Minority vs. Majority Partners
“Mark Ferrier held minority ownership in a marketing agency called TRAFFIKGROUP. The company was eventually acquired by a private equity group in an eight figure exit,” shares Sam Thompson a Minneapolis business broker and the president of M&A firm Transitions In Business. “This episode shares Mark’s legal challenges with his partners and how to protect your reputation during a lawsuit.”
Mark Ferrier built the marketing agency TRAFFIKGROUP to more than $2 million of EBITDA before it was acquired by the private equity group Onex in an eight-figure exit. In this first of a two-part interview, Mark shares the story of how he got started in the marketing agency world and how a rift with his former partners left him on the wrong end of a $2 million lawsuit. You’ll learn how to:
- Get alignment with your minority partners.
- Buy out your partners (without sabotaging your business).
- Use a shotgun clause in your shareholders agreement.
- Distinguish between non-compete and non-solicitation agreements.
- Protect your reputation during a lawsuit.
- Structure your partnership agreement to protect the value of a service business in a dispute.