by Samantha Tkachuk ‘A celebration of our industry’
OFA/ECLDA Conference
thei r legal obl igat ions as employers. Jonathan discussed termination with just cause and without cause, providing many interest ing examples. She stressed the importance of signed, written employment contracts and how they allow an employer to alter the com- mon law, avoid uncertainty regarding notices of termina- tion without cause, identify what constitutes cause, and deal with benefits, compensa- tion, duties and responsibilities. One area of interest to many in the audience was her discus- sion and tips on managing aging workers.
This year’s Ontario Fabricare Association (OFA) confer- ence included the Eastern Canada Launderers and Drycleaners Association (ECLDA) and was held over two days in the Greater Toronto Area. The conference began with a golf tournament at the beautiful Richmond Hill Golf Club followed by a cocktail reception. The second day of the conference was held at the Holiday Inn York- dale in Toronto, with a great lineup of speakers. Atten- dees were treated to a delicious buffet lunch graciously provided by Clark McDaniel of Fabricare Cleaning Center. In his opening remarks, outgoing president Brad
Maxwell introduced the new president of OFA, Brian Chelsky, who is currently president of ECLDA. Major changes for the OFA this year are that it has now joined forces with ECLDA, with all its members now part of the OFA, and the hiring of Sid Chelsky to be the OFA’s exec- utive director. Maxwell also detailed the OFA’s planned agenda for this year, including a new-members drive, dis- cussions with the Ontario Government regarding existing regulations in the industry and getting new benefits for members. Maxwell introduced the new Board of Directors: presi-
dent Brian Chelsky (Careful Hand Laundry & Dry Cleaners), 1st vice-president Brad Maxwell (Suedemaster Leather Cleaners), 2nd vice-president Jason Wiesner (Wiesner Insur- ance), directors Clark McDaniel (Fabricare Cleaning Cen- ter), Brian Hatt (Harco), Carlos Fernandes (Jensen USA), Joe Pereira and executive director Sidney Chelsky.
EMPLOYMENT REGULATION Christine Jonathan of MacDonald, Sager & Manis LLP spoke to the audience about the Ontario Employment Standards Act (the ESA) and reminded everyone about
24 FABRICARE CANADA July/August 2014
HEADING FOR THE EXIT Jordan Gould of Richter Part- ners, a business consulting firm specializing in privately held entrepreneurial companies, dis- cussed the importance of pro- tecting the value of a business and making the company attractive to buyers. According to Gould, one third of business owners plan to exit in five years, another thi rd in 10 years, and only 10% have a formal exit plan on how they will do so. An exit plan explores options for exiting the busi- ness, so you can protect the value of the business and maxi- mize your investment. Gould presented eight steps involved in the sale process.
1.Deciding when to sell your business.
2. Preparing for the sale. 3. Estimating the value and price of your business.
4. Searching for buyers. 5. Preliminary due diligence.
6.Deal structuring.
7.Negotiations with prospec- tive buyer.
8.Closing the deal.
During his presentation, Gould repeatedly reminded the audi- ence of how critical it is to ensure your company can run without you in order to appeal to buyers, and to know what you want to do personally once the deal is done. Many former owners go on to regret selling their busi- nesses because they hadn’t thought about what they would do with their new-found time.
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INVESTING YOUR MONEY Daniel Sacke, vice-president of BMO Nesbitt Burns, captured everyone’s attention when he discussed his market outlook, fielding numerous questions from the audience. In his pres- entation, Sacke listed his Top 5 No-Brainers Most Investors Aren’t Doing:
1. Legal ly wr i t ing off your mortgage interest.
2.Cutting your investment fees in half.
3.Going global.
4.Using spousal loans. 5.Holding fixed income invest- ments in registered accounts.
Sacke also detailed the invest- ment strategies he applies to his practice and his methods of picking stocks. He stressed to the audience the importance of avoiding media hype when
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1. Life Membership presented to Richard Rivard by Brian Chelsky. 2. Daniel Sacke of BMO Nesbitt Burns presenting his market outlook. 3. Incoming OFA president Brian Chelsky with outgoing president Brad Maxwell.
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