007: Selling Your Business Without Giving it Up with Mark Burford
By Aline Wealth Management on January 28, 2020
In 1997, Long Islanders Mark Burford and Peter Cotter quit their jobs to make fresh, local, delicious beer for themselves – and sell whatever they happened to have left over. They founded Blue Point Brewing, gradually built their business and sold to Anheuser-Busch InBev in 2014.
After selling, Mark stayed on as an advisor as the company rapidly scaled, then contracted slightly as thousands of breweries opened all over the United States. He is now Blue Point’s active day to day president, and has had the incredible opportunity to stay closely involved with his business and keep things local while having access to the resources and reach of a major player in his industry.
Today, Mark joins the podcast to share incredible stories from the dawn of the American craft beer revolution, how founders can tell if it’s time to sell, and what you can do to best position your business to succeed at a whole new level after the sale.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The unique challenges Mark and Peter faced as they launched their brewery in 1997 – and how changing attitudes toward local beer radically reshaped this industry over the last 20 years.
- Why they chose to sell, and specifically chose to sell to AB InBev – and how this sale led them to a massive expansion, significant personnel shifts, and a number of challenges in the years that followed.
- How Mark became acting president of the company he sold and stays closely involved in day to day operations.
- How Blue Point Brewing has stayed a local business while operating at a national level – and how they’ve stayed loyal to Long Island as they’ve grown.
INSPIRING QUOTE
- “Get professional advice before you get to that point where you want to sell. Plan 24 months ahead to increase your valuation.” – Mark Burford
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