Featured

Basic Training: M is for When ‘Member’ Shouldn’t Mean ‘Owner’

Basic Training: M is for When ‘Member’ Shouldn’t Mean ‘Owner’

By Nina Kaufman, Esq.

People are getting smart about creating communities online. If you can get people to join, and you provide a benefit at a reasonable cost, chances are you’ll be on your way to building a nice annuity stream. The problem comes (as it does in other kinds of businesses) when the founders want to “sweeten the pot” by offering miniscule ownership interests in the company. I don’t recommend it, and I’ll explain why: Q.: My business sells memberships. There is a lifetime membership option available that is rather expensive, but I thought that if I included one share of the business in this option, it might make it more appealing. Can I include a share of the business in one of the membership types and is this legal? A.: This can be done legally, but you run into more complications than it’s worth. Not a great way to go. First, unless you have a locked-in, airtight plan to go public (or have a horde of dedicated followers to the “cause”), the dollar value of your one…

Continue Reading

Popular

Partnership Q&A: Time to get out . . . or get more $$?

Q. I am a founding partner in a 15-year business.  All 3 partners work in different capacities at our business. We have had financial struggles along the way. Recently, my 2 partners have infused capital…

Read More

Who takes over from you?

As Seen In … Like Erma Bombeck famously said about housework, Succession planning expands to fill the time available. It can take years. Except … when it can’t. Let me share with you stories of…

Read More

Declaring Your Independence

With the July Fourth holiday upon us, what are you doing to declare your independence? Have you found ways to streamline your business so that you’re not enslaved to repetitious drudgery? One of the best-known…

Read More
Nina Kaufman

Flying solo doesn’t have to mean going it alone.

I’m Nina Kaufman.

I know first-hand that running a knowledge-based service business has unique challenges. It’s so much easier when you have an advocate in your corner. Over the past 25 years, I’ve worked with thousands of New York business professionals who want a legal advisor to guide and support them as they navigate the business world.

With wide-ranging experience as a business attorney, strategist, and media authority, I bring the added power of a business lens to the legal issues my clients are facing.

And because I’ve been a business owner myself, I’ve lived through the soaring highs and devastating lows – like when my first law firm failed. So I understand what’s involved to serve great clients, detect business risks early and build a true legacy.

I can’t get those 12 years back. That’s why I have made it my mission to ensure that business professionals like you can become wise and discerning leaders, build a solid business, and live your best life.