Reasonable People Can Come to Reasonable Solutions

The Situation: A husband and wife team owned 8 Gymboree franchises- 4 on Long Island and 4 in NYC, and were looking to retire. They had reasonable, but high price expectations, and truly cared about who would be taking over the business they built. None of the 8 locations were without its challenges, as many of the locations needed to be relocated, and finding a buyer who would be able to get approved by 4 NYC landlords is a challenge.

The Result: Kensington marketed the opportunity in a number of ways of the course of their relationship with the husband and wife team, due to the challenging nature of some of the locations. Kensington introduced the sellers to many buyers who either could not get comfortable with the need to relocate some of the businesses, or who the sellers did not feel comfortable selling their business to. Ultimately Kensington introduced the sellers to a young couple who reminded the sellers of themselves at a younger age. The buyers and sellers really hit it off during the meeting, and it ended with hugs all around. The next day the young couple submitted a full price offer they had written which included “reasonable people can come to reasonable solutions” when referring to the need to relocate some of the businesses, and the understanding that challenges may unfold down the road. The young couple ultimately purchased the 4 Long Island units, and the sellers sold the 4 NYC units to their district manager leaving them in a position to enjoy their retirement, knowing they had left their business in the hands of capable people who they admired and trusted.