After a long journey building his company and navigating both the Japanese and
the Californian wine market, Robert Eberhart grew Wine InStyle, reaching sales
of $4.1M in 2017. Robert Eberhart is now in a key decision moment. Should he
take the deal or not? The answer is not obvious, like everything in life there
are pros and cons.
Why should he take the deal? First, it would provide the company with access
to cash, which is key for Wine InStyle to support its rapid growth. Second, Robert
would be able to free up his time and spend more quality time with his family
and in Palo Alto, which for him seems very important. Then, taking the deal
would also give back liquidity to Robert and the other early investors. Finally,
the company seems to be in good hands of a Japanese CEO, which makes sense
given the Japanese business culture.
However, there are some reasons why Robert should not take the deal. In fact,
it is not clear that the bidding is able to keep growing Wine InStyle (with the
necessary cash) while maintaining the mission and values of the company. Moreover,
there are doubts whether the bidding group is a rival who wants to eliminate
competition and destroy Wine InStyle. Finally, Robert may consider other
alternatives to provide the company with cash (e.g., cutting costs).
The decision depends mainly on whether Robert wants to
leave Japan and move back and for real to Palo Alto. If so, he should sell but he
should mitigate and have a plan for the reasons why he should not take the deal
stated above. For instance, he should make sure the company is going to
maintain the CEO and ask for certification.
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