- September 2016 -

When 12-year-old Bryan Clifton became a partner in his family’s toy and novelty business, he did more than positional marketing and production outsourcing. He laid the foundation for his own future entrepreneurial endeavors. “I thought it was normal for a kid my age to run cash registers and sell toys at trade shows,” he says. “Soon thereafter, I was handling the majority of the business’ financial operations and logistics. And once again I thought that was normal.”



 
By the time Bryan learned that his prominent role was, in fact, quite unique, he was also discovering how a business transitions without an exit plan. “Part of the reason I founded Myriad Insight is that I saw firsthand what happened in my family’s business when the right pieces were not in place for a successful exit strategy. There was pain and frustration. My goal and desire is to make sure people realize they have other options.”
 
“I’ve found that there are a lot of resources out there to help entrepreneurs begin well,” says the CEO, “but there are very few resources to help them know how to end well. So launching Myriad Insight is a market opportunity as well as a way to help alleviate the stress I see in the lives of many entrepreneurs.” 
 
At the September 14 Oklahoma Venture Forum luncheon, Bryan will present his custom exit strategy plan. “I call it the EFT model, which stands for emotional, financial and tactical.”
 
Clifton’s approach, which puts a priority on dealing with the emotional aspect of letting go of a business, may seem counterintuitive. But he is quick to point out that, “The number one reason why a transition or succession is a failure is the inability to deal with the emotional aspect. It does not matter what the number says on the piece of paper if you feel like your identity is taken or like you weren’t valued or respected.”
 
“People need to have the chance to voice their concerns so that all parties are on the same page from an emotional standpoint. That includes spouses of business owners because their lives are about to change dramatically. When all of this is done properly, putting together the terms and financial aspects for an exit strategy becomes much easier.”
 
But easier does not mean quick. “Many times entrepreneurs will come to me and say, ‘I want to sell my business in three months.’ But you can’t sell in that time frame and get the maximum value for your business.”
 
“The short side for selling a business is a year,” says the founder of Myriad Insight. “But most of the time it’s three to five years of preparing, getting your financials in order, and getting your performance up to a spot where you’re able to get that maximum value.”
 
“Three to five years shows that your business has a track record. It also shows that it has probably been able to weather at least one storm, whether that was a key employee leaving or an economic issue that really hit your particular industry. People want to see that there’s some staying power and that this isn’t just a concept or an idea.”
“All of this doesn’t mean you have to start working on an exit strategy today so you can sell in 2021. It does mean you have to have a good track record and performance for a minimum of three years.”
 
In the meantime, Clifton will continue his own serial entrepreneurship journey. “I am currently an owner in four different ventures,” he says. “Myriad Insight is the biggest one; the others are in different stages of growth and have differing pieces of my attention.”
 
“If I hadn’t been exposed to business opportunities at a very early age,” he says, “I wouldn’t have the entrepreneurial drive that I have today.”