schaefer and playing with the kitten with him. And I can’t believe how quickly they both have grown. It was great chatting with Chris and Sandy too. Bless this family Lord. I’m so grateful for a relaxing Thanksgiving.
Today is Black Friday and I’m sitting in my office preparing for a day of quiet work. I pray for productivity and that the work I do today may be the first dominos tipping over to a future that glorifies you and brings honor to my family. I’m going to read and sign the business broker’s agreement. Lord, if it is your will, I ask that NS4L sell quickly and that we can transition rapidly.”[I had been talking to a business broker and this would be the day I would sit down and sign the broker’s agreement to sell the business. The broker agreed to adjust the timeline to my beginning of April deadline.]
[This was the buyer deck one of my talented team members created… Click pic to see the whole thing.]
If you’ve been following along, you know that God’s plan was different and we still have the scooter dealership. In fact, praise be to God, it just came off its most successful years ever in 2021 and 2022! I’m excited to share the details with you soon! Subscribe to see how this story unfolds…
A few pics from this time in 2020…
Taking pics to try and lease our 607 building next door…
Thanksgiving golf cart rides with Maddox at my wife’s family’s farm…
2020 would end up being the best thing that ever happened to my entrepreneurial career and I’m excited to continue to share the story of what God does in future posts… I’m also glad I took this pic during that time…
Thank you for reading! Have a blessed week!
Collin
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